THE TECHNICAL REORGANIZATION OF THE HAMBURG-AMERIKA LINIE
In another chapter of this book the big passenger boats of the
Hamburg-Amerika Linie have been described as the outcome of Ballin's
imaginative brain. This they were indeed, and in many instances it is
scarcely possible to say how far the credit for having built them is due
to the naval architect, and how far it is due to Ballin. He was
profoundly against employing _one_ system throughout, and on accepting
the views of _one_ expert exclusively; and this aversion was so
pronounced that he objected on principle to the nomination of any
technical expert to the Board of his company. The company, he said, is
surely going to last longer than a lifetime or two. Besides, it must try
to solve the problem of perpetual youth, and therefore it cannot afford
to run the risk of staking its fortune on the views held by one single
man who is apt to ignore the progress of his science without noticing
it. The same dislike of onesidedness induced him to encourage to the
best of his capacity a healthy competition among the various shipyards,
and to avail himself of the experiences gained not only by the German
yards but by their British rivals also. At an early stage of his career
close business relations were established between himself and Messrs.
Harland and Wolff, of Belfast; and a personal friendship connected him
with the owner of that firm, Mr. (now Lord) Pirrie. Acting upon the
example set by the White Star Line, Ballin made an agreement with
Messrs. Harland and Wolff as early as 1898, by which the latter bound
themselves always to keep a slip at the disposal of the Packetfahrt. The
reason which prompted Ballin to make this arrangement was, as he
explained to the Board of Trustees, that the company's orders for new
construction and repairs had nowhere been carried out more
satisfactorily and more cheaply than by the Belfast yard, where all the
new vessels ordered were built under a special agreement, i.e. at cost
price with a definitely fixed additional percentage representing the
profits and certain expenditure incurred by the builders. This
arrangement enabled the Packetfahrt to become acquainted with whatever
was latest and best in British shipyard production, and, as it were, to
acquire models which it could improve upon in German yards after they
had been tested on actual service. Some of the best and most important
types of vessels which the Packetfahrt has produced owe their origin to
this system; and it is only fair to say that it exercised an entirely
beneficial influence on the progress of the German shipbuilding
industry, the prosperity of which is largely due to the fact that it has
profited from the century-old experience gained by the British yards and
by British ocean-shipping.
Ballin held the view that, just as the shipbuilding expert had to watch
the progress of naval architecture and to make practical application of
its results, and just as the merchant had to exploit this progress for
the benefit of his business, the shipowner--especially the one who
maintains a service of passenger boats--has the special task of making
every step in the direction of further advance serviceable to the needs
of the passengers. Being himself, as has been pointed out elsewhere,
gifted with a strong faculty for appreciating things beautiful, and
raising no less high demands as regards the beauty and the comfort of
all his surroundings, Ballin constantly endeavoured to make use of all
the results of his own observations and of his own experience for the
greater comfort of the passengers. Those who saw the finished products
of his imagination, the beautifully appointed "floating hotels," hardly
realized how many apparently insignificant details--which, after all, in
their entirety make what we call comfort--owe their origin to his own
personal suggestions. Each time he made a sea voyage on board a steamer
of his own, or of some other company, he brought home with him a number
of new ideas, chiefly such as affected technicalities, and matters
dealing with the personal comfort of the passengers. Numerous entries in
the notebooks which he carried on such occasions are there to serve as
illustrations; the following items, for instance, are selected from
those which he jotted down, roughly, on a voyage to New York some time
in the 'nineties. They speak for themselves, in spite of their
sketchiness:
"List of Moselle purveyors wants revision--notices on board to be
restricted as much as possible, those which are necessary to be
tastefully framed--sailing lists and general regulations to be included
in passengers' lists--state cabin on board _Kaiser Friedrich_: key,
latch, drawer; no room for portmanteaux and trunks; towels too
small--_Deutschland_: soiled linen cupboard too small--stewards
_Oceanic_ white jackets--celery glasses--butter dishes too small--large
bed pillows--consommé cups--playing cards: Packetfahrt complete name of
firm--Packetfahrt complete name on Wehber's wine bottles--toast to be
served in a serviette (hot)."
Rough notes such as these were used to serve Ballin as the material
underlying the detailed reports and instructions to the company's
servants which he composed during the voyage, so that not even a long
sea voyage gave him the unbroken spell of leisure he so badly needed.
Indeed, the longer it lasted the more chances did it provide for
thoroughly inspecting the practical working of the steamer. Many other
reports are in my possession, but the one given will serve to emphasize
the meticulous quality of observation he possessed, and how practical
was his mind in regard to details of comfort and convenience, and the
special climatic needs of different routes.
Even where the peculiar conditions obtaining in tropical climates were
concerned--conditions with which he was personally quite
unacquainted--he unfailingly discovered any defects that might exist,
and also the means by which they could be remedied.
