New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1908-04-15
BOAT OF newspapers
Novel Craft Built For Long Row.
ing Trip.
FROM FLORIDA TO NEW YORK

FROM FLORIDA TO NEW YORK
Captain G. w. Johnson's Vessel Made
of Journals From All Parts of the
World Proves Seaworthy-lts Out
side Is Embellished by Headings.
Captain George w. johnson, the vet
eran Harlem river oarsman, has com.
pleted his newspaper boat, which is to
take him from st. Augustine, Fla, to
New York. The boat is made of news
papers from all sections of the world.
There are tWenty-seven shicknesses
of paper in the hull and eighteen on the
decks. The outside is embellished by
headings of these papers These head
ings can be distinctly seen through
the shellac
On the decks the headlines start from
Florida and follow each state on the
route to New York. which reaches the
wash box amidships, says st. Angus
tine correspondent of the New York
Herald. The outside of the wash boxes
contains the New York city papers and
the inside those Of New York state.
On the port side of the boat, starting
from the bow, the papers from Maine,
New Hampshire, Vermont. Massachu-
sets, Rhode Island and Connecticut
the New York papers. On the star
board side they start from Seattle,
Wash, to California and then follow
the foreign and western papers.
The other night the boat was taken
to the Casino, where Captain johnson
gave an exhibition in the pool. The
craft was recently launched from Al
lens dock on the bay, where Captain
Johnson gave an exhibition of rowing
and testing the boat in very rough wa
ter. The trials proved very satisfactory.
After a few weeks practice in the
boat Captain Johnson will leave for his
long row to New York, taking the in
side route, which is nearly all inland.
About 200 miles will be rowed on the
ocean, part Of it from Beaufort, S. c.,
to Moorehead City, N. c., after which
it is all inland.
Stops will be made every night at
some village, town or city, where the
boat will be placed on exhibition. The
cruise will be taken in easy stages Of
ten to twenty-five miles day, accord.
ing to the weather and other condi.
lions, and the oarsman expects to ar
rive in New York the latter part OF
June.
Letters of invitation have been re.
ceived by Captain johnson from q
number of boat and yacht clubs along
the route to be the guest of those
! clubs while in their vicinity. Among
! these is an invitation by the Severn
Boat club of Annapolis, Md
The boat is twenty feet in length
twenty inches beam, six inches deep
and has five air tight compartments at
each end, making it practically I'm.
sinkable. Every section in the cockpit
with the exception Of about twenty
inches for the foot stretchers, will be
decked, so that if heavy swells wash
over only about ten gallons of wa.
! ter will remain in the craft. which
will easily be bailed out.
Food and clothing can be carried in
two two-foot matches, with tools and
other necessary articles
Captain Johnson is well preserved
man and although going on toward
the sixty year mark, does not looE
much more than forty. He is stockily
built, five feet seven inches in heigh1
and weighs at present lS1 pounds. He
was born at Middle Village, N. Y, and
has been in the rowing game since
childhood. For many years he was &
prominent member Of the Nonparei
Rowing club of the Harlem river anl
is well known by oarsmen all over the
] country. A grand reception has beer
promised him by the oarsmen of the
Harlem, Staten Island, New Jersey an6
Brooklyn clubs on his arrival in New
/ York.