The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1896-05-23
FITTING OUT 4 BIG LINER.
About 100. 900 Articles Required in a
Vessel Like the 81. Louis.


Not only are the American line steam
ships ST. Paul and St Louis the only
transatlantic passenger vessels
of the hrst grade built in this country
for a score or more OF years. but they
are the only ones in that traffic fitted out
here. 1t is one thing to build a monster
steamship. and It is another thing to
supply and arrange its furnishings. Every
fitting needed i'm navigation goes with the
building of the ship. and IS a part Of the
general contract After the ship is fin
ished and ready to sail away, so far as
the contractors are concerned, another
problem arises. 1t is the same problem
that confronts a man when he builds a
new house. How shall we furnish it2
The task of fitting out vessel like the
St. Louis or ST. Paul is simply enormous.
No less than 10000 articles must be pur-
chased and put i'm place. 1t takes months
OF study N prices, and texture of wares.
Elaborate schedules of the articles needed
for each department of the ship are pre-
pared and then a lot Of shopping and cor
resDondence follow. Like the furnishing
of a house or a hotel, there are two ways
of going about IL. one is to set aside "A
certain sum and strike a certain average
of quality and quantity of articles pur-
chased. so a. to bring the cost of the fit
tings within the sum set aside. The other
IS TO decide what is needed and of what
quality, and TO purchase the supplies as
reasonably Is possible. 1t is this plan
practically which must be adopted by a
steamship company. For not only must
the fittings be suited in quality and guam
tity to the size and character of the yes
sell but they must be as good as the fit
tings of any other vessel Of a corre-
sponding size ahoat, and If possible bet
Ii is there that the analogy between
furnishing a house and a vessel stops.
A man furnishes his house to suit him
self. A steamship company furnishes a
boat TO SUIT the public. The fitting of a
vessel must stand favorable comparison
with those OF other vessels IN service. NO
such comparison exists between the fit
things Of large hotels as exists between
transatlantic liners: hoteIs guests
have many other things to think about
than their immediate surroundings.
ships passengers take a minute interest
in the details of the furnishings largely
because IL is one of the diversions OF an
ocean voyage. Next to the matter of
food il is the chief topic of comparison
between travellers. All this comphcates
the problem Of fitting out a ship.
1t is the custom of English shipbulders
to supply the furnishings as we'll as to
construct the vessel The British ship
builders have had long experience IN
dtting out vessels, and can probably Sc
cure better prices than the owners could
| secure The patronage of yard that
year after year is turning out large yes
sells is q matter of thousands upon thou
sands of pounds to certain manufacture
ers, and, to retain that patronage, goods
naturally will be sold at the lowest mar
gin Of profit. Our American shlpbuilders
no doubt would have undertaken to sup
ply the Quitting of the ST. PAU and st.
Louis. but the owners, after mature con
s.deration, decided to do the work them
selves.
OF course It could not be expected that
the management of the American line
should reveal what it costs to III out such
a vessel as the St. Louis or St Paul. Per
sons familiar with the prices Of household
articles of various kinds might figure ap-
proximately what the cost would be in this
or that department, but no one outside the
inner circle of the management knows OF
can even approximate the cost or hitting
out the entire ship. Practically all the fit
tings were purchased in this country
There were four staple articles, however
that could be purchased TO better adVan-
tage in England than here. As might be
expected, one of these was linen. The
others were blankets, cotton coVerlets
and glassware. The cost OF these, al
though a large item Of themselves, was
comparatively a small matter when the
cost of fitting out the entire ship is con
Here are some Of the articles and the
quantity required in a general way for
such a ship as one of the new American
liners. For the first cabin alone there
must be 1900 spoons 1900 forks, 600 nap
kin rings, 1900 knives, 800 finger bowls
300 salt cellars, 1000 tumDlers, 1000 cups
and 1000 saucers 5000 plates of various
kinds u 600 napkins. In the outfit of tho
state rooms there will be required at least
1000 blankets, LOCO counterpanes, 800 mat
tresses, 800 pillows, 1000 sheets, 1000 BATH
towels 10000 other towels. 1t will surprise
many to know that about $4,000 yards oil
carpet are necessary 10 mt cut the ship
When one considers that the second cabin
requires from one-half to two-thirds as
many articles as the first cabin, and thai
in these days there is very little difference
i'm the quality Of the articles used in the
two abins, one can see the addition there
must be to cost and quantity in the furn-
ishing of the second cabin. There are Ger.
tain required supplies for the steerage
| but in quantity and quality they are a
small matter compared with the other fit
| tings of the ship.
But the supplies do not stop with the ca
bins The kitchen and pantry supplies and
fittings are more elaborate than any no
tel requires. The Est of implements re-
quired in these departments contains hun
dreds of items. Every variety OF cooking
utensil is supplied. Every Kind of house
hold article of known utility is purchased
In addition to all these, every ship con-
ever has One of these kinds is the outfit
for a hospital, and the other is the outfit
for an ap96heeaFy sno3 Tne st oil surg
pages of the Quitting schedule of a ship.
The same is true as regards the ap0the-
cary outfit. Besides all these, the butcher
shop outfit and that Of the baking de-
partment is more complete than that Of a
great hotel. There are no butchers or
bakers shops at sea where supplies may
be replenished in an hour or two, and in
consequence the fittings of these depart
ments are most elaborate.
A ship like one Of the new liners fire.
quenUy carries 1,500 persons across the
ocean. There is probably no hotel in the
world that frequently has any such num-
Der of guests for a week al a time. II must
he remembered, also, that these guests are
of three classes, the first and second cab
ms and the steerage. This brings problems
that no hotel is called upon to meet, not
only in supplying food, but in supplying
the furnishings Almost every article that
can be imagined to be of use in a hotel or
private house is included in the list Of sup
pianos, from cheese scoops 10 paste jig
gers, from dish washing machines TO dice
boxes, from dark lanterns to costly sta
tionery, from a printing press to a fire.
proof safe.
The supplies for the physical comfort