Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1904-01-06

ihetc eTe thfoe SlA- bH5ied rNuoOHtft
afiost in this great world of ours. All
Americans and all Maine built. They are
the "Addie M. Lawrence, of Portland
the "Eiinor A. Percy, OF Bath, aud the
"George W. Wells, OF Boston.
The names OF the sticks ia the great
ships are, naming them from bow to stern
fore, main, mizzen, iigger, spsnker and
driver.
On the second day OF October last they
were together In the hsrbor OF Port hand
which could then boast that 1t sheltered
at one time all the worIo's buildings of
this mighty type of sea-going craft; q
trio OF giants.
They are cosl-carriers par excellence;
designed for heavy loads. The largest
coal cargo ever brought into Portland
har Dor (the coal pJrt OF Msine), 10 6,0oo
tons, brought in an English steamer.
The "Eiinor A. Percy" has brought IN
one cargo 5,229 tons, 800 car loads; twelve
train loads, all in this hold of one wooden
schooner. There is one seven. master in
existance, and only one, the Thomas W.
lawson" OF Boston. When she was
building, after much discussion IL was
decided to call her seventh mast the
pusher.
MAINE BUILT BUT NOT MAINE. SPARED.
But / started out to tell OF the sticks
these monsters carry. In this connection
there is food for thought in consignment
of freight that rode down through the
White mountains of New Hampshire re-
Gently. There were three fiat cars, owned,
sc their initials show, by the Northern
Pacific Rsiiwsy Co., and they were laden
with this burden. The three cars were
strongly coupled together and bore,
securely bound and chained. six sticks OF
Oregon ~ pine. They had come from
Elma, in the state of Washington, by the
shores of Puget Sound; they were des-
tined to Bucksporl, where the Penobscot
enters the Atlantic ocean.
Now the Penobscot flows down through
forests of its own, ana at its mouth, as at
the mouth of many OF our New England
rivers, ships are built. No doubt the
facility with which ship timbers, masts
and spars could be fiosted to the ship
yards, In the days ante-dating the rail-
roads, has much TO do with this.
No longer, however, can Maine supply
the masts aud spsrs for the ships that
leave her yards. For example:
Here were three vessels sbuiIding at
Bucksport, on the Penobseot. There was
brought across the continent fifteen
spars; twelve lower mssts and three bow
masted schooners. No sticks to compare
with these can be found In Maine, or In
all New England. The largest sticks
measured los feet in length; were twenty
four inches in diameter at the butt and
twenty-three inches gat the top. There
was little variation In the size OF the
principal sticks.
Six fiat cars (there were two shipmentsl
held the fifteen sticks; TERED up, three on
the car floor, two above and again two
above, the whoe;ttightiy bound with
strong logging chaius. The total weight
OF the fifteen sticks:,was i1s6.000 pounds,
more than six tons tosesch stick.
hS rsfeAc ichtnS0 tue tnttfe length OH
the three fiat cars coupled together. Th&
weight rested almost wholly upon Il he twf
end cars, the centre car served the pua
pose OF long link connecting the othN
two, to avoid stiffness of the load aid
allow the turning oflcorners; what rad
road man calls, to swivel round the curvs
LONG WAY FROM HOME. Al
had the curiosity to figure the dstaS
travelled by these masts between stsrtf
point and destination. 1t footed q
miles; one OF the longest hauls / bslK,
ever attempted with any load. Th4t
could be done with such a load and VI
out traDshipment, and In the quick pc
OF twenty-one days, is triumplfor |
modern railways, which should Id a
place in story beside the exploit o The |
Limited" passenger train. Here ~ it |
might be well to record the fact tho the |
freight charges on the fifteen sticksHere |
q, 500
From point eighty-four mileSees |
OF Tacoma, under the shadow "a Mt. |
| Olympus they were taken, these GIANT |
trees that had drawn their moisturlrom |
the Pacific, captives and exiles lfross |
the Cascade and the Rocky MOI tains, |
through the cattle ranges of Mstana,
the prairies of Dakota, the fsps of |
Minnesota 20 st. Paul, where rail-
road company that had picked I'm up
on the Pacific coast turned themtrer to
Its connecting line after haull them
$50 miles, more than half the joeney.
From st. Paul they iourneyede Ssult
Ste. Marie, Michigan, where the Crossed
the Great Lakes aud also the int aational
boundry. Here they we're Turnover to
a Canadian railway, which brouht them
across the st. Lawrence and d5n to the
northern portal OF the White Iountains
OF New Hampshire.
AT Portland, they were badd in the
fog OF the Atlantic. The folowng day
| thew arrival at their daaftn nj inr mn the