The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1897-04-09
A new STEAMSHIP
Will be Added to Pacific
Mail Line.
New Vessel VIII Equal Atlantic
Greyhounds in Speed and
Appointments.

SAN FRANCISCO, March SIC. P.
Huntington will shortly begin the con-
struction of 10.000-ton steamship for
the Pacific Mail Steamship Company at
his shipyard at Newport News. The
steamers City of Rio de Janeiro and
Peru will be taken off the run between
here and the Orient and the new
steamer, which will compare favorably
in tonnage and speed with the big
ocean greyhounds of the Atlantic, will
be the only other Pacific Mail vessel in
the Oriental service. Such are the
plans of the Pacific Mail Steamship
Company for conducting its share of
the Orietnal traffic when the Togo
Kisen Kaisha becomes a factor in the
trade. This will all be in accordance
with the agreement that has been eff
fected between the new japanese line
and the Pacific Mail and Occidental
and Oriental Steamship Companies, the
details of which were exclusively pub
lished in the Chronicle two days ago.
The intentions of the company in re-
spect to the new China steamer were
made public by President Huntington.
I'VE have agreed with President
Asano, of the Togo Kisen Kaisha, to ac-
cord his line equal privileges with the
two established lines in respect to a
direct rail connection and in all other
respects" said Mr. Huntington. ''Mr.
NJ CT Of fhraa c6
and the Pacific Mail and Occidental
and Oriental lines will be cut down to
the same number of vessels AS far as
the Pacific Mail is concerned we do
rot want the service to retrograde,
and we shall retain in the service the
.wo best ships in the feet, viz, the
China and the City of Peking. and
complete our quota of vessels by build
ing another modern vessel.
81 propose to build a vessel of about
10000 tons. Some of our people favor
n smaller vessel, but I think a 10000
ton ship will about meet the require
ments. The White Star steamers Teu-
tonic and Majestic are 10,000-ton yes
such a vessel. The cost? Well that
win depend on how we build it. The
Teutonic and Majestic each cost some
thing like S1,760,OOO They were built
in Europe, and I think we can build
them just as cheap in this country.
The ship we shall build will probably
cost much less. 1t will be the same
size as the big White Star vessels, but
we will effect big saving by elimi-
mating some of the costly decorations
that are found in the Atlantic liners.
The ship may cost something like 81
100000. l think by leaving out the
costly carved decorations, the shin
could be built for 81 300 000 l build the
best ships in the world at Newport
News, and this ship will be up to the
standard. We wouldn't turn out of our
shipyard some of the vessels that are
built in Europe, those tramp steamers.
for instance, that go out under heavy
insurance and go to the bottom when
they get to sea. believe in plain dec
orations and finishings aboard ship. In
al other respects the new steamer will
compare favorably with the big At
lantic liners.
''The item of speed will be an impor-
tant consideration in the construc-
tion of the vessel. OF course.
the service does not demand that
we build a ship with the speed
of the Campania or Luc4nia. but
the steamer win be the fastest on the
Pacific. Her speed win probably be II
knots per hour. Any speed beyond that