New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1893-07-03
THE RETURN JOURNEY.
FROM HAMBURG TO SOUTHAMPTON BY TIE
FUERST BISMARCK.


for more reasons than one. The Hamburg imeri-
can Line was a novelty to us. and tn" ship was
the Fucrst Bismarck renowned as one Of the fastest
Atlantic liners afoat. The company owns o great
feet, of which this snip il the finest The Offices
in Hamburg are, you may fairly say imposing.
There are none like them in Liverpool, where the
most powerful steamship companies are content to
hous, themselves modestly The service from
Hamburg to Southampton is exceptional, and can
b., of no great importance to the company, yet
their arrangements are very liberal. AZ part OF
their Ncw-York passengers embark at Southamp-
ton. the ship il not full az starting from Ham,
burg and Southampton passengers are given any
vacant cabins they like. T.. and ! had two on the
INNER deck, large and we'll furnished: not 50
light ~ bcoy, the upper deck being shut in by
IN awning.
The port Of actual departure is not Hamburg
but Cmxhavcn. Just rs Mt Bremen il is not Bremen
hut Brcn,crlafcn 4 special train left Hamburg
at nine in the morning II seemed a II every
body in the hotel wor, going by that train or At
that hour and the confusion in getting away was
grcat-thc hall filed with luggage and the hall
porter convinced, he commonly Il, that any
body's luggage might go on any CAP; tho cans,
nevertheless heing bound for different stations
and tho destinations of the owners OF tho luggage
cutie different Bnt W. ultimately got away with
AL onr Trunks and nobody elses. The golden
rule for the traveller j. TO look after his own
things: especially if he have courier or servant
II is the company. her" a. az Bremen, whicn pro-
vides the train: the fair nclndcd in the prlc" OK
your ticket. and no extra charg" for baggage. The
company which ariangcs all this for you has
name which is much good for daily use: The
IIambur Ameriilanischcn Packctfahrt-A cticn-Ge-
.cIl>.haft II il had be used often, II would
add n good deal 10 the length OF the passage
Eut in Anerica and England. in q spirit Of con.
ccssion TO the impatient temper OF the lnhao-
tants Of those countries. This association Is con-
tent to be known as IN" ilamburg-Amcrican Line.
Il was at CnXhaven at half past eleven that
our hardships began. The train was very long
cne and orr carriage stopped two or three hun
drcd yards from the entrance to the station. We
had as everybody else had, a good deal OF hand
baggage No porter was 10 be seen. citizen
Of Cuxhav.n. who presently stroed by with his
hands in his pockets. induced TO carry our
things, but, reaching the bottom OF the stair
ease ND which everybody had to pass, was told
by the policeman on duty he could 20 no further
Being demonstrated with. this officer, obligins
like all his kind mot in Germany, seized on a
sailor and pressed him, whether he would or no,
into our service.
The mex. half hour we shall long remember
There We're not many steps, hut 1t took US ten
minutes 70 climb thcm. The passag" through the
narrow hall of the station was rot more thln
twenty yards long and minute TO each yard was
the best we could do. Tho crush was tremen-
dols First second and third class passengers
were herdcd and huddled together, and every
body had bags rugs or babies. or all three
Tho exit was blocked by two officials examining
tickets 1t appeared they cared 10 see only stcnr-
ace tickets, ~ if to make sure there were no
s;owaways but in order 10 do this all other pas
senccrs had TO submit to this lone squeeze. Twenty
yards further on lay a tender already packed TO
sunocation, and all classes of passengers In all
parts Of her. Women were almost fainting from
the heat ino pressure and the burdens they had
to carry. The tender laden that, If there
had been the least sea, nobody can say what might
have happened. There was no danger, but great
discomfort To move about was impossible.
Luckily the distance wds not great; the Fuerst
Bismarck lay in the stream not more than mile
ont, and when we arrived the scramble - get on
board was no worse than being coopnd up in y
tender Again friendly sailor appeared: there
was one sailor 10 every hundred passengers; and
took charge of our possessions ana took them on
board the big ship What il cost Us in fees for
transport from the train 20 the deck of the Fuerst
Bismarck was rather less than the fare q South
ampton.
Still, our struggles with luggage were not over.
The cabin steward undertook 10 that the
cabin trunks were brought up. They did not ap-
pear, and, after while, and after interviews
with three stewards, it was said they had been
sent 10 the hold, but we should have them all
right at Southampton. Then | sought for the
Purser lie WAS asleep and could not be dis
turbcd Then the Assistant Purscr lie was
awake but had authority; the Second Officer
was in charge of the baggage.
Where is the Second Officer''
"On the bridge and will not be of till six
Then will ask the Captain"
This suggestion seemed TO the Assistant Purser
so audacious that he once more turned the whole
subject over in his mind and announced that the
Second Officer must already have come down. and
might him. After two attempts did ses
him: excellent Officer knew his business and did
il instantly sent two stewards flying TO the hold,
and the missing trunks came up in two minutes.
The Fuer.t Bismarck is known to ba fast, does
her nineteen knots and fraction pretty steadily
across the Atlantic, and has made the passage
between Southampton and New-York in six DAYS
and fourteen hours: equal to less than six days
from Queenstown. 1t may be donhted whether
she has not been overdrivcn. The vibration Of
the ship is excessive You feel the first turn OF
the screw, and all day and all night on perfectly
smooth sea the ship quivercd and whimpered and
complained audbly. Not for many years have
been on an Atlantic liner which 50 throbbed from
the strain of her engines. She is Stettin-but,
and it may 10 that al Stettin they put a ship
together not quite so we'll on the Clyde, though
certainly very we'll. Her deck hamper is like
Long Island Sound steamer promenade deck.
hurricane deck above that for passengers-a lux
ury they must pay for with the wind abeam-ahd
the bridge above all. The boats are swung on
level with the hurricane deck and whole forest
of ventilators shoots up from it, Tie arrangements
Of cabins below is convenient, especially for the
officers of the ship to whom belong most of the
staterooms the saloon deck. Those for pas
sengers are mostly on the deck below