1869

FOREWORD

We have always been friends of two years of the sailing sport. Around two years 
ago we came across a book about clippers of the 19th century. The elegance of the 
fast yachts and the atmosphere of the turbulent era captured us totally.

The real work began after we spontaneously decided to use this theme as a story 
for a trade simulation. We spent weeks in University libraries and museums 
collecting all available material of that era. The more we found out the more 
fascinated we became. In our research the year 1869 seemed to appear most 
frequently. It was the year of the opening of the Suez Canal and at the same time 
the turning point in shipping history. 1869 had to be the title of our simulation.

The time for research and material collecting was over. The examining and sorting 
of the material and the first thoughts on the shape of the game drafts on paper 
and the programming started.

Right from the start our intention was to create a wide history and trade simulation, 
which was as accurate as possible including true events, and also be graphically 
superior to previous trade simulation.

After spending approximately three man years, we look back over an interesting 
and sometimes hectic time. Through the program we had a look into a piece of 
history and experiences varied from war and death to the splendour and greatness 
of marked times.

1869 is dedicated not only to the proud ships which sailed the seas in the last 
century, but also to the countless men who lost their lives while performing their 
hard work.

MAX DESIGN 

LOG BOOK

The World in the 19th Century

Story from 1854 to 1880
 World politics
 World Economics
Imperialism
The Colonial Powers
 The Era from 1800 to 1882
 The Role of the British Empire
 The Colonial Realm of France
 Other Colonial Powers
 Events and Conflicts
The Wave of Immigrants

Shipping in the 19th Century
The Development of Shipping
 The Blackwall Frigates
 The Baltimore Clippers
 The Early Clippers
 The Heyday of the Clippers
 The American Schooners
 The Steamships
 Wood as a Building Material
 Ships of Iron
 The Clipper Layout
 Shipyards and Shipbuilders

Fates of Famous Ships
 The Passage around Cape Horn
 The Great T-Race
 The Thermopylae
 The Last Witness, The Cutty Sark
 The Unlucky giant

Principals of Ship Building
Life on Board
 Work on Mail Ships
 Sailors on Land
 Last Anchorage
 The Life of the Captains
 Travel in Luxury Class
 Pilot on Board
 Catastrophes at Sea
 The Lifeboat Pioneer
 The Pioneer of Steam Shipping
 The Great Fire

The Hand Book for the successful Shipbuilder
Operation of 1869
 Installation of 1869
 Start of the Game
 The Ship Auction
 Fast Entry for the Impatient
 Game Aims
 The Main Chart
 Dialogue Operation
 The Shipyard
 In the Tavern
 Branches and Registered Offices
 Buying and Selling in the Offices
 Route Planning
 Ship Status
 Crew Status
 Historic Connections
 The Bank
 Tax Demands
 The Balance
 List of Records
 Options (Load & Save)

Tips & Tricks

THE WORLD IN THE 19th CENTURY

The Story from 1854 to 1880 

The 19th century was the age of change and progress. It was an era for political 
reform which, step by step, involved more people taking part in political decisions 
and was an era of advance. The threshold of the age of industry promised better 
production methods, stronger trades and a more promising future. Natural science 
added to progress, as new findings promised longer and healthier lives.
 
The growing importance of new raw materials like oil and cotton, and the discovery 
and increased production of mineral resources gave the economy, especially in the 
second part of the 19th century, a tremendous boost.

World Politics

The second half of the century was a quiet time. Wars did not last very long and 
were limited to the smaller regions. A short summary should give us the most 
important political events from 1854 to 1880.

1854 The Crimean war between Russia and Turkey is still in full swing. France and 
Britain enter the war on Turkeys side. Two years later the Paris Peace talks ended 
the Crimean war, the Black sea became a neutral zone.

International maritime law forbade privateers and guaranteed private ownership in 
naval warfare. In the same year the Buren Free State Transvaal was founded and 
later the Republic of South Africa.

Two years later the East India Company lost its power over India and Great Britain, 
who had put a Viceroy into India.

Claims on surrounding South China territories kept leading to wars with France and 
Great Britain against China. A long-lived era of tension with many sealed and 
broken peace treaties was born.

1860 Abraham Lincoln became the first republican president of the USA.

He was for the abolition of slavery, which meant eleven Southern States leaving the 
USA in 1861. The creation of the confederacy was the marked beginning of the 
American Civil War between the Northern and Southern States. After 4 years of 
bitter fighting the Northern States won due to their technical superiority.

In 1867 the USA acquired Alaska for a mere 7.2 million dollars from Russia which 
was the best business deal of all time. South Africa experienced a boom era with 
the discovery of the diamond fields in the Orange Free State.

The opening of the Suez canal in 1869 marked one of the most important 
milestones in the world economy. The sea route to Asia was nearly halved when the 
dangerous trip around the Cape of Good Hope was no longer necessary. Just as 
important was the opening of the Pacific Railway which connected the West coast 
with the East coast.

France became Independent in 1870 after a war with Prussia, and a year later the 
German Reich was born with Otto von Bismark as Chancellor.

The World Economy

The second half of the century presented itself as the time of prosperity and 
technical revolution. The building of Railway Lines had an enormous boost which in 
turn increased the demand for steel. The length of the International railway network 
increased two fold every ten years.

In 1854 England lifted the last prospected duty and so the era of free trading 
began. Through the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 goods from Europe reached 
India much quicker. At the same time bigger and faster ships came into use and 
pushed out more and more sailing ships. The importance of raw materials, like oil 
and cotton increased. The demand for cotton in Europe was greater due to the lack 
of production during the American Civil War.

The finds of gold in America and Australia, and Diamonds in South Africa attracted 
no end of Europeans to the places of discovery.

Improvement in the steel production enabled expansion of the vehicle and machine 
building industries.

Loading capacity was increased greatly by the steamships in 1870. Agriculture was 
heavily influenced with production being intensified rationalised and increased.

Sugar trade improved greatly and cane-sugar was preferred to sugar-beet.

The increase of the world population and the colonization in the nearly uninhabited 
parts of the continents of America and Australia, the development of natural 
resources, the transition of production to new techniques and unimaginable 
expansion in industry, made the world not just bigger and greater but also brought 
it closer together.

Steamships and the Railways bridged distances and brought trade partners closer. 
World trade increased 4.7 times between 1850 and 189O.

Bigger distances, investments and concentration were the foremost signs of the new 
industrial and technical production expansion. Trade kept pace and increased 
strongly. The introduction of Industrial and agriculture duty through the German 
parliament in an era of free trade meant an economic war declaration, and the 
beginning of the pre war period, a time of potentially high tension and open 
aggression.

