THE LATEST IN LINERS.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 177, 26 July 1913, Page 13

THE LATEST IN LINERS.

A TOWN AFX.OAT. iFrom Our London Correspondent.) LOXDOX, June 11. For the time being at any rate, Germany can boast that the largest liner afloat flies her flag. After sundry mishaps, the Imperator is now well on her maiden voyage to Xew York. Hhe called at Southampton en route from Hamburg, and an inspection of the gigantic steamship as she lay at anchor in the Southampton water proved that her builders made no idle boast when they claimed that she was the biggest, safest, and most luxurious ship ever built. With the recollection of the Titanic tragedy still vivid in the memory, it is naturally towards safety that first thoughts fly. The Imporat.ir's owners claim that in this respect she is absolutely all that human ingenuity can devise. The double skin protecting the Imperators sides comes high above the water-line; she has many more bulkheads than the Titanic had, and she has longitudinal sections. In short, the company assert that if the Imperator met with the accident which befel the Titanic she would be able to go under her own steam to Xew York.

But structural perfection is not everything, and confident as they are of the Imperator's strength and stability, the company have recognised that the. human element must play a most important part in achieving safety at sea. Against a possible breakdown amongst the human clement responsible for tbe great liner's control they have taken unprecedented precautions. Commander Ruser. the commodore of the fleet, is in supreme command, and under him are one captain and three reserve captains who have all had charge of big liners. Then there are a chief officer, three second officers, two third officers, and one fourth officer, all of whom have master's certificates. Three of them are responsible for the navigation and the other one fulfils the duties of a captain apart from the navigation of the ship. At all hours at least one of the captains must be on the bridge, and in emergency he is to act on his own responsibility without waiting to consult the commodore. Moreover, the Imperator carries "boats for all.'' and one complete first-class | promenade deck is taken for lifeboats. In all there are cighty-lhi _c. two of them motor boats. The accommodation provided is for 0.000. and the full complement of passengers and crew is only ."i.300. The lowering of tbe boats is done by machinery, so constructed that one man can manipulate it. Safety is further secured by the provision of submarine signals and a wireless installation of such power that the Imperator will at all times be in touch with both sides of the Atlantic. "Safety and luxury" has been tin motto of the German owners of the Imperator. Her three funnels give the rrigantic boat an appearance quite different to other great liners, and at a distance make her appear smaller than she really is, for she is fllOft long and t'Hft broad, and has no fewer than nine decks. Her state cabins furnish all the luxuries that can be thought of. By careful allocation of the space it has been secured that the greatest number of cabins have port boles, giving them a light, cool, and airy appearance. The old-fashioned berth is quite obsolete, and the first-class passenger now sleeps in a bed. His wardrobe is fitted with an electric light, which is switched on automatically" by the opening of the door. His private bathroom is supplied with both fresh and salt water, hot and cold. If he desires to swim there is an elaborate swimming bath with white tiles and electric lights right at the bottom of the water, giving an exquisite green tint. Turkish baths and electric light baths may also be had. Two of the most interesting features of the ship arc the smoking-room am. the ballroom. The smoking-room of the Imperator is furnished and decorated in the Tudor period. The large, open fire place and the red brickwork —the bricks actually came from a Buckinghamshire cottage of the Tudor period —realistically reproduce the style of the sixteenth century. Another innovation is the ballioont. ' It is no less than 72ft long, 58ft wide, and ISft high. The floor is of parquet, and when not being used for dancing is covered with a carpet. The walls are decorated with tapestry, the scheme being of Louis XV. One hardly expects to find "self-con-tained flats" on board ship, but that is the official description of two suites, of unusual size, on tbe lower promenade deck. They contain drawing-room and verandah, with large windows opening out over the sea, dining-room, two bedrooms, two bathrooms, dressing-room, box-room and pantry. Accommodation is provided for six travellers and four servants, and the cost ranges, according to the season of the year, from £450 s to £1.000 for the five days' trip! In all parts of the ship there is an air of elegance and comfort. In addition to the main dining saloon, passengers have a choice of a number of attractive dining-rooms, and the "Ritz-Carlton Restaurant." There is in addition a tea room, verandah cafe, a number of ladies' sitting-rooms, a palm carden. and a social hail equipped with a for theatrical performances and concerts. Such, briefly, is the Imperator, the pride of Germany's mercantile squadrons, a veritable floating town, and — for a few brief months only, perhaps— the "last word" in shipbuilding.