Fast Steamers Defended

When a man talks of a "fast boat," a twenty-two-knot boat. vrhich raeans a twenty-five mile boat, from Queenstown to Sandy Ilook, the pessimist utters the word "coal!" and feels that no more terr ible condemnation could be uttered. The coal consumption, says the Saturday Review, is no doubt great, but the shorter trip means less human fuel in the shape of fewer meáis for the passengers. The quick passage is all in favor of the ship owner in the commissariat of the ship. Jlany of the passengers become hungry only on the fourth day, and the reduction of the journey from ten to i five days means something considerable in the consumption of beef, seeing that the reduction is always in the hungry days. The ship owner calculates, with appalling indifference to suffering humanitj', that if the passage could be shortened a day or two more some of hls passengers could be landed just at the time they were beginning to think about the cook as a person of consequence. There is another practical view of this case. A ship that can make a voyage to Xew York and back in a fortnight will earn fifty-two freights in the year. instead of twent y-six of the boats of twenty years ago. The crew costs no more, if the eoal does, and the earnings are doublé. Those who know most about boats know also that the safe boat is the fast boat, because the fast boat must of necessity be strong.