Imperialism

Imperialism is defined as the striving for international standing and power. An 
Imperial state would try to affiliate as many territories to their own political and 
economic influence. Starting in the mid-seventies of the 19th century in Great 
Britain, it spread to all great world powers. Besides the traditional colonial powers 
of Great Britain, France and Russia, the USA, German empire, Belgium, Italy and 
Japan also strove towards imperial power. The race for the division of the world 
lasted until the beginning of the first world war in 1914.

Imperialism is today more of an emotional and negative term, but not so in the 
past. It was the utopia of a World Power with international standing if not World 
domination. The politics were always of a global type. Strongly linked with national 
prestige, it led to excessive Nationalism. The white race and its civilisation were 
regarded as superior. That mentality became more popular, influenced by Darwin's 
theory. The Darwin theory rested on the conception of the natural elite. With his 
help all of the brutality against natives and colonial tribes seemed justified. 

The actual motives for Imperialism cannot be traced back conclusively. In 1852, 
Benjamin Disraeli who later became the speaker for British Imperialism, described 
the English colonies as "millstones around our neck". But in 1875 the British 
minister Edward asked "Who is talking about giving up the colonies? No demand is 
as popular as the one to keep our colonial empire!" With this change of mood, a 
new era became easily recognised. The motives were power, prestige and political 
competitive thinking. Many people saw it as an important and honourable mission, 
to teach primitive people the European culture and way of life. But many economic 
interests could have been the founder of Imperialism.

Since the mid 19th century, Europe produced more buying power than the 
European was allowed. The goods could no longer be sold on the domestic market. 
This increased during the depression years of1873 to 1876. The industrialists and 
buyers were forced to look for new outlets and investment possibilities. The 
government supported this, as they could acquire foreign territories which provided 
useful raw materials for domestic industry.

After England had been in the process of building a gigantic empire, other states 
began to desire world power. As the realisation of this goal involved the use of 
force and the building of railways and roads, only the great Powers with 
accordingly big war and trade fleets could be involved.

Through the acquisition and economic exploitation of foreign territory, the Imperial 
states increased their power and wealth. It used any means available from the 
commercial activity of single settlers in contracted trade connections to forceful 
oppression of the natives. The raw material of the colonies was exploited and 
shipped to the mother country. There it was manufactured into end products and 
partly resold to the colonies at a great profit. A most profitable cycle for the 
colonial powers' economy developed.

The Colonial Powers

Europe had several colonial eras during the 16th century, with it also colonial 
powers. In the beginning it was Spain and Portugal who were the leading powers, 
but in the 19th century it was Great Britain, France and Russia.

The heyday of Imperialism began between 1870 and 1880, and finished just before 
the 2nd World War. The world became divided under the few colonial powers. 
Approximately 72 million square kilometres and over 560 million people were 
under colonial rule in 1914. That made up more than half the total land surface of 
the earth and nearly a third of the worlds population

The Time Between 1880 until 1882

After Latin America's independence, the European possessions overseas became 
smaller. Generally the colonial empire shrank in the first quarter of the 19th 
century.

Several reasons didn't allow for an increase in colonialism, Because of the 
withdrawal of mercantilism through the free trade, the foundation was taken away, 
especially in America. Through defensive politics and further trade preferences, it 
was advantageous to own as many colonies, trade stations and most of all ports. 
The beginning of free trade led to the freeing of restrictions. England opened its 
colonies to foreign ships and traders. So England contributed greatly to the success 
of free trade politics, even before it finally abolished the trade monopoly between 
the mother country and the colonies in 1849.

By then free trade was already happening. The reorganisation of Europe after the 
Vienna congress and the following 5 year peace, reduced the military and strategic 
value of many possessions. Many of them were only dead pledges or diplomatic 
exchange objects. Thanks to England's overpowering fleet, it managed to acquire 
significant territorial possessions, England was in the position to lay claim to all 
overseas regions and enforce it. As the British didn't seek further expansion, no 
systematic political expansion took place in Europe. It wasn't the anti-imperialist 
attitude that stopped them. As Canada, Australia and also the United States were 
freely available to Immigrants, England as leading industrial power, was not 
dependent on the colonial market outlets.

Most European states were sceptical over new acquisitions of colonies until 1882.

One assumes that because of the colonial and expansion policies, no overseas 
acquisitions were made. Local interest and the wish for securing borders around 
possessions, were the main reasons for further occupation. The impetus came from 
the colonies themselves. The industrialisation and the great technical advance 
brought a vast widening of trade connection to the whole world, The development 
of the steamship gave International trade an enormous boost. This increased 
political interference. The development of military technique and the power 
structure benefited Europe. No non European country, with the exception of the 
USA, had resistance to the military power. A small English expedition corps was 
able, through their advanced weapon superiority and the efficient use of their 
means, to bring China to it's knees between 1839 and 1842. The conquest of India 
was also due to the military superiority of the English. Great empires fell apart after 
confrontations with Europe's super power. The ease of occupying new colonies led 
to a strengthening of colonial expansion as never before witnessed.

The Role of the British Empire

The British Colonial Empire differed through its size and diversity, and free trade 
differed greatly from other colonial powers. At it's peak around 1933, the British 
Empire had extended to a hardly imaginable 31.6 million square kilometres and a 
population of 502 million. That was nearly the equivalent of a quarter of the land 
surface of the earth and nearly a quarter of the population.

In 300 years of colonial politics, the British had built an enormous empire. Every 
adjoining region, with the exception of the USA was included in the Empires 
federation.

India was regarded by the English as the foundation pillar of the empire. The 
securing and controlling of the sea route was, therefore, a priority task. In particular 
the Suez Canal played a decisive role. The opening of the canal in 1869 was the 
most important occurrence for the history of modern India and for the trade in 
Europe and would become of fundamental importance as trading volume doubled 
in subsequent years.

And yet Great Britain had initially opposed the building of the canal as she 
suspected a hostile move by the French. One year after the opening of the canal 
the British government even rejected the acquisition of a share package offered by 
Egypt. The change in British canal politics was demonstrated in 1875 by Benjamin 
Disraeli, an ardent representative of the new imperialism, when he ordered the 
acquisition of the share package. A further demonstrative step to manifest the 
interest in India and the connecting routes was the proclamation of Queen Victoria, 
the Empress of India. On the 1st January 1877. Through her interest in the Suez 
Canal, England became more and more involved in the affairs of India and the 
country finally came under British rule in the year 1882. Of equally great strategic 
importance for the securing of the sea routes was the acquisition of Cyprus in 1878.

Originally the conquest of India was not planned, the intention merely being to 
protect British trade and to create strong points.

Only when the real importance of the Indian market became apparent, England's 
interest grew. Politically too, India was important for England. Although a poor 
country, India was a great military empire. England placed herself in an already 
feathered nest so to speak and became herself one of the two main powers of the 
East. At one stroke, therefore, the British Empire had under its control an additional 
population of 200 million inhabitants. No other European colony was of such 
political and economical importance.

