The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1890-09-05
LAKE STEAMBOATS,.
They Are Models of Neatness, Comfort
and Elegance.

They Are Models of Neatness. Comfort
and Elegance.
'"There is always room for improve
ment in the steamship business" said
Captain John Singleton.
Nowadays a passenger steamboat,
to keep up with the times, must be
floating palace. The mere fact that it
makes fast time is not sufficient. That
is taken for granted. But the main
thing now is to cater to the comfort of
the passengers in every way. We must
serve fine table, and have every thing
thereon that the market affords in its
season. The expense of keeping up
that department alone is no small fea-
ture of our bills. Instead of taking
along stock of provisions, like the
ocean steamers, we buy provisions at
every port, and consequently have every
thing fresh and palatable. The boats
are provided with the most approved
style of refrigerators, and meats, ETC.,
are taken from them as fresh as from
the shop. The cooks are good ones and
get good pay. They have assistants, of
course, and on frst-class steamer to-
day you can get meal as good as at the
finest hotel or cafe. The travelling peo-
pie little know what time, money and
care is spent in keeping up this depart
ment alone.
"Look at the boats themselves! Are
they not models of neatness, comfort
and elegance? Their appointments must
Sse complete and first-class or people will
hot p1tronize them. They know that
if one line doesn't run that kind of
boats another does, and consequently
travel falls off. Why, look at that new
boat of ours-the Indiana. 1t eclipses
any thing we ever owned, and yet we
thought our other boats were fair
steamers And so they were, but we
saw whore improvements could be made,
where better accommodations could be
given to the passengers, and so we built
the Indiana. But it won't be long before
something else will be thought of, and
other boats will appear that will be bet.
ter yet; and so it goes. The great aim
among steamship companies to-day is
not so much to increase the speed as tc
have fine boats; and it is remarkable,
even in this age of progress, to note the
results. Steamers are being made re.
gardless of expense and with a view to
be little less than floating palaces. And
yet they are not for the use of the rich
only.
Another feature of the case is this:
The boat has to go on certain time
whether there are many or few passen-
gers. If there is big load, we'll and
good but if not, the expense is not
lessened in the least. All the prepara-
tions for big load have been made,
and the company is just that much out.
There are the same number of men to be
paid. There is the same amount OF
provisions to be paid for, and the cost of
running the boat is not lessened in the
least. There are about sixty men en-
ployed on first-class passenger boats,
and receive salaries all the way from
the $1,000 or $4,000 a year paid to the
captain, to the deck hand who draws his
$40 or $25 month. 1t is true that some
remember one time last year we had 900
on one trip on the City of Racine. Such
a list as that, though, is not an every
day occurrence, although wish it WERE
speaking of boats did you ever know
that Chicago is more of a port than it is
generally credited for? 1t is said, and
l believe statistics will prove my state
ment, that there are more arrivals and
clearances at Chicago in one year than
at Boston, New York and Philadelphia
combined. That may sound big, but
people have no idea of the number of
vessels that are arriving and leaving
CbicaoO ''-Chicauo Nows