The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-10-29

southern PORTS 1t was the thing in those
DAVIS TO 90 to New Orleans or Savannah,
or anywhere down there, and get cotton.
After trial or two with this class OF
frsiehters he built several three and four
,nasted schooners for foreign trade, and
,yss ono of the original pioneers in that
tyne of snipbuilding, at the time regarded
as an experiment.
If took the ships to make the trip across
all the way from twenty-five to seventy
DAYS. Forty-tve days was the average tlme
in going over; longer coming back on &C.
connt of the adverse westerly winds. The
lengtb of time it took ship to get IN and
out of the harbor varied. They have had
Tugs to tow them in for thirty years now,
hnt before that 1T was all matter OF
chance. Sometimes they had to wait
three or four days. sometimes a week, FOR
favorable winds. The quarantine ground
was nearer in then; by Stapleton, 5. 1.
Every ship counted on being out eighty
DAYS. and carried provisions for that
length of time so as to guard against all
emergencies. Three voyages year was
all a ship could make, with contingent
cies, the loading, etc.
"a first-class passage cost then one
hundred dollars, or about the same as Is
charged now. of course, the accommo-
datiops were different-no bathrooms and
running water, lounges, dresssrs, electric
lights. and the like--but they were pretty
nice. and the passengers enjoyed them
selves playing cards and quoits and GET
ting sooiable. There wasn't piano on
board, but there was always fiddle OF
two and plenty to encourage the 1un.
There were no second-olass passengers.
The limit of the frst-class list was 20;
in the steerage from 200 to 400 could be
slowed away. No allowance for space,
you may be sure, at that rate. They were
carried at about SIS or 500 head Inc
steward used to check off the Storage ap'
plioants for water and provisions each
morning by means of pegs stuck in holes
on long dresser or table. Lots of !mmi-
grants were brought over in those days
because, as the saying went, they could
vote as soon as they got here, and so IL
was to the wire puller's and politician s
interests to get the here. The years '65
and '56 when the famine was on In Ire
land, were neyisy times for the American
liners. freight rates vera almost anything
you chose to ask, and shipowners made
money. All the ships in former times
we're named for people. men and women,
instead of for States and Cities as they
are now. If ,shipowner met famous
belle with whom he was pleased or who
condescended to notice him, he named the
next ship that came out of the yard for
her. His wife's or daughters Or sweet
hearts name was apt to be duplicated In
the fleet, or the name of som @ me mber OF
the firm or some man relative or personal
friend. think, taking it all in all, there
were more sailing ships named for women
than for men.
"South street looked then much as 1t
does now all along by Maiden lane, Pine
and Wall streets, except that you miss the
old merchants and the carriages and om-
nibuses. There were the lighters, busy
carry ing off ships cargo, and the canal
bats and elevators for grain. All that
has changed since the sailing vessels went
away. The buildings down in that part
are pretty much as they were, and the
restaurants are the same, but the men
Won see along the street have changed.
There are few of them nowadays that are
sailors. The sailors are off, engaged In
other callings just as the shipmasters are
and the shipowners. Not many sailors
are required on steam vessles, merely work
men of capacity and intelligence. Ther4
is a Norwe gian fruiter unloading down
there at the dock now. She is sailer
and has brought on load of bananas.
but YOU will not find an American
in her crew, All foreigners, and they
work for SIS month less than our men.
How the Norwegian manages to make
himself at home in the West Indies
don + know, but the fruit trade is full
of them
'The native dealer in sh ip's supplies,
oakum, rope, copper, etc., is feeling the
effect of the foreign innovation. Few OF
the foreign-o wned ships wh,ther sailers
or SJeaIu6IS, OAuhoA S5oo ohSAA oA PPA1"S ~~S~~
or go into our dock for repairs. Their
provisions they get here, of course;
but they'll start off to the other side lame
and really in bad shape rather than get
their tinkering done by our workmen and
have the materials for it furnished by our
tradesmen. There used to be two or. three
snipbuilding yards on the Brooklyn side
and two or three on this side, but there
amt one now; maybe small place or
two where the little American briggs and
schooners that still hang on can get work
done. but nothing of Importance. All
that business, the making of spars and
wards and chains, and snip gimcracks
that gave employment to SO many men
has drifted away. l know dozens of
sailors who are doing more or less we'll at
the restaurant business and merchant
Using, and now and then I run across an
old shipmate whose present line of occu-
pation-iew elry or millinery or CONNER
oial travelling-is SO opposite to his cid
calling in or aracter that it surprises me
LIZ