More than any other. the Indian army increased the political and military might of 
Britain. One has to bear in mind that although Britain had at her disposal the 
strongest naval force, her regular army which numbered 250,000 men distributed 
in garrisons throughout the empire, was militarily superior. With the aid of the 
Indian army deploying over 150,000 men and a huge mobilisation reserve, Britain 
was able to establish itself as the greatest land force of the East. Moreover the 
Indian army was completely maintained by India. Thus Britain was able to play a 
leading roll in world politics which could never have been paid for by the British 
taxpayer. Only in this way was it possible for the British to play a leading role in 
the apportioning of East Africa and South East Asia.

Possessions in the Mediterranean were strategically important strong points. 
Gibraltar, Malta and the Ionian Islands had already been acquired before 1815. 
Cyprus and Egypt joined in 1878 and 1882 so that the sea route to India through 
the Suez Canal was completely secured. Up to 1880 the expansion in Africa 
proceeded very slowly. It was only in the last twenty years of the 19th century that 
this process was accelerated by the race of the colonial powers. At first the African 
colonies appeared to be without importance economically but changed 
subsequently due to the increasing significance of their products for world trade. In 
particular the diamond and gold finds of 1868, 1869 and 1886 in the Transvaal 
drew the British to Africa So in 1871 the diamond fields belonging to the Orange 
free state and those in the Transvaal (1877) were annexed. At the height of 
imperialism the British dreamt of an Africa British from the Cape to Cairo. On British 
territory a railway line was to cross the whole of Africa from North to South. 
However this dream of the British was never to be fulfilled.

During the course of this time the importance of many colonies underwent change. 
Especially the Island colonies that had been annexed initially for purely strategic 
reasons. Due to the increasing demand for their products such as rare wood and 
rice on the world market, the colonies acquired economical gain. Many colonies 
supplied valuable raw materials and thus improved the British Balance of trade. The 
richer colonies were also good markets for British goods. Many colonies however. 
produced and consumed very little. With strictly economic profitability 
considerations the British would have dispensed with many of their colonies.

The Colonial Empire of France
 
The French colonial empire was similar to that of Great Britain because of its 
diversity and geographical scattering. However France did not possess colonies of 
the importance of India or the British dominions such as Canada and Australia. 
France too did not pursue planned colonial policies from the 19th century up to the 
year 1871. Local interests and lawsuits were the main reason for new acquisitions 
although the protection of missionary stations and trading bases were further 
considerations.

Compared with England the essential difference was that France owned few colonies 
at the start of the 19th century which could have led to the starting point of further 
expansion. Also French overseas trading was too unimportant to make further 
acquisitions of colonies meaningful. For French colonial thinking the economic 
aspects were decisive. In order of interest the colonies had to yield profits for the 
mother country. Further more, France continued to adhere for a long time to 
mercantilism since France was inferior to Great British as far as industry and 
shipping were concerned. Up until 1860 the colonies were only allowed to trade 
with the mother country and French traders. However, since France sought an 
improvement in its relations with Great Britain and its colonies depended on British 
goods, it introduced free trading for a period of time. In 1860 the colonial markets 
were opened and customs duties lowered. Free trading was extended to include the 
West Indies in 1861. Guyana and Senegal in 1864 and Algeria in 1867.

In the main French Imperialism concentrated on the development of Africa and on 
the conquest of Indo-China. To this end friction frequently arose with the British. In 
Africa the evident goal was a compact territory in the shape of a West East belt. 
Following much fighting with China the French were able to secure their influence 
and their possession of Tongking, Annam and Laos.

After 1871 French Imperial politics were greatly influenced by the defeat inflicted 
by Germany. France lost the war against Germany during the years 1870 and 1871. 
Consequently the French had to relinquish their position of priority in Europe to the 
German empire and they feared political isolation. In order to be recognised once 
again as a world power, the French intensified their endeavours towards new 
colonies with the aim of once more extending their sphere of power.

The Other Colonial Powers

The colonial territories of all other countries were relatively small compared with 
those of England and France and they were sharply defined geographically. The 
crucial points of Portugal, Germany and Belgium were in Africa. The Russians 
colonies were of considerable size but formed a geographical unit with the mother 
country.

Holland's colonial empire stretched across Indonesia and some smaller islands in the 
West Indies. As the only modern colonial empire the Netherlands stopped 
expanding during the period from 1815 to 1945 and were satisfied with occupying 
and developing the already existing territories. The island world of Indonesia was 
indeed one of most valuable European possessions. It was typical plantation colony 
and yielded considerable profit with exported goods such as sugar tobacco. rubber, 
coffee, copper, mineral oil and tin. The colonial government in Batvia possessed 
similar authority as granted to Calcutta by the British.


Although Portugal belonged to the first colonial powers it acquired the majority of 
its possessions only after 1884. In spite of being a poor and martially weak country 
it was able to keep its colonies longest. By 1884, however, the Portuguese colonial 
empire was marked by disintegration. From 1580 to 1882 it lost one colony after 
the other. Only with the colonial division of Africa at the end of the 19th century 
the empire was once again enlarged. Its gains were due to the rivalry of the other 
states. So territories such as Angola and Mozambique were practically given to 
Portugal as a buffer zone against British expansion. Portuguese colonial politics, 
however, could not compete with the other states and failed to yield the expected 
profit.

The Belgian colonial empire consisted of just one territory - the Congo. However 
this colony was practically the private property of King Leopold. By cunning and 
shifty moves he succeeded, aided by misled humanitarian organisations to make the 
Congo his possession. He exploited this territory in an unyielding and drastic 
manner and caused many critics to protest. It was only in 1908 that the Congo 
became the possession of the Belgian state. Due to the rigorous exploitation and 
because of rich mineral resources this colony was especially profitable.

Germany's colonial politics started as late as 1884 under Bismarck. The few colonies 
were a product of colonial apportioning and yielded only small economic profit. By 
1919 the brief era of colonialism ended for Germany.

Events and Conflicts

One of the most important events for International trade was the abolition of the 
Navigation Act 1849. This law decreed by England in 1651 said that only English 
ships could call at ports in the British colonies. Equally all merchandise whether for 
import or export had to be distributed via English ports even when the goods were 
destined for another country. This form of trading restriction coupled with often 
high prospective duty is regarded as mercantilism and was also practised by other 
states. Free trade as a mutually open system was also introduced during the first 
half of the 19th century by England and also by the United States. With the 
abolition of the Navigation act in 1849 all British ports were opened for foreign 
dealers and ships. Considering the size of the British empire and its preeminent 
economical standing this was of enormous importance for trade. Equally great was 
its model function for other states which were no longer able to resist the free 
trade.

