White Star Line

“ Like all the other vessels of the White Star Line they have been constructed throughout on the most approved principles, nothing that long experience and practical knowledge could suggest being wanting to make them as perfect as possible in all particulars. ”

“ In the presence and under the shadow of so overwhelming a tragedy I am overcome with feelings too deep for words. The White Star Line will do everything humanly possible to alleviate the sufferings of the survivors and the relatives of those who were lost.
“The Titanic was the last word in ship building. Every British regulation had been complied with and her masters, officers and crew were the most experienced and skillful in the British service. ”

“ The first return voyage of the Medic was taken advantage of by the Australian Government for the conveyance of the first contingent of Colonial troops and horses to the Cape. Intense public interest was excited by the arrival, in the Mersey from Belfast of the Oceanic, the second, on Saturday, 27th August, [Pg 309] 1899, but almost at the moment of their greatest triumph the White Star Line suffered the irreparable loss of the founder of the Company. Mr. T. H. Ismay passed away, after a severe illness lasting three months, on the 23rd November, 1899. ”

“ In addition to these there are two other Atlantic services from Liverpool—one to Boston and the other maintained in conjunction with the Dominion Line to Canadian ports. There is also a line of White Star steamers between New York and the Mediterranean. Several important vessels from other limbs of the combine have been brought under the White Star flag, whilst the company has also practically absorbed the old Aberdeen Line.
Wilson Line.—Thomas Wilson, Sons & Co. is at the present time the largest private ship-owning company in the world. ”

“ Thomas, West Cowes, 111 White, Sir William H., on the Great Eastern, quoted, 278 White Star-Dominion Line and Canadian trade, 289 White Star Line, 241, 251-253, 287-290 Wigram and Green, Messrs., 81 Wilkinson, J., and iron barge, 195 Williams, Mr. ”

“ Crawford gazed down at the dark fluid and saw in it only the mirrored reflection of Deakin’s hairy visage. The other man, however, spoke with growing excitement.
“White flag at her poop—a Frenchman! A ship o’ the line, a royal ship! There’s men aboard her; ay, the faces begin to come out now. What the Canadians doing aboard she? And a red Injun, and fine officers in gold lace. I’ll warrant the rogues are cold enough! And yonder’s her cap’n; a fine handsome man he is, and a boy alongside him, likely his brother——”
Crawford sent an astonished glance to the fluid, but saw nothing. ”

“ The West Coast cable was under repair and incapable of use. But that frequently happened, as most people interested in South Africa know. There was no chance of the truth trickling back to London viâ Australia or New York. And now the Eastern line had broken down also, as all deep sea cables do on occasion.
"Upon my word, I can't see a flaw anywhere," Ericsson remarked, in a voice that trembled. "If the Eastern line is repaired by morning we shall be none the worse off. Our coup will have miscarried, a few inquiries will be made, and James Jones will never be seen in Long Lane Office again." ”

“ Suddenly behind the star a yellow light flared, fan-shaped, from the earth, and he knew that the star was the headlight of a locomotive and the flash was from the furnace where the fireman was shovelling coal for dear life. Now the rails that were glistening in the glare of the headlight and bridging the darkness to the edge of the light of the burning tank began to sing, and the Indians took warning and fled into the darkness.
“Too late, too late!” said the captain of the scouts, who was riding in the cab. ”

“ Down by West Silver Creek bridge there was a water tank and a pump, whose motive power was a mule. Close by the bank of the lazy little river stood the watchman’s shanty, narrow, high, and painted red, like the tank, and like hundreds of other shanties that were strung along the line from St. Louis to Indianapolis. Rain or shine old man Connor was always there to show his white light to the engineer of the Midnight Express, and a white flag to the men [Pg 3] on the White Mail in the morning. ”

“ Wilcox headed for his map.
“What’s the distance?” he inquired.
“Twenty-two miles; fairly level grade, and one bridge.”
“Couldn’t think of it,” decided Wilcox, looking at the map. “We’d like to have your freight, for there’s a lot of traffic between Silverknob and Nugget City, but it’s not our territory. The smelters are at Silverknob, and they ship east over the White Range Line. Anyway, why do you want to take away the haulage from your northern branch?”
“Figure on discontinuing it. The grades are steep, the local traffic is light, and the roadbed is in a rotten condition. ”

“ Over this road also the Coast Line operated a train, which left Pinner's point in the morning and connected with the Coast Line train No. 39 at Rocky Mount. The departure of the train in question from Pinner's Point was so arranged as to enable boats timed to arrive at Norfolk during the night or early morning to make, by ferry to Pinner's Point, a morning connection with the train. On the 3d of October, 1903, the Southern Railway notified the North Carolina Corporation Commission of a contemplated change of schedule on its line from Goldsboro via Raleigh to Greensboro. ”

“ At that first visit the entire railway system of Russia, with the exception of the road from the capital to Gatshina only a few miles long, consisted of the line to Moscow; at this second visit the system had spread very largely over the empire, and was rapidly extending through Siberia and Northern China to the Pacific.
But the deadening influence of the whole Russian system was evident. Persons who clamor for governmental control of American railways should visit Germany, and above all Russia, to see how such control results. In Germany its defects are evident enough ”

“ In the first White Star ship, the Oceanic, the improvements above mentioned were introduced, the saloons and staterooms being brought as near as possible to the center of the ship. All the principal lines built since that date have followed this example, thus adding much to the comfort of the first-class passengers.
Speed and economy in power also became features of importance, the tubular boiler and the compound engine being introduced. ”

