The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-10-20
New York Sum-


and sluggishness of movement in
steamships, il might be said, is past
with the building of the Cunard tur-
biner .Lusitania- 1t seems a far cry to
the time when the first steamships,
largely of experimental build, felt their
way across the western ocean. In the
first days the furnaces ate up wood as
we'll as coal in the great eagerneSS of
the marine architects to evolve YES
sci that would win speed records. Sails
were generally set. too. aboard the old
passenger ship when the wind favored.
So it was in the year 1919. when the
ancient Savannah crossed the Atlantic,
the first steamship TO negotiate the
trip, and did not complete the journey
under steam alone, but went along I'M
der sail for seven days while the winds
were fair
The Savannah marked perhaps the
beginning of the era of steam naviga-
ton on the Atlantic, but it was many
years before another steam vessel at
tempted the voyage.
After the Savannah, which was an
American ship ''prodigiously ugly" as
they say, came the Sirius and Great
Western. two British steamships of
about TOO tons each. These vessels
C. me out in 1885, and the Great West
ern succeeded in establishing trans
was looked upon in more or less amaze.
Nothing had approached these, the best
time hung up by many of the packet
ships being about twenty days. Peo-
pie began to put faith in steam after
all. and perhaps this growing conf
dence resulted i'm the founding of the
Cunard company. This concern was or
ganized in 1910 and at its inception
took the field with a squadron of wood
en- side-wheel ships.
The first Cunarders were the Britain
MIA Acadia, Columbia and Caledonia,
all wooden ships, something over 200
feet long. and which acquired under
high pressure q speed of about eight
knots These vessels performed so
we'll however. that the Cunard line de-
cided that the transocean trade could
be made profitable, and thereafter
went into the thing on a larger scale.
Gradually the time in making the At
lantic passage was shortened by the
Cunarders from fifteen to about eleven
days. Then came the ships of the Col
Inns line. an American organization,
whose performances caused untold
wonderment. These vessels, including
the Inflated Arctic and Pacific. low
cred the time from Europe to Ameri-
ca 10 something over nine days. This
was in the early sos, and the Arctic
made d record OF nine days seventeen
hours and twelve minutes. With the
loss of two of its best ships the Colllns
line lost its grip as a competitive rae
tor. while the Cunard line continued 10
develop.
In 1855 came the Cunarder Persia,
which lowered the great record to nine
days one hour and forty-five minutes.
This was getting near the eight-day
mark and the Persia made lot of
talk The eight-day boat made its APP
pearance ten years later, Wheh IN 1900
fhe Scotia came out and steamed from
Queenstown to New York in eight days
two hours and forty-eight minutes Ia
nous White Star vessels began to APP
near at this time, and in 1871 the old
Raltic negotia ted the ocean journey in
seven DAYS and twenty hours. For the
.;na the Baltic. of course. was the
.soueen of the seas" but in few years
che surrendered the speed title to the
city of Berlin. which clipped the figures
down to seven days seven hours and
fNyenty-three minutes.
Then there was a cry for the six
day boat. and as If in answer came the
Alaska of the Guion line. which crossed
in six days eighteen hours and thirty
seven minutes. A veritable furore was
made by this performance and the yes
sci was hailed with acclaim as the
ocean champion. This was in 1882 and
three years later came the Famous
Etruria, which hammered the record
down to six days four hours and forty
three minutes, a considerable advance
over the Alaska's record. The Etru-
ria is 2 very servicea BILE vessel yet.
Great speculation was under way to-
ward the end of the eighties as 10 how
marine engineers would he evolving the
five-day boat. The vessel TO gain the
five-day record was the City of Paris
OF the American line. Ii was in 1889
that she gave a great demonstration
of speed qualities and fed across the
seas in five days nineteen hours and
eighteen minutes. Since that time there
has been a constant lowering of ocean
time, with the great lines each strug- |
Cling TO produce the fastest ship. The |
Cunarders were soon IN the race again |
with the swift Lucania. which. in 1894 |
established the great figures of FIVE
days seven hours and twenty-three |
minutes from Queenstown TO Sandy |
Hook.
The German ships were being heard |
from. however. There was the Furst |
bismarck of the fGmhurg-American |
line. She first brought attention to the
development of speed in Teutonic yes