The morning call., 1890-09-07
EVERY TRIP
COSTS $4,000.
Running Twin-Screw Racer
Across the Atlantic.
The Receipts Are Considerably Greater, and
the Great Ships Undoubtedly Pay.
Details That As.onish.

EN.;N HAT does it cost to run a twin
GE1Eo screw steamer across The At
sElN.N lantic? is question that has
often been asked. A representative of the
New York Sun recently visited the agents
of prominent steamship companies and OBJ
tanned mass of interesting information,
which will serve as answers to the question.
Agent E. L. Boas un rayeled as well as he
was able the mystery that had enshrouded
the little problem. A midsummer trip of
the magnificent Normannia was the theme
of his calculation. The Normannia is not
quite as big as the twin-screw boats of the
White Star and Inman lines, but her ex-
pense account, owing to the greater length
of her voyage, is just as formidable. The
cost of running her from her dock in the
Teutonic town Of Hoboken to her dock in
the town Of Hamburg, no less Teutonic
perhaps, is about the same as the cost of
running the City Of Paris from New York
TO Liverpool.
When the Normannia starts on an east
ward voyage she carries nearly 5000 tons of
coal in her protected bunkers. Some of this
is American and some foreign soft coal, and
it costs about So 80 a ton. The sooty stok-
ers daily shovel into her roaring red fur
naces between $50 and 800 tons. The ex-
penditure for coal runs just short of $1,000
dav. or nearly $4,000 for the voyage. The
cost of the gallons and gallons of oil used
TO keep her ponderous triple-eXpansion en-
gipes, her dynamos, her numerous smaller
engines, her pumps, and so on, running
smoothly, combined with the coal bill, is
quite $500. :,
are not an unimportant factor in the ex-
pense account Among the 800 persons who
look after the working OF the racer and the
comfort of her passengers are, besides cool
headed Captain Hebich, 8 officers, surgeon,
% engineers and machlnists, puIsers,.
ers and mattresses, % cooks, bakers and
assistants, carpenters. barber and IA
skilled musicians. The total wages OF these
for a trip of eight days is about S2C0V, not
counting perquisites.
Captain Hebich receives the highest sal
ary. 1t varies between $1,000 and $4,000
wear. and depends somewhat on the earn.
ings of the ship. of which he receives small
percentage. This is the way the shippers
of all the colossal racing craft are PAID, ana
it is not likely that any OF them are going W
cease racing. or 10 be censured for It, as long
as fast trip means money In their pockets
and in the Golfers of their company. Every
hour the captain of the City of New fork
saves means saving in coal alone OIL Soo
Next in Importance to the captain OF an
ocean speeder is the chief engineer. be IS
not as frequently visible to the cabin pas
sengers as his gold-laced superior. and no.
body makes much fuss over him, but ne is,
in the opinion of his employers, very big
man indeed. He is the man who makes the
great ship git up and git" lie submits
daily reports of how things are gong on
down below to the captain. He tells how
fon af ha ia uSiup how mucn In
dictated horse power he obtains, and the num-
Der of revolutions the ships propellers make
a minute If he doesn't get as much
speed out of the clanking twin giants as the
captain thinks he ought TO, the captain pats
him on the back and tells him to whoop her
| up. like good fellow. 1t is essential to the
| captains interest that he should be friendly
| with the boss of the mighty machines. For
| his great work the chief engineer receives
| S160 a month and his board, which is equal
to that OF the cabin passengers. The chief
officer receives $50 month, which Is more
than the captains of many steamships OF the
second class get.
| THE FOOD AND DRINK CONSUMED
By passengers and crew during recent
| trip of the NOrmannia cost about $4,000.
| This is the complete list of things that were
| necessary to make life aboard the luxurious
| floating hotel something like a dream: Two
s thousand five hundred bottles of red wine,
I so6G bottles OF Rhine wine, 1000 bottles of
Champagne, 1900 bottles of cordials, 1900
bottles Of beer, so kegs of beer. 400 bottles
OF ale and porter, $500 bottles OF mineral
water, 10000 pounds potatoes, 10000 pounds
OF beans. peas and so on, 25co cans
, Of trnli. 1860 ponds of jellies, tarts and
biscuits, IS baskets of vegetables 1900
pounds OF butter, 1900 pounds of cheese,
1000 eggs, $500 pounds or sugar, 1900 pounds
| OF coffer, 1000 poHpds u tea, $50 pounds Of
chocolate. ~ siIons of milk 10000 apples,
Ice orange ZIG igaanns, 400 glasses OF pre-
served frni.s, 30 barrels uf -four. s. gallons
+, OK ice cream, II eco pounds OF beef; 200
| aornes q muttcn 800 pounds of han
svgoAt1 ieef aud b1lagnas, 1000 pounds n
| Fcrs, 60 bounds of game, SEQ rnss5sssss, u
eanDed ls4st 2tAs ,sa.s- : sestANanb, go barrels
| OF qsssaes ed lnea., - barrels of salt pork,
I 1000 nounas Jt hsf. $50 chickens, 1870 ducks,
| 10 lnTkeys, 10 partIiiges and 30 geese,
From the foregoing facts and figures it
! costs tiie }faaiharg-A merican line not less
| than $1,000. 10 offset this expenditure,
| which does not include the cost of insur-
anee. the NOrmannla must carry many pas
sengers and some freight. The number Of
| ner passengers varies, Of course, according
to the season. She carries in midsummer
sometimes nearly 500 first and second
| cabin and about 300 steerage voyagers
The average price of first cabin
passage, is about sl10, and that of sec
| onu e"oih "oouo SoV' lHc average price
| OF steerage accommodations is SO. The
receipts from all classes of passengers on
good midsummer trip are over $4,000.
Usually the Normannia carries 500 tons of
| freight. which, at the transportation rate of
about $40 ton, amounts to $4,000 The cost
Of loading and unloading this freight is
borne by the company. In the dull SEASON.
| the big twin-screw ships do not make much,
| but their receipts throughout the year are
| large enough to warrant the declaration
| that they are great successes financially,
and that they are the passenger ships of
| the future.