In 1859 the construction project of the century and milestone in shipping was 
started. Based on the drawings of the Austrian Negrelli and under the management 
of the Frenchman Lessops the Suez canal was built over a period of ten years. The 
opening in 1869 marked one of the most important turning points of International 
trade. The lock-less canal cuts through the Isthmus of Suez between the 
Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. With a length of 173 kilometres and a depth 
of some 14 metres it connects Suez and Port Said. Due to the canal the sea route 
from Europe to Asia is almost halved and also the dangerous and time consuming 
route around the Cape of Good Hope became unnecessary for the Far East traveller. 
British colonial politics were greatly influenced by the Suez Canal. In order to secure 
the sea route many territories were annexed including Egypt in 1882. To the 
present day the Suez Canal has remained a political bone of contention even 
though its political importance has diminished.

The most important events from 1853 to 1884 were; the occupation of the Danube 
principalities by the Russians leads in 1853 to the start of the Crimean War. Russia 
fights against Turkey and France and Great Britain enters the war on the side of the 
Turks. In 1854 an American naval squadron forces the opening of Japanese ports. 
In the following era of 1855 Alexander II becomes the Czar of Russia and the 
famous explorer and missionary David Livingstone crosses Africa and discovers the 
Victoria Falls. His travels and those of other explorers arouse great interest in Africa 
throughout Europe. In 1856 the Paris Peace Treaty terminates the Crimean war, 
Paris of Besarabia go to Turkey and the Black Sea is neutralised. Russia loses its pre-
eminence to France. In Africa the Boer free state off Transvaal is founded. One year 
later the British and French start the Lorcha War against China and occupy Canton. 
Following rebellions the East India Company is wound up in 1858 and a Viceroy 
appointed by Great Britain takes over British rule in India. Due to the Peace Treaty 
of Tientsin, China is forced to open several ports for European ships. In 1859 France 
conquers Saigon in Indo-China and Russia subjugates the Caucasus. Mineral oil 
production begins in the United States and Russia. One year later England and 
France occupy Peking and force China to ratify the Treaty of Tsientsin.

France and Great Britain decide to abolish the protective duty by way of trade 
treaty and introduce a most favoured clause. After secession of eleven southern 
states and the formation of a confederation the Secession Civil war breaks out in 
1861 between the Northern and Southern States. In 1864 the Northern states win 
the war due to their great technical and industrial superiority. Slavery is abolished 
in the United States. In 1866 Prussia goes to war with Italy against Austria and the 
German confederacy. With Austria losing the war, this means the end of the 
German confederacy. Austria separates from Germany and Venice becomes part of 
Italy In 1867 Canada becomes a British dominion Maximillian, Archduke of Austria 
and emperor of Mexico since 1864, is captured and executed by the former 
president Juarez after his retreat of the French troops. Mexico once more becomes a 
republic under President Juarez. In 1868 William Gladstone, the leader of the 
Liberals, becomes British Prime Minister. In Japan the power of the shoguns ends 
and the newly appointed Emperor starts the 'europeanization' of Japan. In 1870 
war breaks out between France and Germany. Germany wins the war in 1871 and 
occupies Paris.

In Versailles the German Empire is founded under Chancellor of the Reich Otto von 
Bismark and Emperor Wilhelm 2nd. Due to its defeat France loses its preeminent 
position to the German Reich. During the same year the neutralisation of the Black 
Sea is cancelled. The famous meeting between Stanley and Livingstone takes place 
in East Africa. In 1874 the conservative Benjamin Disraeli becomes British Prime 
Minister. Annan Tonkinh became a French protectorate. In 1875 war breaks out 
between Egypt and Abyssinia which is won by Abyssinia in 1879. In 1876 Queen 
Victoria of England is proclaimed Empress of India. In the following year war breaks 
out again between Russia and Turkey. The Russians advance as far as 
Constantinople. Great Britain annexes Transvaal Free State. In 1878 the Balkan 
states gain independence. Turkey cedes Cyprus to England. In 1879 the Saltpetre 
War between South America and China commences and is eventually won by Chile 
in 1884. One year before the death of Disraeli, William Gladstone becomes British 
Prime Minister for the second time. Tunis becomes a French possession and Italy 
begins the conquest of Eritrea. In 1881 Italy conquers Somaliland and during the 
following year Egypt becomes a British Protectorate. In 1884 the first German 
colonies are established in South West Africa including the Cameroon, Togo, East 
Africa, New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago and the Marshall Islands.
 
From 1871 first Reichs Chancellor of the German Empire founded by him. 
Dismissed by Emperor Wilhelm II. in 1890.

The Flood of Immigrants

From 1846 to 1855 over two million people sailed across the Atlantic to the West. 
This amounted to nearly half as many as in the seventy years from the time of the 
Independence declaration to 1845. Most of these immigrants were impoverished 
people without civil rights. They fled from political upheavals and famine in the 
hope of starting their new life in a homeland, worthy of human beings. But 
business people and tourists made this journey too.

For most of the passengers this sea journey was to become a time of hard tests and 
great misery. On the mail boats there were so many people pressed together that 
undernourishment and illnesses occurred more and more frequently. This state of 
affairs improved only with the introduction of the steamships which with effect from 
the middle of the 19th century enticed the passengers away from the mail boats. As 
long as the immigrants crowded on the mail boats the crossing became a real 
nightmare for many.

On average such a journey took 35 to 40 days, but often twice as long in bad 
weather. The immigrants were accommodated between decks, normally up to 800 
people on a 1000 ton ship. One has to imagine the steerage as a dark smelly room 
which due to the large number people caused agoraphobia. The ships bottom was 
sometimes positioned so low within the cargo space that water ingressed through 
the planks. Rats were a familiar sight and fresh air came only through the hatches. 
However bad weather these hatches were frequently tightly closed causing stench 
due to lack of ventilation. the generation of the smell. The hygienic devices, of 
which there were hardly any or very few, became even worse.

Even whilst asleep, the steerage passengers were not able to forget the daily 
inconveniences. Sleep hardly came into consideration on 1.80 metre long bunks, 
which were arranged in two or three tiers, one on top of the other. The bunks were 
45 centimetres wide, or also 1.80 metres wide, whereby more than four passengers 
often then had to be accommodated in one bunk. As the main deck was off limits 
during stormy weather, the conditions became even more aggravated. To make 
matters worse, clothing and the bedding was, for the most part, wet through, as 
the hatch covers were not closed in time when the storms began and waves lashed 
into the steerage area. Generally, nothing dried until the end of the voyage, so 
everything remained damp and smelt accordingly.

After the conditions in the steerage area and the situation of the passengers leaked 
out to the public by various investigations. Parliament felt compelled to pass the 
Passenger Ship Law of 1848. A minimum space requirement was now stipulated for 
each passenger. However, shipowners and captains took no notice of this law for 
economic reasons.
 
