The Washington herald., 1909-04-18


try's general prosperity, or the lack OF
ii, is the volume of travel that makes
its way across the Atlantic In the high
" prosperous years the agents who have
10 do with the booking of that part OF
the eastward-bound which travels first-
class have their work cut out for them
long before the regularly established sea
son" actually begins.
- IS likewise true that those who in
golden eras handle the steerage traffic
bound away from these shores. have COM
paratively little TO do. These come into
their own when the lean years come.
Then there is a swamping rush for the
streerage and a general exodus Of that
larger army of foreigE-born which HES
back TO Europe in the days Of depression
there TO tide over the workless era in
the cheaper living Of their old haunts.
says the Philadelphia Public Ledger.
This history which had been repeated
so often was once mere made familiar
by the repetition OF l9O7-0S. But with
the new year came signs Of a gradual
but sure reversiOn 20 the status that ex-
listed before the panic of 1907. Now the
streerages Of the incoming ships are
crowded as they have rarely been before,
and while there has been as yet no over
ercwding Of the caoins ef vessels bound
10 Europe, yet there is a pronounced in
crease in the volume of saloon travel as
compared with that Of the corresponding
period of last year.
Here are a few figures bearing upon
the subject In 1907 the outgoing trans
Atlantic travel from New York consisted
Of 100.T06 who Travelled first class. OF
I0S.e72 who went IN second cabins, and Of
80. .2s3 who crossed in steerages. The
statistics for 1905 show a marked decrease
in saloon travel TO the eastward, and a
corresponding increase in steerage traffic.
only 9S, 544 saloon passengers going abroad
last year as against the vast army Of
6SJ.4u who went in eastbound steerages-
The. incoming fleet Of 1907 brought near
ly 1000 more saloon passengers than had
gone abroad that year the exact num-
Der being 1o9712 In 1908 the number Of
incOmers vino Travelled first class dropped
to S. 403. a falling of of more than 5000
in a single year. The number Of in
comers who. Travelled in second cabins
In 1905 was 1lG25l as against 2eS.S63 the
preceding year. The incoming steerage
traffic In 1907 was l,379,2S9. Hardly more
than a fourth of this number arrived
IN 1905. the exact number being SJ3.9is.
But. although the steamship companies
were hard hit by the hard times. there is
now a fine optimism among the various
agencies. and a general expectation that
the flush times in steamship travel are
very close at hand. even II they have not
actually arrived. Even now the bookings
far exceed those OF the corresponding pc
riod Of last year. and there is general
feeling among the steamship men that
when the tariff question has been set
tied and Congress out Of the way, there
will start a rush for Europe that will
equal if It does not surpass. the joyous
exodus of the more plentiful days OF two
years ago.
In preparation for this rush the lines
are sending out more literature 10 their
out-of-tOwn agents. 10 their old patrons
and 10 their prospective new ones than
they have ever done before. There has
also been prepared numerous circulars
descriptive Of new vessels that are
about TO appear in service. and many
others which tell Of the virtues Of the
old. There are guide books without num-
ber; but. as one Of these frankly admits
"one never feels that a gu!de-bOok has
ever crossed the water or been seasick.
and lost its baggage. IL never tells
what il did on or Of nice places TO stop
az that no one else knows Of II is only
personal experience that can supply the
Information that the large proportion OF
people going abroad for the first time
are in need Of. or can enter into any de-
tailed account Of small wants.
It may be assumed that every one who
intends 20 go abroad this year has some
curiosity about the rates. Every expe-
rienced voyager knows that there are two
rates. the winter and the summer. To
these were recently added third. an
intermediate season.. as the steamship
men choose to call II. The rates vary
largely with the season. but their greatest
variance is with the higher-priced ac-
cornmOdations. For example, an 'im-
perial suite" consisting Of parlor, bed
room. bath. private dining-room. and
maids quarters on such a vessel as the
Kaiser Wilhelm II would cost 5000 from
May 10 July; $3.50 from April l 10 April
50. and 5000 from August to March. The
changes in rates. which vary with the
seasons arbitrarily fixed by the steam
ship companies, shade downward TO the
minimum rates, where they become fixed,
these remaining the same with all lines
throughout all seasons.
Again the prices vary with the vessels
The big fellows such as the Mauretania
and the Lusitania Of the Cunard Line:
the Deutschland OF the Hamburg -Ameri-
can. and the Kaiser Wilhelm II. Of the
North German Lloyd. cost more than do
their equally safe ard comfortable but
less speedy cOnsorts.
Tn ha Of
out the entire year OF 1905 second cabins
had a sudden access Of popularity. Just
previous TO that era OF hard times a vOy-
age across the ocean in second cabin
quarters was considered only a short
remove from a voyage in the steerage.
No one who could afford the price OF a
first-class passage would ever consider
the price OF a second-class ticket and
those VINO adventured TO Europe in the
heyday OF the spring rush and thought
less of return tickets were won't to blush
and 10 apologize and TO enter into full
some explanation as 20 how it was that
they had found the saloons all crowded
when they had sought 10 return. and how
It was forced upon them 70 return sec
ond class or not 10 return at an until the
rush was over
Since then there have been thousands
10 openly declare that they mean 10 go
abroad second class" 10 return the same
Tas. and not caring who knows it, To
meet this sudden popularity of the sec
ond cabin, one OF the lines, the Com
pagnie Trans-Atlantique. revised the
plans OF a new vessel which II then had
under construction. and the vessel is now
plying as one-cabin ship only. that
cabin being frankly known as a second
cabin"
Summed up. the ocean voyager can
find in the variety Of accommodations
offered by the steamship companies as