The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1913-03-20
Contract Is Placed With the
Cramps for Vessels to Ply
Between New York
and This City
SIR OWEN Philips
MAY BE THE OWNER
Steamers VIII Be Up to Date
and Will Make Use of
Panama Canal

The best SueSSerS IN the local ship
ping world are now trying to figure
out the identity of the mysterious
person who has just placed with
Cramp & Sons of Philadelphia IS, 900, :
600 contract for two large, fast pas
senger steamers to be operated be-
tween New York and San Francisco via
the Panama canal. President Grove of
the Cramp company has made public
the specifications under which the ships
are to be built, but says that he is not
at liberty now to divulge the identity
have been placed in the name of a
private individual
While unable to say for whom the
ships are being built, the Cramp people
say that their ships are not for the
Pacific Mail company. Grace &. Co, nor
for the German interests that have in
dicated an intention tos finance an
American line through thescanal
Here and in the east shipping men
have resorted to every means at their
hackers of this enterprise. So far
President Grove has kept his s5, 900, ,00o
secret and the guessing contest is still
on
MAY BE SIR OWEN Phillips
The latest guess, and it is deemed a
shrewd one by the best Informed OF
local shipping men, is that the "mys-
terious man. is Sir owen Philipps,
chairman of the Royal Mail Steamship
company. and probably the most pow
marine
The interests of which Sir owen is
the head are represented in nearly
every trade route in the world. They
have absorbed many large British
steamship companies and now operate
an immense fleet of ships of all sorts
and sizes. The particular reason given
for selecting Philips as the man be-
hind the S5,e00.00 is that he is known,
prior to the placing of the contract, to
have made diligent inquiry in Washing
ton as to whether any loophole could
be found or Knocked either in the coast
wise shipping law or the law exempt
ing American coastwise ships from
canal tolls whereby British line could
operate between the Atlantic and Pa
cific coasts of the United States.
The contract is the largest received
by Cramps for II years. More than
10000 tons of steel will be used in the
construction of the two ships, each of
which will be 500 feet long, 81 feet
beam and will have six decks.
Principals of the new line believe that
they can establish a lucrative tourist
service between the two coasts, and the
ships will be built almost exclusively
for passenger service. The business
Will be built up, it is ANNOUNCED, by
establishing low rates for high class
service.
WILL BE FLOATING PALACES
Each OF the liners will have accom-
modations for 500 passengers in the
first cabin, $50 in the second cabin and
400 in the steerage. There will be So
cial halls large as the Hobbies of me-
tropolitan hotels. as well as smoking
rooms, swimming tanks, gymnasiums
and everything else that goes into the
make up of floating palace.
The vessels will be ready for launch
ing about the end of next year and will
he ,,lac ced in commission almost stimuli
taneously with the opening of the Pan
ama-Pacifc exposition.
Particular attention has been devoted
in the plans to the safety of passengers
and crew. There will be double sides
and double bottoms and additional
water tight bukheads extending from
top to bottom OF the hull. All the
woodwork used in the construction will
be chemically treated, to make it fire
proof
The ships will be equipped with Par
sons turbine engines. which viii drive
three propellers and give a speed of %
knots an hour.
The vessels will have space for only
about 500 tons of freight. In size and
appearance the new ships will resemble
the new big turbiners OF the Togo XII
sen Kaisha.
POPE IEAyES SICKROOM