Precisely at a time when rigid rules were laid down for relationships between sexes, 
on the majority of the emigrant ships there was not even separate areas for men 
and women.

With crowds of people pushed together in small spaces, smells and dirt could not 
be avoided. On one occasion a Canadian government inspector found during 
investigations on the mail boat "Lady MacNaughton" that the few vacant spaces 
between decks were filled with ,ship biscuit leftovers, bones, rags and all types of 
rubbish, all rotting and full of maggots. The stench was considered to be worse 
than the filth as one could shut ones eyes in order not to see the dirt, but the 
stench was ever present. The smell of rotting wood and that of earlier and new 
cargo intermingled with the odour of hundreds of people producing an unbearable 
stench.

Hermann Melville. the author of Moby Dick remembers his time as a crew member 
on a transatlantic ship. When one week after sailing "one put one's head through 
the front hatch one could believe that one was placing one's head into a suddenly 
opened cesspit.

But not only stench and dirt caused the passengers between decks much trouble. 
For their health the completely inadequate food was surely more detrimental with 
which they had to exist for weeks and months.

A shipowner admitted openly that the normal diet was adequate to prevent dying 
of starvation but not to survive and thrive." Small wonder therefore that on some 
ships ten percent of the passengers died on the sea. The surviving passengers were 
almost always undernourished when they finally set foot on land.

At the beginning of the flood of immigrants the passengers had to bring their own 
food for consumption on board, but later a law was passed to ensure minimum 
rations were available. The shipowners and captains, however, found many ways to 
evade such legislation. It was for instance customary to have the required provisions 
on board at the time of sailing but to send back to land after sailing a large part of 
the provisions on with the help of escort vessels. It also happened that food was 
sold to the immigrants at cut throat prices instead of being distributed free of 
charge as prescribed.

A further difficulty was the preparation of food. On nearly all ships the cooking 
facilities were totally insufficient for the number of passengers. Often the facilities 
could not be used at all in bad weather. It can be taken from a contemporary 
report that often only six cooking facilities were available for 400 passengers.

A constant battle raged over the preparation of meals. Women travelling on their 
own often had no choice but to starve for days on end. Sometimes the ships cook 
would prepare meals for the immigrants but demand payment for the privilege. 
Thus bribery became the only means of acquiring several meals per day. Poorer 
passengers without the required financial resources had to make do with one warm 
meal per day or even one meal every other day. An equally big problem was the 
drinking water supply. A law stated that each adult passenger was entitled to three 
litres of fresh water daily. Many ships. however. obtained their water from rivers 
and this was often not fresh. Furthermore the storage of water in barrels left a lot 
to be desired. According to legislation water was to be kept in clean barrels 
provided for the purpose, but in actual practice this did not occur. Consequently the 
water was often putrid and practically undrinkable upon distribution, and led to 
diseases such as cholera, smallpox and typhoid.

On some ships these diseases spread to such an extent that a captain recorded the 
following: "it is a miracle, indeed, that so many survived the journey." Of course 
the immigrants were medically examined before going on board the ships, but 
these examinations were more than superficial and correspondingly useless. Feared 
more than other diseases was typhoid. This disease was widespread whenever many 
people stayed together and it became known as "jail fever or camp fever". When 
the wave of immigration reached its climax and the number of typhoid cases on the 
ships increased dramatically, the disease was called "ship fever".

Despite all the difficulties, migration continued across the Atlantic to the land of 
promise. America. without diminishing. Fortunately the journeys were not always 
difficult. On some mail-boats the immigrants formed self-help groups in order to 
cope with the adversities of the journey. They cared for the sick, attempted to 
protect themselves against theft and helped women who travelled alone to resist 
encroachment from the crew and other passengers.

Around the middle of the 19th century some 250,000 people crossed the Atlantic 
on average and up to half a million during peak periods. The mail boats 
transported ambitious cargoes ranging from rails for railways to French wine. With 
the introduction of steam ships to the traffic across the Atlantic mail boats became 
less viable. By 1863 steam ships had gained a 45% share of the passenger traffic 
and by 1866 the percentage had grown to 81%

The mail boats managed to remain competitive for a while carrying heavy cargos 
such as grain and coal. By 1878 however three of the five major lines had been 
shut down, namely the Red Star Line, The Blue Swallowtail Line and the Dramatic 
Line. The trail blazing Black Ball Line ceased trading after the summer of 1878 and 
most ocean going mail boats were turned into cash. On the 18th May 1881 the last 
mail boat arrived in New York. She was appropriate named "NE PLUS ULTRA" - No 
Further."

SHIPPING IN THE 19th CENTURY

The Development of Shipping

As strange as it may sound the development of the proud clippers was not the only 
product of the 19th century. These fast sailing ships were the last link in a long 
history of development which began in pre-Christian times. The ancestors of the 
clippers were not the ships of the Phoenicians, Egyptians or Romans but the narrow 
and fast boats of the Vikings. Many centuries of shipbuilding led finally to that 
perfection which helped to create the last and best sailing ships.

From the 17th century one can trace the theory of the construction of fast ships. 
From the middle of the 18th century water tank experiments were carried out with 
various models and around 1840 the brothers James and William Hall were 
engaged in model tests in a three metre long glass tank. A three centimetre layer of 
turpentine which was coloured red, was poured onto the water surface.

A scale model of a boat was pulled through the water by a weighted line running 
over a reel. Based on the movement of the red turpentine one was able to arrive at 
conclusions regarding the effects of various bow and stern shapes. By the use of 
different models with equal transaction weight it was possible to carry out efficiency 
comparisons. Today's drag tests are carried out in large plants and they are fully 
computer aided. But in the end this is merely a perfection of the test method which 
was used 300 years ago.

The Blackwell Frigates

After the shutdown of the East Indian company in 1833 and the advent of the 
steamships it became necessary to build faster ships. The ships used to date had 
simply become too slow and thus uneconomical. The shipbuilders were forced to 
change their views and to adapt their designs to the requirements of the time. The 
Blackwell Frigates, a newer faster type of ship were created and derived their name 
from the Blackwell dockyard of Green and Wigram. In 1837 the Seringapalam left 
the dockyard as the first ship of the new type. Although she had virtually the same 
length width ratio as the East Indian Vessels, there were clearly sharper lines and 
only a small poop. With the launching of the 1200 ton Prince of Wales in 1842 the 
new construction design had been used for the first time on a larger ship.

Blackwell frigates were also built on the Thames and in the North of England on 
the Wear and Tyne. The two most successful ships were built in the years 1846 and 
1848 in the dockyard of T & W Smith on the Tyne. They were the Marlborough 
weighing 1402 tons and a length of 53 metres and the "Blenheim" 1314 tons. 
Both ships had flush decks without raised poop and deck-house.

