The Ely miner., 1920-12-24
45,472 MILES
ONONE VOYAGE
OF BIG THRILLS

and supplies the President Grant
steamed out on the Pacific crossing.
She swung out northward toward
colder climes on the northern great
circle route. Before she sighted land
she encountered three very heavy gales
during which from ships all about
her she heard prOfane radio comments
on the weather which was forcing
them to lie to or steam off their
courses. The President Grant, how
ever, was a liner and she kept right
ahead on her eleven knot speed re-
gardless of the big swells of the mis-
named Pacific. Twice she halted for
short periods for Chief Engineer
Brooks men to make repairs in the
engine room.
While far from land fire, one of
those mysterious cOnflagrations which
break out occasionally at sea, devel-
oped in hold No. 1, forward. There
was only quantity of life preservers
in this hold, but the dense smoke that
billowed out made things look bad. In
fighting this fire Boson's Mate Edison
was suffocated in the hold. Ordinary
Seaman Ray went down through the
choking fumes in gallant effort to
save him. Both men were stifled to
death. The hold was flooded and the
voyage resumed.
Chance to See Strange Cities.
On March II the President Grant
dropped anchor in Yokohama roads,
after crossing the Pacific IN seventeen
days, nine hours. There the liner lay
twenty-One days discharging cargo and
here the crew received generous shore
leave, as they did everywhere else
throughout the voyage, enabling them
to visit many cities and localities rare
ly seen by seamen.
More cargo was discharged at Kobe,
the next Japanese port of call. where
the ship stayed eight days. After pass
ing through Tsugara Straits in foggy
weather the ship came safely to Vladi-
vostok, arriving April %.
Here the President Grant took on
board 5,437 troops and sailed for
Trieste, ploughing through fog and
rain to HOngkong, where a stop was
made for coal and supplies. Singapore
was reached May II, and after skirt
ing Sumatra and entering the Indian
ocean, the President Grant stopped at
Colombo on the island of Ceylon. A
stay of five days was made here.
There was fine weather and CLASSY
tho frir thn Indian
ocean, but in the Red sea the tempera-
ture rose to 102 degrees and the uni
| form of the day in the fire room was
one pair of light sandals.
A Ride on the cameis.
At 1925 a. m. on June 4, the ship
entered the Suez Canal and reached
Port Said on the Mediterranean sea
the next day. While In this part of
the globe members of the crew had
an opportunity to try out the camel
as means of locomotion. In Cey-
Ion they had tried elephants, and in
China rickshaws, and at Venice, which
they visited after the ship reached
Trieste, they fried gondolas. The ar
rival at Trieste was on June II, more
than four months after the start of
the voyage.
At Trieste orders were waiting for
another shipment of Czech soldiers, so
after twelve days in port, the trans
port steamed on the back trail. AT
Port Said she caught the United
States army transport Crook, just sail
ing for Trieste, and hastily transferred
to her five stowaways who had crept
on board at the Adriatic port.
! Colombo was reached July 16, after
passing through southwest monsoons
and heavy seas in the Indian ocean.
On July 81, after five days at Colom-
bo for repairs to be made and sup
plies taken on, the ship steamed east
ward, and five days later anchored
on very dark night at the entrance
to the narrow and crooked Singapore
straits. Next morning the ship pro-
ceeded toward Manila, hugging the
coasts of Borneo and Palawan to
avoid typhoons. Manila was reached
August 1, with the crew all very busy
painting and cleaning the ship in
preparation for her next load of pas
sengers. On August the ship steam
! ed for Karatsu, Japan, for coal,