The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-09-05
LINERS START ON A RACE.
Two Crack German Ocean Crossers
to Try Conclusions.

NEW YoRK.G Sept What promises
exciting of MARINE races began this
morning, when the two swiftest ocean
liners afloat crossed the bar within
an hour of each other on their way to
| Europe. The Steamships were the new
Hamburg American record smasher
| Deutschland and the North German Lloyd
flyer Kaiser Wilhelm der Crosse. which
| held all records until the Deutschland
took them. Cherbourg is the port for
which the Kaiser Wilhelm der Crosse is
making, while the Hamburg American
liner is bound for Plymouth. Thus the
liners will pursue parallel courses, and
it may be that the passengers aboard the
vessels will get frequent views OF each
other. Cherbourg, over the course which
the Kaiser Wilhelm der Crosse will sail,
is about 2,150 miles from Sandy Hook.
while the port for which the Deutschland
is making is about 100 miles nearer. This
difference. however, is not great enough
to lessen interest in the comparative
performances of the two vessels.
OF course the owners OF the two vessels
deny that there is to be a race. The
term race in the first place is misleading
in that it gives the general public al
impression that the steamships are run
with recklessness and a total disregard
OF everything but speed. Such is not the
case however. for the first cons Iteration
on the part of all connected with an
ocean liner is safety. The owners of a
line have a double incentive so take all
precaution in regard to their vessels.
The first is the reputation of the entire
line. which is liable to be injured by any
mishap that may befall any OF the yes
sells, and next there comes the question of
the value of the liner itself the loss of
which would involve millions of dollars.
Therefore in all voyages safety is the
first thought. There will be no race, say
the officers of the two rival German
liners, but they add that all voyages are
made at top speed. Each steamship will
be pushed to her best limit and the hours
start which the North German Lloyd
liner has over the Deutschland will tend
to- even matters between the two grey
hounds.
There is no question but that the
Deutschland is out after a new eastward
record She holds that record now, but
Captain Albers is confident that the
Deutschland has not yet done her best by
a wide margin. To break her own record
to Plymouth the Deutschland must arrive
hours and forty-five minutes. a record
which she made on the voyage ending AN
gust II. II was said this morning that the
sailing OF the two vessels so close together
was by coincidence and not by design, their
sailing dates coming about as the result of
the regular schedules of the two lines.
Seldom if ever have tTo Of the fastest
liners in the world sailed so close together
as did the Deutschland and the Kaiser
Wilhelm der Crosse this morning The HE
Kaiser Wilhelm pulled out OF her dock at
10 o'clock and dropped slowly down the
bay. greeted with salutes from passing
craft and the cheers OF the hundreds who
had assembled at the pier to see her sail.
Promptly at II o'clock the big Deutsch-
land. which does not look unlike the Kaiser
Wilhelm, backed out into the Hudson
River and started after the North German
Lloyd liner. There Is little doubt that the
two steamships will be in sight of each
other for several hours at the beginning
of he VOYAGE