The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1899-10-21
STEEL STEAMERS
For Hawaiian Trade to
New York.
The Sugar Fieet Is Also 10 be Rein
forced by Many New Steel
Banks.

six months from the present time the
first OF fleet OF steel steamships will
sail from New York for San Francisco
en- route to Honolulu as a regular line
OF service which is to be inaugurated.
These vessels are now in process OF
One. the Californian, Is /
building at the Union Iron Works. and
will be delivered in May; the others
are on the stocks in the Roach ship
yards on the Delaware, and will be
ready for service during 1900. These /
are the American, the Hawaiian and /
the Oregonian. They will all be sister /
ships, built from practically the same |
plans.
The vessels will be $50 feet long
overall, 81 feet breadth of beam and
81 feet . inches deep. They will draw
when loaded. 20 feet of water. Their |
carrying capacities will be $3.50 tons |
of 2.24O pounds, and their coal bunker |
capacity will be 1.5OO tons. They will
have a maximum speed OF tOi. knots
and cruising speed OF 10 knots. They
will carry a crew OF 40 each. including
20 coalpassers. besides officers. The
vessels will be fitted for carrying
freight only, n few extra staterooms in
the cabins will accommodate several
passengers, but they will not be pas
senger ships. The vessels will cost
about 100000 each. Those In course
OF construction in the East will make
the trip from New York to- San Fran
cisco in 90 days, the course being
through the Straits of Magellan: the
only stop made en- route will be at CO.
ronel, Chile. where they will coal.
They will stop at San Francisco on the
outward trip only; on the return trip
they will go direct from Honolulu to
New York, pausing only at the coaling
station.
vessel will leave New York every
40 days. 1t is the desire of the owners
to reduce this interval to- 80 days: but
to do this two more steamers would be
required; these additional vessels will
be built at the earliest date possible.
the next ship being designed to- be one
of 10000 tons capacity. The existing
price OF steel. however. precludes the
giving of any further orders for the
present. An order for n vessel placed
in March was sought to- be duplicated.
but there was demanded an increase in
price of the necessary steel OF about 80
per cent. Ii was the desire of the own
ers to place all the contracts for build
ing the ships on this Coast. but the
yards here were so full of other work
that they could not guarantee to- turn
them out within the same time as the
Eastern yards. and time was the es-
sence of the situation.
The placing of steamers regularly on
the trade between New York and Ha-
waii is an innovation. Heretofore II
has been conducted by sailing ships.
4 few years ago several steamers went
over the route, bringing a general car
| go, but they made a failure of the en-
terprise financially and the experiment
| was not repeated. The Ohio and Penn
sylvania came around from New York
| last year, bringing general cargoes
but their primary purpose in coming
was to engage in the Klondike trade.
The new line of steamers will b'
owned by a company comprising three
firms; they are Flint x Co. OF New
York, Dearborn & Co. of New York anC
Williams, Dimond & Co. of San Fran
cisco. These firms have been sending
around from New York an average o
one sailing ship n month to carry th'
goods which will now be Transporter
by the steamers. Ii requires from IL
to 40 days for a sailing ship To maxi
the passage. With a steamer the tim,
is cut in half. The goods brought ar,
mostly heavy freight, such as iron
machinery, nails. horseshoes. barbe'
wire and the like, though with tn
steamers the lighter characters q
manufactured wares will become par
OF the cargoes.
The starting OF this line has bee
occasioned by two considerations. TIL
first is the recent great increase in tn
quantity of sugar grown on the Isl
ands, owing to the setting out OF man
new plantations. The quantity pro
duced is much more than can be han
died by the refineries on this Coast. an
provides the steamers with return car
goes from the islands. This increas
in the cultivated area OF sugar land
has also greatly increased the deman
in the islands for manufactured good.
thereby insuring larger and more stapl
incoming cargoes.
The second consideration Is that I'll
islands have passed under America
control and that presently the tariff
|. of the United States will be eNtende
to them, shutting out the competitto
of foreign countries and increasing IN
trade with the States.
Williams. Dimond * Co. are also haN
ing built by Arthur Sewall * Co. {
Bath, Me-, one steel bark OF lengt
about $50 feet overall. which will carr
27OO tons OF freight. This vessel Wi
not be used in the Cape Horn trade
on which all the sailers will be sur
planted by the steamers, but will b
put on the trade between San Fran
cisco and Honolulu. II would reguiT
eight of these barks TO take care {
the increased trade which has bee
developed on this run. but no NOR
orders can be given for vessels no.
because OF the increased price OF stee
The firm does not contemplate the Us
of steamers on this run. \ dozen {
its ships are now steadily engaged.
Since the annexation OF the island
the trade with San Francisco has Yer
greatly increased. Six months ago
used to be that vessels going down
the islands would go generally ha