Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1890-09-19
$4,000 FOR EVERY TRIP.
COST OF RUNNING A TwIN-sCREw
ACROSS THE ATLANTIC.

AOhOOS The AILANIlOs
What does it cost to run a pala-
tial twin-screw racer across the
Atlantic 7 That is the question
which the Sun, tor the enlightment
OF many inquIring readers, recently
put to the New York agents of
several big steamship companies.
The guestioner was about to file
the query away with lot of other
unsoIved riddles of the sea, when
he strolIed into the Office of the
Hamburg American line. There
he obtained the information which
b ad been withheld at every other
Office. Agent E. L. Boas disslpsted,
as we'll as he was able, the mystery
that had enshrouded the little
problem. A midsummer trip of
the magnificent Normannia is not
quite as big as the twin-screw boats
of the White Star and human
lines, but her expense account ow.
ing to the greater length of he
voyage, Is just as formidable. The
cost of running her from dock in
the Teutonic town of HOboKen to
her dock in the town OF III mburg,
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 eastward 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 90 a ton.
The sooty stOkers daily shovel into
her roaring red furnaces between
$50 and 800 tons. The expendi.
lures for coal runs just short of
81, 900 a day or nearly eight for
the voyage. The cost of the gal.
Ions and gallons of oil used to keep
her ponder Gus tripple.expansion
engines, her dynamos, her numer
GUS smaller engines, her pumps,
and 30 on, running smoothly, com
bined with the coal bill, is quite
So 500.
The salaries of the big ships
company are not an uDimportant
factor IN the expense account
Among the three hundred persons
who look after the working of the
racer aud tie comfort of her pas
sengers are, besides cool-headed
Captain Heblch, eight officers, one
surgeon, twenty FIVE engineers aud
machlnists, two purses, one boat
swain, twenty eight seamtn, one
hundred and fourteen fireman, sixty
five walters and mattresses, twenty.
two cooks, bakers, aud assistants,
two carpenters, one barber, aud
fourteen skilled musicians. The
total wages Of these tor trip of
eight days is about $4,000, not
counting perqnlsiies.
Capt. Heblch receives the high
est salary. 1t varies between
$4,000 and $4,000 year, aud de-
ponds somewhat on the earning of
the ship, of which he receives d
small perc entage. This is the way
the shippers of all the colossal rae.
ing craft are paid, and it is not
likely that any of them are going
TO cease racing, or to be censured
for it, as long az fast trip means
money in tn, ir pockets and IN the
Golfers of their company. Every
hour the captain of the City of
New York saves means a saving 10
coal alone of $50.
Next in importance to the Cap
tain OF an oce IN speeder Is the
chief engineer. He is not as fire.
quently visible to the cabin pas.
senger as his gOld.lsced superior,
and nobody makes much fuss over
him, but he ~, in the opinion OF
his employers, very big man IN.
deed. He IA til" msu who makes
the ship "get mp and git He
submits daily reports of how things
are going on down below to the
Captain. He tells how many tons
of coal he Ia using, how much in
Dictated horse power be obtains,
and the nnmber of revolutions the
ships prOpellers make a minute.
Ii he doesn't get as much speed
out OF the clanking twin.screws as
the Captain thinks he ought to.
the Captain pats him on the back
and tells him to whoop her up, like
a good fellow. 1t is essential to
the Captains interest that he
should be friendly with the mighty
machines. For his great work the
chief engineer receives $3.50
month and his board, which is
equal to that of the cabin passen.
gers. The chief officers $50 a
month, which is more than the cap.
talns of any steamships OF the
second class get.
The food aud drink consumed by
passengers and crew during a re-
cent trip of the Normannis cost
about $4,000. This is the com.
plete lis: of things that were neces.
sary to make life aboard the lux.
urlons floating hotel something like
O dream Two thousand FIVE hun
dred bottles of red wine, 1900 bot |
ties of champagne, 1 200 bottles OF
cordlals, 5000 bottles of beer, so
kegs of beer, 400 bottles Of ale and |
porter, 9,a00 bottles of mineral wa
ter, 1900 gallons of drinking wa
ter, 10000 pounds of potatoes,
10000 pounds of beans, peas and
30 on, $500 cans of fruit, 1900
pounds of iellies, tarts and biscuits,
40 baskets of vegetables, 1000
pounds OF butter, 1900 pounds of
cheese, 10000 eggs, $500 pounds
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