The Washington herald., 1916-05-21
SEEN AND HEARD
BY GEORGE MINER
ington Herald.
Copyright. IHs. by the Mcclure Newspaper
8ypdrcaU-J

the very biggest. So many ships have
been removed from the regular uses of
trade by the war. either by being
sunk. interned, or devoted exclusively
to war purposes, that at present there
are not nearly enough bottoms ahoat
to supply the worlds needs. OF course.
every one knows that and also that
ocean-Carrying rates are very high and
that big fortunes are being made by
people who are fortunate enough to
own available ships or hold charters.
What most laymen do not know is
that quick dispatch in ocean carrying
no longer exists. There is such a con-
gestion of freight that a shipper is
very lucky to get even a part Of his
consignment forwarded on time. There
Is hardly a ship arrives or clears that
does not disappoint many merchant
! in receiving or sending only a part Of
his goods.
Just as in land carrying. there are
two classes of freight in ocean trans
portatiOn-Ordinary, slow moving, and
bulky freight, and express matter
which calls for quick delivery. At the
present time express freight owing to
the great congestion, gets no quicker
dispatch than does ordinary freight.
number of wideawake business men
have noted this condition and propose
to take advantage of il to their own
ness world al large. So they have in
corpOrated a company TO be known as
the International Ocean Express. They
have already begun business 10 the
extent Of making carrying contracts
and buying and negotiating for ships.
Mr.. W. II. Muller is to be the gen
eral mana ger OF the new express com
pany. He returned a couple Of weeks
ago from France and is leaving again
in a few days for Russia in the inter
ests of the new organization.
We are not Chartering ships said
he. but buying them. ! have just
been over inspecting Nj Howard
Gould's yacht Niagara, which is the
first ship We have secured. We VIII
buy two or three ships TO start with
and increase the feet as the trade
grows.
we are not q passenger line, because
express cargo pays so much better than
1t would to devote the space on board TO
staterooms. We shall sail under the
American flag and be strictly neutral
We expect in time to operate ships 10
all parts Of the world and be TO ocean
TRANSPORTATION what the National and
American Express companies are TO laho
! Transportation in the United states.
l Cathered from what Mr.. Muller saio
that the company expected 10 recruit
| its fleet largely by the purchase OF prl-
yate Yachts whose owners are building
.-sv ruos o. for any other reason wish
to dispose Of those they now have.
Faithful to the oscar IL.
/ One would think that Mr.. 5. 5. Mcclure
would have had all the oscar II he wanted,
He crossed the Atlantic on her last fall
when she became famous a Henry Ford $
peace ship. Apparently that experience
did not prejudice Mr.. Mcclure against
the boat. for it was this same oscar II
on which he elected to return to TINS
country again, arriving in New York a
! few days ago.
He brings back "A new reason for
getting the boys vut Of the trenches by
/ Christmas What christmas is not specl-
fed this time He says Germany wants
peace so that the people can resume their
old life According to Mr.. Mcclure. the
wasting of millions of lives and millions
/ of treasure didn't concern them. All
they want peace for is because the war
I IinterfereS with business.
/ in connection with the preparedness
parade in New York, one of the morning
|daiies calmly announced that the proper
way to display an American flag was
To- have the field of stars toward the west
/ wonder what the fellow who evolved
that idea would do when the wind changed.
Proud of Her Horse Cars.
! New York was about the last city in
the country to adopt electric street cars,
and it is quite the last city in the COun-
try to maintain horse cars. They are
( only a memory in other cities big, mid
( die sized or little. But New York sticks
to horse cars and still has line running
on the east side. 1t is announced now,
however. that within six months this in
tcresting relic Of the past will be dis
continued. I can't believe it, for New
York has rather Dragged Of having horse
cars and seemed to consider it sort
( of distinction.
| Civic sentiment in this New York is a
queer thing. Antiquated but historical
old buildings and interesting. landmarks
/ can be torn down and ubliterated without
| causing a mUrmur Of protest. And they
/ have been time and again, but they main
/ tain horse ears here in opposition to all
ideas Of municipal progress and develop
ment for twenty years after every little
place in the land has discarded them.
! I'll bet too. there will he a howl II the
horse cars ever are taken Of
New York is way behind many other
! cities in the care OF its streets, in lighting,
I in its water supply, in its transportation
/ facilities. in its traffic reEUla tiOns and in
/ lots of other things but it certainly does
/ keep right up al the mead OF the prO~es'
sion In hotel building. Not but that there
are just as good hotels in some othe'
cities as there are here, but there is such
| . raft Of them here. and they keep build
! ing them so fast you can't keep track OF
! the new ones. It's a dull day when there
is not new hotel proclaimed.
The New York Central Railroad Is the
, last one to come out with a hotel an
noUnCement Only Two years ago this
company opened the magnificent Biltmore
! Hotel which is in many respects the
leading hotel in New York today. It's
very successful and you would think the
railroad would be happy and rest on its
| laurels. Not at all.
month or SO ago the Pennsylvania
| announced that it was going to build q
whale OF a hotel opposite the station
| on Seventh avenue. So now the New
York Central comes to the front with an
announcement that it is going TO build d
hotel just as big right next its terminal
on Forty-second street. That will give
it the ownership of a hotel on both sides
of the station.
The house on Seventh avenue is TO be
called the Pennsylvania and the one or
| Forty-seCOnd street the New York Cen
| tral. You see, both roads are rather diff
| fdent about seeking publicity.