Compared with the clippers the Blackwell Frigates were still heavy and showed 
round lines. They were used for carrying passengers and cargo to India. Following 
the striking of gold in Australia and the correspondingly increased demand for 
passenger ships, the building of the Blackwell Frigates especially for the passenger 
traffic to Australia was started. The first clippers took away the importance for the 
fast passenger and cargo traffic from the Blackwell Frigates. Later they would 
become the preferred conveyance for cargoes where speed was of lesser 
importance.
 
The Baltimore Clippers 

During the Era of the Blackwell frigates, the Baltimore Clippers had their heyday. 
These schooners, built on the East coast of America, were considered during the first 
quarter of the 19th century to be the fastest ships in the world. During the war 
between the United States and Great Britain they were, therefore, preferentially 
used as privateers and blockade runners.

A typical privateer schooner possessed very sharp lines and a long outrun towards 
the stern. The continuous deck was almost free of super structures. Because of their 
superior speed they liked to invade British trading convoys. plunder them and sail 
away from the warships without great difficulty. It was only when unfavourable 
wind conditions prevailed that they could be captured by the ships of the British 
Navy.

After the war the Baltimore Clippers were used for the slave trade. From 1820 
onwards the slave trade was classed illegal and opposed by the most important 
states. British ships cruised the coasts of Africa under orders to capture and seize 
slave ships. Thus. Baltimore clippers were used due to their great speed and ability 
to avoid these patrolling vessels. In fact due to their success rate, schooners of this 
type became the chosen vessel of the slave traders.

The British Navy made great endeavours to foil the Baltimore Clippers. New ships 
were built to incorporate many construction features of the Baltimore Clippers, and 
subsequently they became more successful in their role. When slave trading was 
outlawed in 1850, the Baltimore Clippers lost their importance . They were 
unsuitable for use as normal merchant ships because of their limited loading 
capacity.

The Early Clippers

The name Clipper for fast sailing ships is still controversial. It is often misunderstood 
as a name for a definitive type of ship. Generally speaking one may consider the 
fast sailing ships dating from the 19th century onward as clippers, independent of 
their construction and rigging. Primarily they were rigged and sailed with speed in 
mind. Loading capacity, running costs, comfort and safety were of lesser 
importance.
 
The demand for clippers resulted in enormous profit due to their fast and 
specialised transportation capabilities.

In the first half of the 19th century this was offered by the opium and tea trade. 
The first landing of one season's tea yielded great premiums and the importers paid 
high freight rates for the first loads. Also for the gold finds in California and 
Australia around the middle of the century fast ships were needed. They were to 
take gold diggers and materials as quickly as possible to the places of discovery. 
The clippers did not represent a completely new concept but formed part of a 
tradition of continuing development and adapting to market requirements. 
Especially the shape of the hull of the ship was improved. The American shipping 
historian Howard I. Chapelle wrote that on the clipper not one special feature was 
incorporated which would have been completely new. "Thus it was the 
combination, and improvement of proven elements which made these ships so fast 
and successful.

During the period from 1840 to 1850 the American shipbuilders led their European 
competitors in the development of fast sailing ships. In America it was customary 
for the clippers to take gold prospectors to California around Cape Horn, to sail 
across the Pacific with Ballast and start the homeward journey to New York or 
Boston with tea from China. The fast clippers were especially suited for this journey. 
After the abolition of the Navigation Act 1849 American clippers were also used for 
the tea trade with England.

The best ships were built on the North East coast of the United States of the United 
States. They were in most instances built completely out of wood and lined with 
copper plate below the water line. A large number of these ships had three fully 
rigged masts. They had a greater length/width ratio than the ships of that time.

Due to the great demand for fast ships and the reputation of the American 
shipbuilders many British shipowners ordered clippers from the United States yards.

In Great Britain the reorganisation of tonnage dimensions led in 1836 to a rethink 
concerning ship construction. One thought was to keep the rudder action as low as 
possible by corresponding construction of the ships hull. James and William Hall 
from the Alexander Hall & Sons dockyard in Aberdeen developed a type of ship 
which according to the new dimension rules even resulted in a saving of steering 
action. The most outstanding feature was the so-called Aberdeen bow, an extremely 
wide stern which jutted out. The first ship of this new design was the "Scottish 
Maid" built in 1839. By and by the proven Aberdeen Bow also influenced by the 
construction method of the other British shipyards and many smaller excellent 
clippers were developed.

However, when in 1854 another system of tonnage dimension was introduced, the 
Aberdeen bow lost its importance and was ousted by the less extreme clipper bow. 
The British clippers around 1850 were smaller than the American ships, but they 
represented the English fast sailing ships of the next quarter of a century.

The Heyday of the Clippers

Around 1850 the need for the shortest possible delivery times emerged in all 
trading areas. Therefore fast ships could obtain high freight rates. Resulting from 
this was a correspondingly great demand for fast clippers with adequate loading 
capacity. Even when in most publications the peak of the clippers is considered to 
have occurred during the time from 1860 to 1870 more extreme clippers were 
built from 1850 to 1855 for the greatest number of application ranges that would 
ever happen again. During the Crimean war a record number of new ships were 
built and in the year 1855 steam ships and sailing ships with a total tonnage of 
323200 were constructed. But only a low percentage of this applied to clippers. 
Towards 1860 the number of newly built clippers decreased greatly although an 
exception to this rule were the tea clippers.
 
The gold finds in Australia had great influence on the development and distribution 
of clippers, particularly in England. A letter by G.H.Heaton, captain of the "Thomas 
Arbuthnot", points to the conditions in the port of Sydney. The letter was printed in 
the "Times" on the 10th September 1851.

It Read as follows:

"Gentlemen, i assume you know of the rumours about the discovery of extensive 
gold fields in New South Wales which brought about an upheaval of a kind which 
in my opinion can afflict a country. The colony is completely paralysed Each man 
and each boy as far as he is able to hold a shovel goes to the gold fields if he is 
not there already Many places of work are completely deserted. The consequence of 
this is that sheep and cattle are abandoned. The prices of almost all foods have 
risen by about 200% in some cases and when one thinks of the next grain harvest 
which will greatly fall off because of the lack of labour then it is clear that the 
means of subsistence for man and beast will become very scarce and dear. No 
doubt a wave of immigration will commence in all parts of Europe as soon as the 
news has gone round.

We have Australian gold aboard to the value of 800 which is the first gold 
shipped out of the colony it was purchased by four gentlemen, managing partners 
of different merchant firms in Sydney , on site.

The gold consisted of lumps of almost pure gold and the largest lump was just 
short of four pounds by 2 ounces. When this lot was taken to the ship much more 
gold was lying in Bathhurst awaiting a military escort which it was hoped would be 
authorised by the Government. The gold we have abroad was brought here by four 
gentlemen armed to the teeth.

