U.S.A. Movements.
Page 10
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By Way of Ile-introduction.
(On board the Cunard R.M.S. "Mauretania.") MID-OCEAN, 14th August, .0.11. To the Readers of THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR.
After a lapse of about two years, I am given to understand that stuff from my pen is to be included whenever space permits. I am to be the new U.S.A. correspondent. I have read my predecessor's efforts quite a lot, and I do not expect to equal his scholarly phrases and crispness of style. There will be facts and news, all the same, as before. I wish him [JO ill.
Having got over paragraph No. 1 without straining myself too badly, I now solemnly promise and swear never to bring—the foghorn is interrupting my brain waves—algebra, trigonometry, the calculus or other hyper-technical stuff into any of my letters. My sole intention is to present the American to the English : a sort of hands across the sea business. I further purpose to employ, from time to time, such American idioms, abbreviations and cuss-words as and when enlightenment has taken place, so that readers are particularly advised not to miss a single line of what I write, Only one explanation will be given of each linguistic barbarity, and in my 17th letter I hope readers will appreciate the beauty of a "lead-pipe cinch," "a fine stunt," and so forth without referring to the Editor for a translation. He must not be overworked.
In my more serious moments I mean to touch on the " pica " methods (which means small and stilted) of English firms in advertising. They are not all " Hot-air " merchants in the States. There are others who do not even beat the air, and yet get paid for not doing it. Those are the men who run the most-important of all the spending (and earning) departments—the advertising branch. There will be no bear or fish stories. These are unfortunately to be barred ; otherwise my hi-monthly letters would be the fright spots in the After all, why should the " C.M." not have some other good uses besides those of depiction and in
struction I shall be serious when I land. There are no commercial motors aboard—except copies of THE COMMERCIAL MOTOR in the reading room.
This ship, like its sister ship, the " Lusitania," in which I have made two voyages, is the latest in steamship construction. Speed, size and comfort are combined. They have a displacement of 45,000 tons, a length of 790 ft., a breadth of 88 ft., a height to top of funnels of 155 ft. They are, likewise, fitted with every conceivable safety device, wireless, Mundy-Gray submarine signalling. etc. Each is propelled by four screws rotated by four turbines ; two of the screws are fitted to reverse turbines. The passenger accommodation is 550 first, 500 second, 1,300 third ; crew of 750, 350 of which are the engineers' crew ; 192 furnaces. Takings per trip in passenger fares I figure at over £50,000 when fairly full up, and these boats are invariably so, winter and summer. The journey is made in about 5 days, London to New York. The decorations equal those of a first-class London hotel —lifts between decks, and every conceivable comfort.
I propose to end this--my first—letter with an impression of the arrival at New York, which is just now in sight. We have got past quarantine (Fire Island), where the first stop is made and mails are transferred into U.S.A. mail boats, the letters being delivered hi New York almost before the boat docks. It is a little hazy, but in the distance one can see buildings as if they stood on the side and on ton of a steep hill ; on
closer examination, one finds that there is no hill, but that these are the unique skyscrapers. To the newcomer, as I recall from my first arrival early in 1t10, a feeling akin to awe is experienced, especially if the trip is a business one. The American's reputation as a hustler has gone abroad, and here is another thing which he has done. Let me state, with all deference, the American is nowhere near such a wonderful chap as he is cracked up to be. They are a great race of builders. I admit, however, that in New York the foundations within a few feet of the surface is solid rock ; hence enormous buildings are practicable. All large buildings are of steel-girder construction bricked in entirely, and with reinforced concrete flooring, which assists standardization enormously. The work, once the foundations are laid, goes ahead at an enormous pace. Four to six months from the time the foundations are completed, tenants are going in, and I am referring to a 10-15 storey building with perhaps 50 or more 6-10 room flats.
On our left is the far-famed statue of Liberty, a great big piece of work on a small island—a mammoth effort, but certainly far from artistic. Alongside of us and around are the tugs which will eventually bring the ship alongside its quay. We are now nearly in the Hudson River : on our right is New York proper, or Manhattan, and on our left New Jersey. The river here varies between I and l mile in width. On the other side of Manhattan lies Long Island, and Brooklyn Bridge is now visible. This suspension bridge is about two miles long : the central span, from tower to tower, is 1,600 ft. Contraction and expansion of five and more feet take place, and, of course, proper allowance is made for mid-winter to summer. The largest boat built can go underneath this bridge ; it is 135 ft. above the water level.. Four 15i in. cables support the bridge, which cost $15,500,000 and took 13 years to build. Crossing the Hudson are numerous very large ferry boats, some having old-type beam engines. Water-borne transport to a large extent exists. The continual hoot and sirens of river boats convey a most-distinctive sound, and one which is always associated with this particular spot. Alongside and jutting out into the river are innumerable docks belonging to various shipping companies. There are some very noticeable buildings to be seen, but the whole effect is bewildering in the extreme ; no photograph has conveyed the right impression to the mind, as the tont ensemble really looks. It looks in a way familiar, but totally different from what one has expected. Everything is so much larger. There is no known style attached to it, yet the whole assumes a definite shape. This effect dies away as soon as one gets to closer range with units, and then it fast becomes a bit of New York.
"Great Scotland Yard," says your motor-transport emigrant, as the fact begins to dawn upon him that America is a progressive country : " here is a chance for me." If it were not for the extraordinary champagne air, which now produces a slight dizziness, he would already realize that his large English output of four or ten chassis a week begins to look somewhat trivial, and the more he looks the smaller it gets. Finally, when a fellow-passenger pointedly says : " Guess, Shica.wgo beats Noo York hollow," and when he realizes that there are 3,000 by 1,000 miles, more or less, populated with nearly 100,000,000 go-ahead people, he sees his chance and seizes it. Hundreds of towns and cities with a growing population, all of which, as he knows, want motor trucks, make his output (so-called), three-quarters of which England takes, whilst the odd quarter is for the Colonies or America, . well! Then he just smiles. And, mark
you, he has not quite landed yet. " Hosioc."