St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1919-04-12
"PONTCHARTRAIN LAUNCHED
AT JAHNCKE YARDS IN
MADISONVILLE
Large Crowd On Hand To Witness
Impressing Event. Miss Violet
Heughan As Sponsor.

AA>uohS&h 2AS CPoAASoAs
On Sunday, April 9Th, the Jahncke
Shipbuilding Co., Inc, launched the
5. S. Pontchartrain, 3500-ton ves-
eel of the Ferris type. The Pont-
chartrain was the fourth ship of her
ype to be launched at the Madison
vile yard. The yard gates were
thrown open to the public at IL a. m.
About 1880 a. m. the great crowd
began to gather. Pedestrains, auto
mobiles, carriages and vehicles Of
vending their way towards the ship
yard, and the eager throng of visit
ors which came from ali sections of
st. Tammany parish and surround
ing parishes, new Orleans included,
were admitted to the yard, and wit
messed a sight which was an event
that will undoubtedly be recorded as
one of the most important in the
history OF the parish of st. Tam
many. The Steamer Reverie arriv-
ed at IL o'clock with her capacity of
visitors from New Orleans. A band
ON board furnished delightful music.
When she came up the river, with
American flags flying fore and aft,
and her bands playing patriotic airs,
it was a sight long to be remember
ed. So great was the demand of
visitors from New Orleans that the
tug Fox was called upon to tow the
schooner Proteus over with boat
load of people. The Proteus also
81 orl rxyhio oh o,1o u
ed lively airs. The schooner arrived
at 1915, and the ceremonies began.
Mr. E. T. Malloy, General Superin-
tendent, was standing on the ways
at the bow of the ship. He made
an excellent speech preparatory to
the presentation of a magnificent
chest of silver to Commodore Ernest
Lee Jahncke. Mr.. Malloy spoke for
he working force Of the Jahncke
Shipbuilding Company, when he said,
The entire working force of
the Jahncke Shipbuilding Company
look upon Commodore Jahncke not
only as an employer but personal
friend as we'll" When Mr.. IMalloy
finished speaking he asked the crowd
to give three cheers for their Com
modore, and the cheers were loud
and long.
In years to come the men will un-
doubtedly look back to. their days
in the shipyard as the happiest ones
of their lives, made SO by the treat
ment received by them from Com
modore Ernest Lee Jahncke, which
was fair and square dealing through
out.
The presentation Of the chest OF
silver was kept a secret, and Com
modore Jahncke was so surprised
and overwhelmed with a feeling of
he was at loss as to
what words he should use in order
to properly convey his feelings. To
say the Commodore appreciated the
gift would be to say the least.
The Madisonyille yard is an insti-
tuition the entire country, especially
the South, can we'll feel proud of, for
it has been pronounced to be one
of the finest yards Of it's kind in the
United States.
The officials of the yard have ex-
ercised great care in their selection
of workers, and in the placing OF
various chiefs Of the many depart
ments therein.
The slogan of the Jahncke Yard
Is a sentiment which properly ex-
presses the spirit in which the work
is carried on:"' We build ships here.
At profit if we can; at loss if we
always good ships"
And they were always good ships.
Miss Violet Heughan, Sponsor.
In selecting Miss Violet Heughan,
the winsome daughter of Mr.. Z. V.
Heughan, the genial yard superin-
tendent of the Jahncke Yard, a more
sponsor could not be
found. Miss Heughan, of Madison
vile, was born near the shores of
Lake Pontchartrain and on the banks
of the beautiful Tchefuncta, and she
was beyond doubt one Of the sweet
est of sponsors, and when she broke
the bottle of champagne on the bow
of the Pontchartrain and spoke the
words, 81 christen thee Pontchar-
train" her sweet smile radiated her
beautiful face, then the great ship
slid gracefully from her resting place
to the bosom OF the Tchefuncta.
Those standing at the bow Of the
ship with Miss Heughan were Com
modore Ernest Lee Jahncke, Mr.. and
Mrs. E. T. Malloy, Mr.. and Mrs. E.
V. Heughan and Miss Kathleen Ably.
Miss Heughan's dress was a cham
payne colored combination of georg-
cite crepe and taffeta, handsomely
embroidered in dark shades of the
same color. Her bouquet was Of ex-
quisite American Beauty buds, tied
with Uncle Sans colors.
Officials and Workers Proud of Their
Magnificent Efforts.
The officials of the Jahncke Ship