I had great difficulties getting away from Sydney, Although I had doubled the 
wages of the crew, six or seven men left as soon as this matter became known. 
Anticipating what would probably happen I arranged for a tugboat to tug the ship 
to the "Heads".

Day and night I positioned an armed policeman at each and every end of the ship. 
Nevertheless the swimmers still managed to get off. All measures taken caused 
great expense. When I put to sea, the Lady Clarke remained behind ready sail. 
Without a soul on board but the captain. I think that - carrying his mustering roll in 
his pocket - he was on his way to Bathhurst thinking that he would be able to 
persuade some sailors to return to the ship to be mustered.

The sailors who had stayed on in Sydney demanded 80 for the journey back and 
the guarantee that a ship would be provided for their immediate return to Sydney. 
I paid five to six pounds per month for the men that I required.

Yours very faithfully,
sgd . G . M. Hamilton."

A huge migration wave to America commenced and the shipowners foresaw 
business opportunities. In the following year the most extreme clippers to leave the 
dockyards of Britain were built. These Australian clippers required fine lines for the 
journey across the Atlantic but they also had to permit the use of sails during 
storms in the "Roaring Forties". At this time the first clippers appeared. The length-
width ratio was increased to 7:1. The masts became higher and amounted to almost 
two thirds of a ships length,

Usually they were equipped with fully square sails and provided a sail expanse of 
up to 3,000 square metres with three masts. Towards the end of the century fully 
rigged ships with up to five masts appeared and in exceptional cases had even six 
or seven masts. From 1860 onwards the best ships hulls were made of Iron.

The end of the big time of the clippers came with the opening of the Suez Canal. 
Due to the "stinking ditch" as the canal was unkindly called by the sailors the 
Eastern route became also profitable for the steamships. The same consequences 
emerged due to the opening of the Panama Canal. Although it would still take until 
the end of the 19th century before the steamships would outnumber sailing ships, 
the end of sailing vessel shipping was in sight.

A final upsurge in sailing vessel shipping was experienced at the beginning of the 
seventies but the sailing ships could no longer keep pace with the rapid 
development of the steamships. The only clipper to survive was the "Cutty Sark" 
and she can still be seen as a relic of a past epoch in a dry dock in London.

The American Schooners

Around the middle of the 19th century an increasing number of steamships were 
used by America for coastal trade. The sailing ships were then utilized for the 
transportation of heavy and bulky cargoes such as grain, building timber, coal, 
cotton and various building materials. This resulted in an increased demand for 
bigger schooners able to transport this merchandise economically. Up to the year 
1870 mainly three-mast schooners with a tonnage of 1,000 were used. Their 
construction was influenced by the American mainyard clippers. Since they had 
been designed specifically for special routes and cargoes, with low building and 
running costs compared with the steamships and necessitating a small crew only, 
they were quite capable of competing with the steamships.

From 1870 onwards shipbuilding switched to large schooners. Most frequently four-
masters up to 1,500 t were built. Five-masted schooners above 2,000 t also proved 
popular and were built mainly with the overseas trade in mind. Barring a few 
exceptions these schooners were completely made of wood.

The Steamships

The combined steam/sailing ship "Savannah" managed in 1819 to cross the Atlantic 
for the first time under steam. Oddly enough this machine was operable for only 88 
hours due to its heavy fuel requirements. The glory of the first crossing of the 
Atlantic with the aid of a steam engine belongs to the small steam ship "Sirius". 
After she had put to sea at Cork on 4th April 1838, she arrived at New York on the 
22nd April with 40 passengers on board. She nearly failed to reach America when 
her coal stock ran out and as a result the captain ordered the burning of the 
interior equipment and the rigging. This proved to be necessary since a few hours 
after the "Sirius" arrived, her rival the "Great Western" docked alongside.

The struggle for power between sail and steam lasted virtually until the turn of the 
century. Although the steamships were largely independent of wind and weather, 
they had numerous shortcomings. One of the greatest problems was their enormous 
fuel requirement. Due to the large quantity of fuel needed the running costs of the 
steamships were much higher than those of the sailing ships. The opening of the 
Suez Canal and the Panama Canal substantially reduced this disadvantage.

Power derived from paddle wheels was a further weakness of the steamships. Due 
to the consumption of combustible materials the ship rose even higher out of the 
water. The paddle wheels then failed to reach their optimum immersion depth and 
the ship noticably lost more power. In heavy seas the paddle wheels dipped 
irregular and the control of the ship was impaired. Often the paddle wheels were 
severely damaged by the action of waves. It was common place for steamships to 
drift along on the high seas for days in such a condition.

The introduction of the propeller which eliminated the disadvantages of paddle 
wheels proved to be a great step forward in nautical development. But even this 
new innovation there were still obstacles to be overcome until mature conditions 
were completely attained.

For a long time the steamships were mainly used for coastal trade. It is true to say 
that there were some well known Atlantic crossing steamships, but the majority only 
navigated short distances near the coast.

Only after the opening of the Suez Canal and the Panama Canal the big hour had 
struck for the steamships.

At last they could be profitably used for the Eastern voyages and for shuffle traffic 
along the Western and Eastern coasts of the United States. In spite of everything 
there was only a tonnage of 3.5 millions of steamships compared with an 18 
million tonnage worldwide in the year 1880. The demise of the sailing ships 
loomed but did not actually take place until the end of the 19th century. In the 
year 1900 the turning point was reached and compared with 16,000 steamships 
with a registered tonnage of more than 22 million worldwide there were only 
12,000 sailing ships left with a total registered tonnage of 6.5 million. Within a 
century steam power had ousted the sailing ships which had dominated for 
thousands of years.

Wood as a Burning Material

For centuries wood had been the material traditionally used in shipbuilding. The art 
of wood processing for shipbuilding had been perfected based on long tradition 
and experience. Oak wood was considered most suitable for ships. For the building 
of a ship huge quantities of wood were required. At the beginning of the 19th. 
century one tonne of wood was used per ship's tonne. In the case of warships the 
wood requirement was double. Half of the wood, however, was lost during 
processing. Especially in Britain good wood for ships became very expensive in the 
19th century as the native forests had been depleted. Therefore, the British were 
forced to import oak wood from Canada or the Adriatic countries. It was, therefore, 
not surprising that Iron ships increasingly gained importance in Britain.
 
For large ships massive wood thicknesses were required in order to obtain the 
necessary strength of the hull.

