The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1894-02-17
FAST OCEAN STEAMERS.
English Engineers 10 Try to outstrip tho
Lucania.
Especial Correspondence.1


Especial Correspondence
LONDON. Feb. The announcement that
two new English passenger steamers. sim
liar to but speedier than the Campania and
the Lucania, are to be shortly laid down is
pretty good evidence that even if Great
britain Is III some danger, by reason of the
looked Tor combination of the French and
Russian navies, of suffering loss of prestige
as lighting mistress of the seas, it is not
proposed to allow any but English boats to
WIN the record for fast steaming ON the At
iantic without struggle.
IL was supposed that no further efforts to
decrease the time between New York and
Liverpool would be made OH this side of
the water until it had been seen what the
ships to be built by the Cramps for the
American line would do, but the Cunard
people nave evidently determined not to
FISK any such experiences in the WAY of loss
OF customers as they had during the years
after the White Star boats and the CITY of
Paris, the City of New York and one or
two Gerlnan steamers showed their heels to
the crack greyhounds of the Cunard fleet.
The history of the struggle for speed on
the transatlantic ferry would he an inter
esting one. The first vessel to cross the
ocean was American built and made her
voyage as long ago as 1919, but there was
1888, and regular trips were not begun un.
I'LL Two years later, when, in 1910, the Bri
tannia began TO ply between Liverpool and
Boston, making an average time of II or Is
days. That was more than half n century
ago, and the effort for greater speed has
been kept up without intermission ever
since. The result has been something to he
proud of, for the best boats now regularly
attain speeds that were thought possible
only to railroad trains not so many wears
ago.
During the 80 odd years that ocean steam.
ing has been improving, American built bot
toms have held supremacy for but one brief
period, although the American clipper ships
were the fastest sailing craft atloat, and
through them Uncle Sam was for many
years accorded the supreme place among
swift navigators. The Collins line of steam-
ers was an American institution, chartered
and subsidized i'll 1S49, and it's boats low
cred the average record of the best Cunard
boats of the PERIODIC days 10 hours and 26
minutes-to IL days 10 hours.
By 1851 the time had been cut down to @
days hours and % minutes, the pennant
then being held by the Arizona of the Guion
line. This line, which was English, main
tanned its supremacy till 1885, at which
time the record made in 1854 was held by
1t was the Cunarder Etruria that lowered
that record to days 5 hours 81 minutes
and Cunard boats kept the record then till
1889, when the beautiful hull of the City of
Paris was pushed across the Atlantic in 8
days % hours and minutes. The suprem-
ncy was still in English hands, for the line
now known as the American was then the
lnman, and the contest that followed was
for three years more between English boats
only, the White Star and Inman lines being
the only competitors.
When the Cunard company came to the
front with her present fast boats, the Paris,
then under the American flag, held the
honors ut days II hours and ~ minutes.
though the White Star boats Teutonic and
Majestic had each won the pennant and
kept it for short time. The record is now
held by the Lucania at 5 days l2 hours Il
minutes, and it will take good boat.
whether of Yankee or English build. to
best her. G. Z. IIoMESTAN.