Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-05-05
Written for The Star.

Four DAYS from Queenstown to New York
and vice versa. surrounded by surprising
| luxury and safety. This is the strenuous
| ambition of the conservative old Cunard
! line, and its hope of establishing this triple
| transatlantic record is conferred In two
| giant steamers now on the ways-the Lusi-
1 lama, In the Clydebank yards, Glasgow.
| and the Mauritania. at Wallsend. Northum-
| berland on the River Tyne.
| Four days fat and shade under, IL pos
| sibie between the mother isles and the
| hfty-one buxom daughters-forty-fv of age
collectively known as the United States of
America A half day more than half
week from shore to shore. Gray-beards now
living. either on this side of the water or
| the other. can distinctly remember when
| the two countries were all agog with ex-
cftenent over the news that the passage
had been made by a steamer In less than
ten days
That long since antiquated record was es-
tablished, not by the first OF the long line
| of famous Cunarders. the Britannia, nor by
any English boat. nor a German or French
steamer. 1t was the record Of a steamship
| built and owned in America and proudly
showing the stars and stripes to the lookout
perched In the crow's-nest Of every rival.
| Her name the Arctic. her line the Col
| Inns subsidized by the federal government.
! and many Americans will hold that II this
| policy had been religiously adhered to by
the government down to date Americans.
| not Englshmen would in all probability to-
| LAY be planning to go In four days across
| the pond" in surprising luxury and
safety.
American Notwithstanding.
| AS 1t is. the part that Americans have
! played in smashing speed comfort and
safety records between the two countries
has been noteworthy. though but few
}in,,
| acquainted with the facts and only two rec
| ord-smas hers have sailed under flag.
1t was TO meet the competition of Amert-
| n-built steamers that the Cunard people
| launched the Persia. which half a century
ago came within an hour and three-quar-
! tiers of making the passage from Roche's
Point to Sandy Hook In the phenomenal
| time of nine days.
| For six years. beginning with 1879, the
speed records were continually smashed
| and consecutlvely held by the Guion lines
Arizona Alaska and Oregon, built by
company whose officers and shareholders
were almost entirely Americans The
! Alaska by making the trip In less than
| seven days caused the prows OF proud
| 'seven-day boats to be headed for ship
| Rraveyards The Arizona. the Alaska, the
oregon. each In turn was supreme In speed.
| luxurious accommodations and safety OF
| construction.
| Five years after the engines of the Ore
gon had done their best came the famed
1 % 3
| twin the City OF New York. was con-
| structed for the Inman line, which then
| had recently come under the control of
American capitalists. with Clement A.
| C;risoom as president The City of Paris.
| then flying the English flag. was the first
| boat to cross the Atlantic III either direc-
| tion in less than six days, thus making
| the "five-day boat, as we know IL today,
| an actually.
| Let the builders of the giant Lusitania
and Of the twin giant Mauritania strive as
| they may, they will not be able to equip
| them with very many luxurious accommo-
| dations that the City of Paris and the City
| of New York did not have when they first
! set their graceful. yacht-lined noses toward
| the setting sun. The chief luxuries that
| the two Cunarders will have that the two
Cities did not are elevators between decks
/ and telephones in every stateroom. In
/ nearly everything else the Cunarders will
| be more luxurious simply in degree, not in
| innovations.
| First Twin-Screw Boats.
| Steamship men will tell you that the two
| Cities set standard for luxury that can
not be easily got away from. The con-
| tract with the builders stipulated that the
/ accommodations for the first-class passen-
! gers should combine 1.-The comforts of horne
with the richest luxurles of hotel life" This
| Is one aim of the builders of the Lusitania
| and the Mauritania, and In the years that
| have passed since the City of Paris was
queen of the ocean the Injuries of hotel
| life have been elaborated rather than great
| ~ added TO.
| In mechanical and safety devices. also,
| the City Of New York and the City of
| Paris set standards. They were construct
| cd TO be practically unsuitable. and seri-
| Gus accident to the City of Paris IN March
of 1890 proved them to be The starboard
| main shaft broke near the screw while re-
| volving eighty times a minute The en-
CINE raced" connecting rod eleven
T,,,I, tn lIar OH f,r,cly apta fla
| great holes were knocked into the bulk
heads and the engine rooms flooded. But
the forward bulkheads. which protected
the boilers. remained intact, the ship kept
afioat and later was towed into Queens
| town There she was pumped free of wa
| ter. the holes plugged up. and she pro-
coded under her port engine to Liverpool.
Thirteen months were consumed in repair
ing the damage. Concerning the accident
| the official report of the board OF trade of
| London says: No ordinary vessel could
| have remained afioat after such an acct
| dent
The City of New York was the arst ship
| 10 have twin screws. the City of Paris the
| second. Twin screws not only make for
| greater sped, but greater safety as well
| With her rudder disabled, the City of Paris
| steered 7s6 miles to Queenstown with her
| screws alone in little over three days.
| Electricity was used throughout to light
| the City of Paris and the City of New
| York. Steamship ventilation brought
| TO perfection In each. electricity driving the
| great fans. The kitchen was Isolated in a
| steel shell ventfiators carrying the doors
| into the smoke tunnels. The steering gear
| was novel. being hydraulic. Resistance to
| head winds was reduced by having only
light pole masts. without yards. Electric
ity, perfect ventilation and hydraulic gear
| will be features OF the four-day Cunarders.
| Hydraulic gear Will be used to close the
| openings in the bulkheads. The bukheads
| in the City of Paris and the City of New
| York were solid. rising eighteen feet from
| keelson to saloon deck.
| OF course In every way the Cunarders
| will be the supertors OF the City OF Paris
| and the City OF New York. But the point
| is this-they will be finer largely in de-
| gree only. very few Innovations In lux
| urious accommodations and safety appli-
| ances having been introduced by hot Ger
| man and British rival lines since the late
eighties, when the two Cities were launched
The Old Britannia.
| But what a difference between the new