The Washington bee., 1908-09-12
HOUSE Cleaning ONASH|P
Process of Tidying Up a Trans
atlantic Liner.
IS DONE TWICE A MONTH
The Work Goes on With CIOck-like
PrecisiOn-Every Man and Boy
Knows His Post and What Is Ex-
pected OF Him-TWO Miles OF
Decks to Scrub.

Decks to Scrub.
In all households spring clean
ing" is very properly regarded as an
ordeal, but 1t does not often occur
The case is vastly different With one
or the modern transatlantic liners,
however, where a most thorough
house cleaning takes place twice a
month, and that without the aid OF
q single woman!
No sooner has the last immigrant
got ashore with his bundles than
boys with gongs go clnaging down
the immense decks; and from the
great saloons right Gown to the stoke
holes, the small army of men making
up the linel crew are madt aware
that house-c.eaning is about to be-
gin.
The great life-boats are swung out
and back and found TO be in good
condition. The first officer roars un-
intellible orders through d mega
phone, and work begins with ma
Chine-like precision. There may be
hfty thousand pieces of linen TO be
sorted and counted, done up in sacks,
sent to the laundry, and recOunted
and put away on their return. There
are something like thirty thousand
pieces Of silver to be counted, sorted
and cleaned; nifty thousand items or
glass, and double that number OF
dishes and cooking utensils to be
dealt with by washers and pOlishers.
There may well be from five to sew
en- hundred staterooms to be cleaned
IN every corner with scrupuIous care.
There are probably fifty or sixty
bathrooms to be cleaned, and a small
army of men is let loose IN the vast
dining-saloon of the ship, where per-
haps seven hundred and fifty people
may be seated at once.
Another and smaller army attacks
the second saloon. Deft-handed
sweepers, busters and cleaners are in
every part OF the great drawing
room. Outside there may be two
miles Of decks to scrub and the same
mileage" OF rugs and carpets to be
beaten IN the open air. Hundreds
OF mattresses are to he put out In
the sun and some OF them remade.
The work goes with clock-like pre-
Ctsion. A smaller liner with accom-
modatiOn for about seventeen hun
dreed first and sceOnd-class passen-
gers, has been cleaned with exquisite
care in exactly four and thirty hours
from the time the ben-boys first
changed their gong. 1t the great
ship makes fast to her pier In the
morning and discharges her passen-
gers before noon, the housecleaning
starts promptly at one. If. however,
she docks later in the afternoon, or
at night, the hOuse-cleaning signal Is
given at six o'clock the next morn
ing.
1t need hardly be said that every
man and boy knows his post and
what is expected OF him. Scaffold-
ings are built about the great smoke
stacks, and up here painters scrape
and lay on new coats. The next day
may find them at work on the hull.
Stalwart sailors are washing downthe
walls OF the deck-hOuses. The stew
ards are stripping the berths in the
staterOOms; and the linen steward
with his star, is counting the soiled
linen with amazing rapidity. The
table-steWards are busy IN the great
saloons with their silver; there are
boys IN the pantry washing dishes
with most unbOylike alacrity. The
head steward, with a telephone by
his side and a line Of subordnates
before rim, is busy with accounts,
breakage losses, and the ike. He
divides the staterOOms into groups OF
ten, with 'cal ain" over each
group.
House-cIeaning in the steerage
quarters is, or course, mucn simpler,
although not less thorough. Every
thing that might be injured is first
or all removed, and then various
lengths of hose are brought into play,
throwing tremendously powerful
streams OF water.
The men are. of course. barefoot
ed, and are followed by their mates
welding brooms. brushes and scrub
cloths. There are stalwart men even
down in the hold, getting it ready for
fresh mountains of baggage and car !
go! The tremendously powerful a,
engines now still and siIeHt, are like
wise being overhauled, polished and
oiled, and in less time than it would
take one of our housewives to clean
her little suburban or country dwell |
mig, the ship is suddenly pronounced
ready" to receive two or three !
thousand more or less fastidious pas |
sengers.
Hnrr Snakes Hnar