Ballin's connexion with the Packetfahrt practically coincides with the
whole of that period during which the immense progress of modern
steamship building from humble beginnings to its present stage of
development took place; with the only exception that the North German
Lloyd had already, before Ballin joined the Packetfahrt, established its
services of fast steamers which were far ahead of those maintained by
other shipping companies owing to their punctuality and reliability, and
which Ballin then set himself to improve upon and to excel. Apart from
this one type of vessel, the science of steamship construction, as seen
from our modern point of view, was still in its infancy.
In 1886 the steamships owned by the Hamburg-Amerika Linie were mainly of
two different types, viz., those used in the North Atlantic service
(principally on the New York route), and those used in the Mexico-West
Indies service.
The expansion of the Packetfahrt's business after Ballin had joined the
company, and especially the addition of new services together with the
increase in the number of ports of departure and of destination, made it
necessary constantly to increase the size and the carrying capacity of
the cargo boats, and the size and the speed of the passenger steamers,
as well as to improve and to modernize the passenger accommodation on
board the latter. All this, of course, considerably added to the cost
price of the vessels, so that, as a further consequence, the facilities
for loading and discharging them had to be improved and extended. Four
principal types of steamers may be distinguished in the development of
the company's fleet, especially of that part of it which was engaged on
the North Atlantic route, where the main development took place.
_Type One_: Fast steamers--twin screws, 18 knots, 8,500
G.R.T.--possessing accommodation for passengers of all classes and
provided with comparatively little cargo space, but comfortably and
luxuriously appointed throughout. The three leading ideas governing
their construction were safety, speed, and comfort; and progress was
made to keep abreast of competing lines, until it culminated in the
vessels of the "Imperator" class. The _Imperator_ was built in 1913.
They were quadruple screw turbine steamers, possessing no fewer than 42
multitubular boilers each, and, as they were of a capacity of 52,000
gross register tons, they were nearly three times the size of the
_Deutschland_.
_Type Two_: Ships of medium speed and of considerable size, and
therefore providing a high standard of comfort for passengers combined
with ample facilities for cargo accommodation.
_Type Three_: Chiefly built as cargo boats, but in such a way that a
part of their space could be utilized for the accommodation of a large
number of steerage passengers.
_Type Four_: Cargo steamers without any passenger accommodation.
The difference between the floating palaces of type No. 1 in 1913 and
those vessels which the Hamburg-Amerika Linie possessed when Ballin
first entered upon his career as a shipping man was like that between
day and night. A brief comparison of a few details will be the best
means of illustrating the enormous progress achieved within less than
the lifetime of a generation. The size of the vessels had increased from
3,000 to more than 50,000 tons; the speed from 14 to nearly 25 knots;
the height of the decks from 6-1/2 to 8 feet in the lower decks, whilst
that of the upper ones, as far as the social rooms were concerned,
amounted to as much as 20 feet. Large portions of the upper decks were
reserved for the social rooms, the finest of which--the ball-room--could
challenge comparison with almost any similar room in any hotel ashore
with respect to its size and to the magnificence of its furnishings and
of its decoration. From a technical point of view, too, the construction
of such a huge room on board a vessel, which possessed a floor space of
4,800 square feet, and a ceiling unsupported by any columns or pillars
of any kind, was an unprecedented achievement. Besides, there were
immense dining-rooms for each class, smoking-rooms, ladies' saloons, a
restaurant, a winter garden, a swimming pool, and numerous smaller rooms
suitable for the relaxation and amusement of the passengers.
On the older boats the arrangement was that the small cabins were all
grouped round the one and only social room on board, so that the
occupants of the cabins could hear all that was going on in the social
room, and _vice versa_. The superficial area at the disposal of each
passenger was gradually increased from 43 square feet in the double
cabins to 172 square feet in the cabins of the _Imperator_, so that the
latter were really no longer mere cabins, but actual rooms. The
suites-de-luxe comprised up to twelve rooms, the largest of which
covered an area of 247 square feet.
It must not be thought, however, that the first-class passengers were
the only ones for whose comfort the company catered. The other classes
progressed proportionately in added comfort, space, and social
facilities, not excepting the steerage.
