The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1917-03-01
T Falmouth One Of the
Busiest Ports Of World
(By Associated Press.)

Falmouth. England, March l.
These are stirring days In this remote
shipping outpost. The harbor is
crowded with American, Dutch and
Scandinavian craft of all kind, great
liners Of some of the trans-Atlantic
companies, freighters, tankers and
tramps in all rigs and flags. 1t is the
busiest shipping time Falmouth has
seen since the old packet days, almost
a hundred years ago, when things
fiourished and then died down until
the port was considered pretty dead
from O. shipping standpoint. Just now
the declaration of the German war
zones has sent moro ships scurrying
into the harbor, for the memorandum
to the German note even specified
Falmouth by name as Offering some
possible exemption from the scourge.
Falmouth more than any other port
is witnessing how tha war Is chang
ing trade routes and trade ports, par
tfcuIarly along the channel where the
submarine menace has practically
closed the old ports for trans Atlantic
travel, notably at Cherburg, Havre
and Boulogne on the French side. and
SOUTHAMPTON and Dover on the Ems
lish. And even Bordeaux has fallen
in the danger zone under the new
menace. So that Falmouth, while
having no actual exemption, has
none the less reaped the advantage or
its geographical position in absorbing
the shipping closed out from many
other ports.
The port is at the very tip Of south
west England, just abreast OF the
rocky headland of Landsend, and
about the first land sighted in coming
across the Atlantic. 1t is just east OF
the Lizard. from which point the ar
rival of liners is first reported, the
same as from Sandy Hook. 1t Is ad-
jacent, too, to the Poldau wireless sta
ton which from this outpost sends
its wireless across the Atlantic and to
ships at sea. Nearby Is Penzance.
where the pirates lived and further on
is the house of Drake.
Thus located at the very jumping
of point of England and the west
ern harbor OF the channel, Falmouth
has a minimum Of submarine danger
and at the same time Is something like
Montauk Point. Long Island, In reach
ing far eout to sea and thus permit
ting quick emergency rail connections
with the metropolis lying further In
land, These various advantages have
combined to bring back to Falmouth
to its old-time shipping glory and to
crowd the harbor with the ships of
all nations save those OF the enemy.
One OF these newcomers, an Ameri-
can tanker. has Just gone ashore In
the outer harbor and Is slowly going
to pieces before the heavy surf. There
has been no loss Of life. but Falmouth
is deeply aroused, for scum of Amer
lean oil has spread over the surface
Of the water.
"Its one Of the worst things that has
ever happened to us" said an old au-
thority Of the port THE oil has got
into our oyster beds, among the best
in England. and probably killed them
for good. 1t has also killed off all the
fish. and even the fish that are living
can't be eaten, they taste so Of oil.
We've had big boom from the war.
but this oil on the water has set it
all back It's serious, danger too, for
at some points 1t has caught on lire
and spread a sheet OF flame far over
the water
This however. is only ous of the
passing incidents Of the strenuous
sea life In time OF war. But the last
ing thing for Falmouth il the great
impetus TO shipping and the crowd Of
ships from all over the world now
heading II in and out OF the port The
rush has been so great that the port
have put on very rigid
rules against crowds of strangers In
vading the town at night. Only the