Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-07-22
LINEN ON OCEAN LINERS
Supply Carried Necessitates Enormous
Stock in Hand
From the New York Times.

From the New York Times.
One OF the problems of the efficient
management of a great ocean liner is the
ships linen. There Is the bed linen for the
first and second class passengers and on
GERS, numbering on q full trip about :,
thousand souls. There are towels galore
to be furnished for each state room. and
the tablecloths and napkins. all of which
must be renewed daily Moreover, the
quality of linen supplied to modern ship
like the Oceanic or the Cedric of the White
Star line. or the st. Paul or PHILADELPHIA Of
the American line. Is the very best that
can be bought in the market, finer even
than that ordinarily supplied to the patrons
Of a first-class hotel on shore.
On a liner this linen is changed every day
and as there is no opportunity to launder
the accumulation of stock on board. the
ship must start with a full supply for the
trip and liberal margin for emergencies
For instance the st. Paul took out on n re
cent trip some 10000 pieces including 10 500
napkins, 1900 sheets, 5000 pillow slips
1903 tablecloths. 1909 counterpanes. 5000
bed room towels and astonishing num-
Der of busters. cooks cloths. glass cloths.
dresser cloths and 4 variety of minor pieces
known only to the cooks and stewards
This neceSsftates a mighty linen room at
each end of the line whence are supplied
the clean pieces in exchange for the Soiled
ones brought ashore at the end of each trip.
1t Is estimated that the 1i3 ships of the In
ternational mercantile marine. as the larg-
est aggregation of ocean-going liners in the
world. have at their command 100000 to
J,GO.OU pieces-a supply each ship and
an equal supply at each end of the line
clean and waiting the arrival of the vessel
in port. This neceSsitateS an army of shore
employees. whose task it is to launder this
linen. check it off and furnish it to the out
going vessels.
On each ship there is one steward whose
sole care Is the linen. He has this stored
by the thousand pieces in various linen
rooms below and delivers the required
amount to the bed room and table stewards
the cooks and solutions who come to him
daily with the soiled pieces in their charge
and exchange them for an equal stock of
clean. The soied linen he dries thoroughly
in drying room heated by steam and
stores In bags, which are sent ashore at
the end of the voyage. in New York or Bos-
ton. Liverpool Southampton or Antwerp as
the case may be.
The steerage or as they call II NOWADAYS
the third class. has its linen department n
well as the first and second class but this
does not include bed linen. The Immigrants
are provided instead with straw mattresses
and stout. comfortable blankets which re-
ceive equal attention with the other bed
room supplies at the end of each trip. the
blankets being thoroughly washed, boiled
and disinfected. as we'll as the mattress
covers. The straw from the latter is also
replaced with new clean straw each trip
Nevertheless there Is much third-cIasS
linen. for the third-class passengers now sit
at tables covered with white cloths and
the cooks department uses supplies similar
to those In the first and second class
Losses of linen on the trip are charged to
the general profit and loss account Of the
ship. and are not accounted to either stew
ard or passenger. The linen man. however
takes special care Of the napkins which
are most easily lost and the most costly of
the supplies. The table stewards who come
to him for these have to sign a book for
the amount taken. and this is supposed to
make them more careful in the handling