The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-04-17
LAUNCH OF THE MINNESOTA.
WORLDS,BIGGEST CARGO CARRIER
SENT INTO THE WATER.

IL the Second Largest Ship In the World.
Being Surpassed Only by the Cedric
Great Crowd salutes the New Craft
When She Floats In the Thames.
New LONDON. Conn. April le.-In the
presence OF an immense throng and saluted
by the cheers Of the people and the whistles
Of various craft and factories, the Minne-
sofa, the biggest freight-carrying steamer
ever built, slid down the ways and left
snoking trail on the bank Of the Thames
River to New London to-day. Miss Clara
Hill. daughter Of James ]. Hill, Of St. Paul.
broke bottle Of champagne on the prov
of the great ship as she began to move. stern
foremost. toward the water.
The launch was scheduled to occur shortly
after noon, but the precautionary measures
Of the builders entaled a delay Of two
hours, When the final arrangements hao
been completed there was not hitch and
the great structure took to the water as II
she had the instinct Of a duck.
Cheer after cheer rent the air. The
great ship was brought up short by
the dropping of her immense anchors. and
tonight she rides easily, her enormous
proportions contrasting wonderfully with
the smaller craft anchored in the harbor.
Lewis Nixon and Mr.. Hill stood on the
christening platform. and when the great
hulk began to move, Mr.. Nixon, who had
managed many launchings, gave the word
to Miss HILL and the breaking OF the bot
tie OF champagne was 30 forcible that
those In the immediate neighborhood we're
besprinkled with wine.
The sister ship OF the Minnesota. the
Dakota, will be launched from the same
yards early in the fall. and it is expected
that other contracts accepted by the gigan-
tic shipbuilding combine will be completed
at these works.
The town was In gala attire and excur-
sions by both land and water brought thou
sands early to witness the event.
The Minnesota, although Of 81 tons
less displacement than the colossal Cedric
OF the White Star Line. has greater cargo
capacity. She can stow away in her cav
In her superstructure, reserved for passen-
gers, she can carry nearly 200 persons,
including 172 first cabin, ITO second cabin
and oS third cabin voyagers. As trans
port she could accommodate ten regiments.
The Kaiser Wilhelm H. Of the North Ger
man Lloyd line, now on her way to New
York from Bremen. Is the longest liner
afoat, but she has less breadth and depth
than the Minnesota, and her sister ship
the Dakota, which soon will be ready for
launching. The Minnesota's dimensions
are. Length, $50 feet; breadth. 1871 feet,
moulded depth, SO feet. Her great depth
and beam enable her TO beat the world
afoat as a carrier She wasn't built for
speed. Her triple expansion engines. turn
ing twin .propellers 20 feet in diameter,
are intended TO drive her at the rate Of
IA knots In pleasant weather.
The Minnesota probably Is the strongest
liner in the world. Her deck plating is
twice as thick as that Of some battleships
and her frames are much heavier than those
OF any merchant vessel in service. She
is built 10 withstand the assaults of the
biggest seas of the Pacific. In her hulls
and decks there are ~ 600 tons of steel
plates and 100000 steel rivets. The
Cedric contains 100000 rivets. The Min
nesota can carry cargo that would fill
freight train seven miles long.
The new ship bristles with cargo booms
There are thirty-four Of them, two be-
ing fitted TO lift fifty tons. Some of
the matches are large enough to admit a
locomotive or a freight car. One hold Is
devoted to the carrying Of frozen meat. ,
1t has a capacity Of $500 tons, which is
more cargo than the old Yankee clipper
could put under all her matches.
All the lights OF the ship, including port. |
starboard and masthead, are electric. The |
fog signal IL an electrically controlled |
by clock device. There is bag |
gage room accessible to passengers who |
may. on the long voyage from Seattle to |
Yokohama. want to get into their trunks.
The big ship was begun in March 1901. |
one year after the Eastern Shipbuilding |
Company installed its shipyard in New |
London In one month 1000 tons Of |
material were put into the Minnesota and |
her sister ship. The cost of building the |
two Pacific liners was about IS 5000 900