Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1892-02-13
GOODS AROUND THE HORN.
The Great ships or the California Trsdo
-~Unioading Wine.

; News comes by way Of New Bedford
that half a dozen big banks are TO be
built for trade between New York and
Puget's Sound. Already the finest
sailing ships in the world are engaged
IN the trade between New York.
Philadelphia. Baltimore and the ports
OF the Pacific coast. Our navigation
laws give this trade exclusively to YES
sells OF native make. and an lncom-
monty profitable trade it is. About
forty vessels, mostly large. fu%ll-rigged
ships, are performing the service be-
tween San Francisco and the great
ports OF the Eastern coast. The
Shenandoah, Of 3. 258 tons register. the
largest sailing ship aloat, is one of the
vessels engaged in this trade. Among
the others are the Rsp%pahannocK.
5000 tons register; the Willie Rosen-
field. 2,J53 tons register; and half a
dozen ranging in tonnage between
l.6OO and 1000. Few ships below 1,200
tons make the voyage.
These American ships are so built
that they carry more freight aud sail
faster than any other ships ia the
world. They sometimes make the
triangle to China, TO the Pacific coast,
and back 10 New York. Now and then
they carry grain to England, and load
there for San Francisco. This they
"A do protitably when freights from
Great Britain to San Francisco are as
high as 20 shilliugs the ton. Just now
they cannot proitably make the voy-
age. and they find il better TO return
| from, Enurlan1 - Na., VII &. IlI..s
il Secessary, and to sail hence for
San francisco. Freights from Great
Britain TO San Francisco are now rs
81 to 15s per ton. while freights from
New York to San Francisco are $3.50
per ton. .
The trip from New York to San
Francisco is made in from 100 to 10
days. 1t has now and taen been made
in less than ninety-fve days, but such
a voyage is remarkable. Sailing ves-
sells 90 round the Horn. since the
Straits OF Magellan are too narrow for
safe sailing. Steamers, which make
the voyage in fifty or sixty days 90
through the straits. The toughest
weather is usually met not of the
Horn, but on the voyage from the cape
to the Pacific coast. Sailing vessels
usually touch at no port on their way
round. and it sometimes happens that
no news is received from q ship until
she reaches her destination. TO make
the round trip occupies the better part
of a year. Fully n month is occupied
in loading at this port. nearly four
months in the outward voyage, as long
in the return voyage. eight TO ten
weeks in unloading aud reloading at
San Francisco and unloading here.
1t takes the best sailing, the best luck.
and the spryest kind of freight hand
ling to do the thing in nine months.
Cargoes run in value from 800 900
to $3.50, 600. The great expense of
harding SHIPS that require crews Of
from twenty-five to forty men make it
Improbable to carry small cargoes.
Mixed merchandise makes up most Of
the cargoes from this port. From
Philadelphia iron in various forms is
taken. and Baltimore sends coal. Tne
return cargo consists of cased salmon.
other canned goods, wine, lumber, aud
various unperishable products of the
Pacific slope. Most of the California
ships dock in the East River, and on
almost any day you may see three or
four of the monsters loading or un.
loading.
There is no more interesting place
in town than the wharves where the
California ships unload wine. Ia
some instances the warehouses of the
wine dealers stand just across the
street from the wharf, and where this
is the case there is no end OF hustle
and business. Men stand round with
bungstarters ready TO open any barrel
that a purchaser wishes to sample, aud
long tubes, open at both ends. but
easily closed at the upper end by a
good broad thumb. are thrust into the
barrel in order that enough OF the
LIQUOR NAV be taken out for sampling.
Millions of gallons are thus tested and
sold. Much of the wine is consigned
by houses in California to agents here.
though dealers also order directly
from the California wine houses. A
single dealer buys from 100 TO loo
barrels. aud sometimes resells it at the
wharf as o o as it is landed. Red
wines, chiefly ~clarets, are most in de-
mand. though large quantities OF white
wines and brandies are brought round
the Horn.-N. y. Sun.