“ The referee transmitted the evidence taken and made lengthy findings of fact, upon which his conclusions of law were stated. Those conclusions briefly were that although it might be unreasonable to order a separate passenger train service to be operated on the branch line, viewed as an absolutely independent line, it was not unreasonable to compel the furnishing of such service, viewing the line as a part of the system of the Missouri Pacific road, and taking into account the possible benefits which might arise to that system. ”

“ John in the Dominion of Canada to Liverpool, England, and return. It also owns and operates a transcontinental railroad which, partly through branches running into the United States and partly though connections with the Wabash and other American railroads, transports a substantial proportion (12 per cent) of its steamship passengers to and from points in this country.
9. 'The Cunard Steamship Company, Limited, a British corporation, hereafter called the 'Cunard Line,' operating from New York and Boston to Liverpool in England, Fiume in Hungary, and Trieste in Austria, and return. ”

“ For years prior to October, 1903, the Coast Line operated daily an interstate train from Richmond, Virginia, through North Carolina to Florida. This train, known as No. 39, moved over the main track from Richmond to Wilson, North Carolina, thence by the track designated as the cutoff via Selma and Fayetteville to Florida. ”

“ After the Black Ball Line passed into the hands of Captain Charles H. Marshall in 1836, the Columbus, Oxford, Cambridge, New York, England, Yorkshire, Fidelia, Isaac Wright, Isaac Webb, the third Manhattan, Montezuma, Alexander Marshall, Great Western, and Harvest Queen were gradually added to the fleet. To meet the competition of the Black Ball Line, the Swallow Tail Line built the Washington, Independence, Pennsylvania, Roscoe, Patrick Henry, Ashburton, Hottinger, Queen of the{42} West, Liverpool, New World, and Cornelius Grinnell. ”

“ One was for a train which would be due in a few minutes, and Allan went to the door to see that the signals were properly set and burning.
White is no longer a safety signal on any of the larger railroads. The colours now in use are red for danger, and green for safety. Under the old system, the red lens of the lantern might drop out or a tramp might smash it, leaving the lantern showing a white light past which the engineer would run, thinking everything all right. So green was substituted for white, and now white means danger just as much as red does. ”

“ For many years a white light was adopted for the all-right signal, but latterly, to prevent confusion with other white lights about a station, there has been an increasing disposition to use a green light as an all-right signal. ”

“ Have you ever been at sea in a dense fog, when it seemed as if a tangible white darkness shut you in, and the great ship, tense and anxious, groped her way toward the shore with plummet and sounding-line, and you waited with beating heart for something to happen? I was like that ship before my education began, only I was without compass or sounding-line, and had no way of knowing how near the harbour was. "Light! give me light!" was the wordless cry of my soul, and the light of love shone on me in that very hour. ”

“ Double stars also frequently delight us by giving beautifully contrasted colors. I dare say you have often noticed the red and the green lights that are used on railways in the signal lamps. Imagine one of those red and one of those green lights away far up in the sky and placed close together, then you would have some idea of the appearance that a colored double star presents, though, perhaps, I should add that the hues in the heavenly bodies are not so vividly different as are those which our railway people find necessary. ”

“ Then came what is called "Cunard's Line," consisting of a number of majestic steam-ships built in the Clyde, to carry passengers and mails between Liverpool in Europe, and Halifax, Boston, and New York in America; a service they have performed with the most marvelous regularity. The only great misfortune that has befallen this line has been the loss of one of the vessels, the Columbia, which, in nautical phrase, "broke her back" on some rocks on the American shore of the Atlantic. ”

“ Routing on the Poppenhusen system was interesting. Trains from Hunter's Point ran through either to Whitestone or Babylon (later Patchogue) . Often one train did duty for both Great Neck and Whitestone; the train was broken up at Whitestone Junction on the meadows, half the cars being hauled to Whitestone by a second engine dispatched from the College Point shops, while the original engine went on to Great Neck. At other times Great Neck shuttle trains emptied their passengers out at Whitestone Junction, and left them there for the College Point & Whitestone train to pick up. ”

“ As population multiplied, bringing the isolated settlements nearer to each other, wealth increased, creating a wider demand for commodities, and roads and bridges came to be better and more numerous, doubtless overland commerce was somewhat stimulated. But the iron restrictions which nature had placed upon land transportation remained constant until they were unloosed by the operation of the steam railroad. The system of steam transportation began modestly by the construction of short lines, often wholly within a single state. ”

“ In the working of single lines, as of double, the signalman at the station from which a train is to proceed has to obtain the consent of the signalman ahead, the series of questions to be signalled being very similar to those detailed for double lines. There is, however, one notable exception. On long lengths of single line it is necessary to make arrangements for trains to pass each other. ”

“ In reality it consists of a side-track and watering tank on the Great Western Railroad, and a little wooden box opposite, courteously called a station, which is inhabited by a man whose aim in life is to watch the side-track and telegraph along the line how it is occupied at various hours of the day and night. Just to the east the Great Western makes its only distinct curve for miles through a little piece of woods. ”

“ Jacobs.
“The next stop is East St. Louis,” said Conductor Wise, punching his ticket.
“Vell, eef you sthop or nit, I git off ust de same,” and, as the train whistled, a quarter of a mile above the station, the fool Dutchman stepped out into space and came down on the east end of the platform.
The agent, standing in front of the station (it was a sight to see the White Mail go by an hour late) , saw a bundle of old clothes come rolling swiftly down the long platform, and finally fetch up with a bump against the end of the depot. The Dutchman was in that bundle. ”

“ Certes narrow-gauge railways need an apology. Their raison d'être is, at the best, that they are better than nothing. "If you won't have us, you can have nothing else." And in such a mountainous region as we were about to visit, the difficulties and expense connected with a broad-gauge line would have been enormous, if indeed it could be constructed at all. ”