But by far the greatest improvements made were those in connexion with
the enormous progress of the purely technical side of shipbuilding
during the whole period under review. The more the vessels increased in
size, the less were they liable to the pitching and rolling motion
caused when the weather was rough. Moreover, special appliances, such as
bilge keels and bilge tanks, were employed to lessen these movements
still more, even when the sea was high. The reciprocating engines
gradually gave place to higher types, and later on turbines and
oil-engines were also introduced. In addition to the propelling
machinery a number of auxiliary engines were used which were of various
kinds and for various purposes, such as the ventilation of the cabins
and the other rooms, the generation of light, the services in connexion
with the personal welfare of the passengers and with their safety whilst
on board ship. Instead of single bottoms, double bottoms were used, and
the additional safety resulting therefrom was still further enhanced by
dividing the space between the two by means of a whole network of
partitions. The vessels of the "Imperator" class, indeed, possessed
practically a double shell, which formed an effective protection against
the danger of collision. The lifeboats increased in size and in number,
and their shape and equipment were improved. Emergency lighting stations
were arranged which could generate a sufficient amount of electric
current if the ordinary supply should break down at any time. The whole
vessels were divided into self-contained compartments by water-tight
bulkheads, the doors of which could be automatically closed. This
division into many compartments proved an effective protection against
the risk of fire; but a number of special devices were also adopted to
serve the same purpose, e.g. an extensive system of steampipes by which
each single room could be rapidly filled with steam, so that the fire
could be automatically extinguished. Fire-proof material was used for
the walls separating adjacent rooms and cabins, and, not content with
all this, the company provided its mammoth liners with an actual fire
brigade, the members of which were fully trained for their work. The
most important improvements affecting the navigation of the steamers
were the introduction of wireless telegraphy apparatus, the gyroscopic
compasses, the system of submarine direction indicator signalling, and
the substitution of two steering gears instead of one, not to mention a
series of minor improvements of all kinds.
The provisioning on board the German steamers was of proverbial
excellence, the kitchen arrangements were modelled after those found in
the big hotels, and were supplied with all manner of supplementary
devices. The huge store rooms were divided into sections for those
provisions that were of a perishable nature and for those that were not;
and for the former refrigerating rooms were also provided in which the
temperature could be regulated according to the nature of the articles.
Perhaps the most interesting development of the various types of
steamers is that which type No. 2 has undergone. It originated in Great
Britain, whence it was taken over in 1894. The first unit of this type
added to the fleet of the Packetfahrt was the _Persia_, of 5,800 G.R.T.,
and a speed of 12 knots, built to accommodate a number of cabin and
steerage passengers, and to carry a considerable amount of cargo as
well. These boats possessed many advantages over similar ones,
advantages which were due to their size, their shape, and the loading
facilities with which they were equipped. Ballin immediately recognized
the good points of this type, and he improved it until the vessels
reached a size of 13,000 G.R.T., which still enabled them to travel at a
speed of 13 knots. They were twin-screw steamers, and were provided with
every safety device known at the time. A still further improvement of
this type was represented by the _Amerika_ and the _Kaiserin Auguste
Victoria_, built in 1905 and 1906 respectively, luxuriously equipped
throughout; by their large size--they possessed a capacity of very
nearly 25,000 G.R.T.--extremely seaworthy, and as they could travel at
the rate of 17-1/2 knots, their speed was scarcely inferior to that
possessed by the older type of fast steamers. From the point of view of
actual remunerativeness they were far superior to the fast steamers,
combining, as they did, all the earning possibilities of the passenger
and of the cargo vessels.
The development of the types comprising the cargo steamers went hand in
hand with the expansion of international trade relations, and with the
constant increase in the amount of goods exchanged between the nations.
To a certain extent development was limited by the dimensions of the
Suez Canal. Still, improvements became possible in this respect too when
the depth of the Canal was increased to 27 feet in 1908, 29 feet in
1912, and 30 feet in 1914.
Ballin carefully watched this development, incessantly improving the
existing types of his company's cargo boats, so that they should always
meet the growing needs of sea-borne trade, and in some instances even
anticipating them, until, when the war broke out, twin screw cargo boats
of a capacity of 16,000 tons and possessing a speed of 13 knots were
being built for the company.
In a brief outline such as this, it is not possible to enter into
details concerning the expansion of the other lines which became
affiliated to or otherwise associated with the Packetfahrt in course of
time. One special type, however, ought to receive a somewhat more
detailed treatment in this connexion, viz., that of the excursion
steamers. The running of pleasure cruises, originally nothing but a mere
expedient to prevent the express steamers from lying idle during the
dead season, gradually became an end in itself. The Northern and
Mediterranean cruises were soon followed by others, e.g. those to the
West Indies and the pleasure trips round the globe. Two special
steamers, the _Prinzessin Victoria Luise_, and the somewhat smaller and
less sumptuous _Meteor_, both of them equipped after the style of
pleasure yachts, were built when it was found advisable to make this
service independent of the fast steamers and the big passenger boats
which had also been employed for this purpose. After the loss of the
_Prinzessin Victoria Luise_ she was replaced first by a British
passenger boat that had been purchased, and then by the _Deutschland_,
specially reconditioned for her new purpose, and renamed _Victoria
Luise_. Both vessels were extremely popular with the international
travelling public, and year after year they carried thousands of
tourists to countries and places distinguished for the beauty of their
natural scenery or for their historical and artistic associations. They
were largely instrumental in constantly augmenting the number of those
who formed the regular clientèle of the company.
"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery." In the realm of shipping
it has always been customary for each company to profit by the
experience gained and the progress made by its competitors. This applies
to the Packetfahrt and its management also; but in their case they have
given infinitely more than they have received, and in the whole history
of shipping there has never been one single person who has exercised a
more stimulating influence on its technical progress than Albert
Ballin.