Worcester morning daily spy., 1898-01-17

nevertheless, a great wonder in her
day. She sailed from Liverpool on FRI
day, July, 1910, and arrived in Boston IN
IA days and 8 hours She carried 80
cabin ngers-stearners carried no
steerage passengers in the early days
who were subject to almost all the dis
comforts of the old ocean clippers.
The Great Britain, built by the Great
Western Steamship Company. and
launched on July 10, 1S43, proved to be
a great experiment. but disastrous ven
ture, and eventually the ruin of her
owners. She was the first large steam
ship with a hull of iron and the first
screw steamer of any considerable size.
She had a length of 322 feet over all, a
beam of 81 feet, and a tonnage of S443;
the diameter of her screw was Is feet
and inches, She left Liverpool for
New York on Aug. &C. 1S45 and made
the passage in IA days and q hours, two
days more than the Great Western $
best westward record. She was a bitter
disappointment to her owners, and was
altered and fitted with a new screw, but
never distinguished herself In 1916 she
overran her reckoning and was stranded
on the Irish coast The disaster COM
pleted the ruin of the Great Western
Company The stranded ship was sold,
was repaired by her purchasers, and
piled between Liverpool and Australia
for many years. Only 50 short time
ago as 1885 she was stranded ON the
Falkland Islands, and was wrecked be-
yond repair
A period Of rapid development set IN
about 1S45. In that year r. B. Forces
of Boston built the Massachusetts and
Edith for transatlantic trade In June,
1S47, the Pacific Mail Company estab-
lished the pioneer line between New
York and Southampton with the Wash
TIC Y, SJIhSi0-
ICED the Collins line, and number OF
vastly improved ocean steamers were
built This line was the first consider
able competitor OF the Cunard line, and
in 1851 reduced the time Of passage TO
about II days. In 1850 the Inman hne,
now the American line, built num-
Der of screw steamers. In 1856 the An
Choir line was established, and the Ham
burg American company built its first
steamship. In 1857 the North German
Lloyd entered the field. The Bremen,
the first of the company's great fleet TO
| cross the Atlantic, carried only twenty
two cabin passengers In 1861 the
French Compagnie Generate Trans9t L
lantique was organized, and in 1853 the
National line The Guion line became
an aggressive competitor for patronage
| in 1856
In 1870 the White Star line launched
the first vessel of the new type. extreme
| length in proportion to breadth, with
| twin screws and luxurious appoint
ments, and gave decided impetus to
| the development Of every phase of
steamship travel.
| The Thingvala line was established a
few years later Other companies or
| gained were the Atlantic Transport
| line, the Prince line, for service between
New York and the Mediterranean; the
Lamport and Holt line, the Mediterra-
mean and New York Steamship Com
pany, limited, and the Wilson line Inn
provements in construction and equip
ment followed one another in swift sue
cession. until. at the present day, the
discomfort, danger and tedium of the
transatlantic voyage have been well
nigh annihilated. and it almost seems
that human ingenuity can devise little
more 50 long as steam remains the
motive power