The Republican journal., 1915-07-08
One Renaissance Suggests
Another.

The Marine Journal. New York, con-
tains nearly every week Renaissance
by the editor, Capt. George L. Norton,
and often they bring to the writer like
"reminiscences. That is true of what fol-
lows:
1t was in the beginning of the summer
excursion season in 1870 that l first saw
the officers of merchant steamer, from
the captain down to the grade of stew
ard, all dressed in uniform. The boats
on which this occurred were the Provi-
dence and Bristol of the Fall River Line
that had Just come under the control of
the then much in the limelight "Jim"
Fisk, Jr, and Jay Gould who had also
purchased the Pike Opera House on the
corner of Eighth Avenue and Twenty
third street, later and now called the
Grand Opera House, where these two
prominent financiers moved the Erie
Railroad offices. which property, they
with their friends controlled, and from
conducting opera bouffe, railroad and
steamboat business Combined. About
this time Fisk and Gould had purchased
the steamboat Plymouth Rock, which
afterward made a reputation on the Long
Branch route in connection with the Jer-
sey Central Railroad Company, making
connection with this road inside of Sandy
Hook In the meantime, before these
trips We're begun, the Plymouth Rock
made a Sunday excursion trial trip up
the Hudson on which the writer was a
guest. This boat had been magnificently
fitted up with private rooms unlimited
where meals and wines in abundance
We're served.
A little forward of amidships Mr.. Fisk
had aspacious room elegantly furnished
for himself and friends. And on this
occasion we stood near the gangway on
the dock viewing the crowd coming on
board when Capt Triton called my atten-
ton to brilliantly costumed party of
ladies and gentlemen corning down the
dock led by Mr.. Fisk VINO wore Com
modore's uniform, and resting on his
arm was Josie Mansfield. followed by Ed
ward S. Stokes, the once famous AIMEE
and several female members of the Opera
House Company. Mr.. Fisk was large,
fine looking blonde complexioned man,
and with his waxed mustache made a
rare appearance and he looked the part
of Commodore. This was the begin
ming of what sometime later caused a
shocking tragedy in the Broadway Cen
trail Hotel when Stokes shot and mortally
wounded Fisk in consequence, it was
said, of both being enarmored with Josie
Mansfield, ard the world not being large
enough for both of them to exist in under
their condition of temperament.
The writer travelled on the Fall River
line at that time and recalls that on arriv-
ing at the gargway to go on board you
were met by colored steward in neat
uniform and wearing white gloves, who
took your hand baggage, escorted you to
the ticket office and then to your state
room and performed any service required
Of him. Around the balcony in the main
saloon were hundreds of cages of canary
birds and fine band gave concerts every
evening. While the canary birds might
have been dispensed with the concerts
were enjoyable, the late dinners were
equal to those served in the best hotels,
and, generally speaking, the travelling
public were better cared for than ever
before. Gould and Fisk made like innova-
lions on the Erie railroad The writer
when en- route to New Orleans from Bos-
ton in 1857 on changing to the Erie road
at Albany found that only ladies', or gen.
tlemen accompanied by ladies, were ad
mitted to one car and others had to ride
in car filled with emigrants who had
passed the night and ate and drank in it.
The atmosphere is better imagined than
described.