The larger the ship, the bigger the "forest" of spatial supports, side keelsons and 
suspension elbow braces. Stowing of the cargo, therefore became a considerable 
problem. Accordingly it was soon decided to use Iron for elbows, beams and spatial 
supports. Due to the higher strength of the material it was possible to save space, 
This method was mainly applied in Great Britain whilst the Americans continued to 
build their ships nearly exclusively out of wood. As a result the American ships 
tended to be somewhat larger than the British ones. Whilst the English built few 
wooden ships over 1,000 t around the middle of the century, so many large 
wooden ships were launched in America that the launching of a such ships were 
hardly taken notice of. The largest and most sensational ship built in America was 
the "Great Republic". She was originally designed for 4,555 t but following a fire 
shortly after completion she was modified to provide a tonnage of 3,357.

Many English shipbuilders bought ships from the United States or Canada during 
the time of the boom around 1850.

The English dockyards had the advantage that they did not have to cater for larger 
ships so that there was still a demand for their similar ships during the subsequent 
depression.

Ships Made From Iron

As with any other technical innovation, iron needed some time to prevail on the 
market as a material for shipbuilding, Iron had been used in wooden vessels for 
supports, elbows and beams. Regarding the fully rigged iron ships most shipowners 
were very sceptical in the beginning. Moreover, the manufacture of ships from iron 
required rethinking and traditional wood shipbuilders were not suited to the task. 
Accordingly the art of shipbuilding was mainly developed by former mechanical 
engineers.

The advancement a of the iron ships proceeded slowly but irresistibly around 1850. 
More and more shipowners allowed themselves to be convinced regarding the 
advantages of this novel construction method. The shipbuilder Alexander Stephens 
Jr. described in 1858 the essential advantages of an iron ship in listing the 
following five points:

1. Prime cost lower than that of a ship made of wood of the same class.
2. In many ranges of voyages iron ships offered the advantage of ensuring safer 
transportation.
3. Considerably greater loading capacity.
4. Durability.
5. Efficiency in maintenance. Elimination of high bills due to wood rot.

A great advantage was the increased loading capacity. Due to leaving out of many 
supports and beams which were required to give strength to a wooden ship more 
stowing room remained for the cargo. Also it was easier to stow the cargo than in 
the tangle of wooden hull supports. The wall thickness of a wooden ship were 
considerably thicker.

Estimates revealed that compared with a 500 t capacity of a wooden ship a similar 
ship made of iron could carry 600 t.

A further considerable argument in favour of iron ships was their stability. An iron 
hull could withstand greater stresses than a wooden hull.

But iron ships had their disadvantages, too. Bilge water within the cargo space 
caused corrosion. A layer of Portland cement or asphalt was needed to prevent this. 
Difficulties with the ventilation of the cargo space contaminated many a cargo in 
the early years.

A special problem was the deflection of the compass caused by the quantity of iron 
in the hull. Only the endeavours of scientists would eventually solve this problem.

An especially annoying and persistent problem was the fouling at the bottom of the 
ship. The iron of the hull seemed to attract sea pocks. Often sea pocks were 
removed by the tonne from the bottom of a ship in dry dock. Excessive fouling 
reduced the speed of a ship by three to four knots. In order to avoid this and to 
prevent more extensive damage an iron ship was put into dry dock once or even 
twice a year so that the hull could be scraped and provided with an anti-foul coat.

Due to the more easily attainable strength of the hull it was possible to build larger 
ships. In the case of iron ships the length width ratio was increased to 7:1. 
Although iron could never replace wood in the case of the sailing ships, it finally 
made the breakthrough in steamships from 1870 onwards.

The Composite Clipper

An extremely unpleasant characteristic of the iron ships was as previously pointed 
out the fouling of the hull. Especially in tropical waters the iron skin was 
particularly badly affected. With wooden ships such fouling was largely avoided by 
copper plate protection. From the year 1840 copper was substituted by a copper 
zinc alloy which remained free of fouling for up to ten years. Iron ships, however, 
could not be mounted with copper since in salt water a galvanic corrosion occurs 
between iron and copper.

These difficulties resulted in the first trials of a composite construction which was to 
combine the advantages of both construction methods.

The identity of the first composite ship can no longer be safely established. In 
general the steamship "Assam" completed in India in 1839 was considered the first 
composite ship. During the course of the years many patents existed in this field. 
Each shipbuilder had his own designs. Such a ship consisted mainly of iron and only 
the outer planks were manufactured of wood. The wooden planks were lined with 
copper or brass. The bar keel was made from wood. A special skill was the 
fastening of the wooden planks with copper rivets which were not allowed to be in 
contact with the iron.

From 1860 onwards many excellent ships of this design were built such as the 
"Taeping", the "Ariel", the "Sobraon", the "Thermopylae" and the "Cutty Sark". In 
1861 the Lloyds Register Committee even granted a higher classification for 
composite ships which further contributed to their high reputation. They were 
excellent ships but they did have one disadvantage. They were so expensive to 
build that not every shipowner could to afford them. Thus they remained much 
noticed and praised but they could not oust either wooden or iron ships.

Shipyards and Shipbuilders

Shipbuilders and shipyards were as well known in the 19th century as the 
automotive manufacturers of today. Their products were noted and discussed. One 
must not forget in this connection that for practically every shipyard the main 
business consisted of the building of small ships well below 1,000 tonnes. Although 
we tend to read today about the large and fast sailing ships, the daily bread for 
each shipyard was earned by the building of normal small ships for the average 
shipowner.

One of the most well known shipbuilders of his time was Donald McKay. His 
shipyard in Boston produced above average many famous and successful ships. 
McKay was not only a gifted shipbuilder but he was also one of the first to 
introduce machinery such as steam driven tilting saws and lathes. These machines 
enabled him to reduce building time and keep his production costs low. His ships 
were well known and respected everywhere and they were sold throughout the 
world. On the McKay shipyard the largest mainly wooden construction ship "The 
Great Republic" was built.

Some of the best known ships of Donald McKay were the following:

STAGHOUND (1,534t),FLYINGCLOUD(1,728 t), SOVEREIGN OF THE SEAS (2,421 t), 
GREAT REPUBLIC (4,555 t and 3,357 t respectively), LIGHTING 
(1,468t),JAMESBAlNES (2,275t), CHAMPION OF THE SEAS (1,947 t) and the 
DONALD MCKAY (2,408 t).

Great Britain's most famous shipyard was that of Alexander Hall & Sons in 
Aberdeen. In 1830 the brothers James and William Hall took over the firm from 
their father. Their fame began with the building of the "Scottish Maid" in the year 
1839.

She was completed in 1866 and sailed the seas until 1941.

She was the first ship with the exemplary Aberdeen bow. The new hull shape was 
to influence a whole generation of fast sailing ships. The ships of this design were 
very fast and yielded tax advantages since the new dimension ruling in 1836. 
During many drag tests with true-to-scale models in large glass tanks the Hall 
brothers perfected their new hull shape. The ships painted in the traditional 
"Aberdeen Green" enjoyed great popularity all over the world. During the second 
half of the 19th.century some of the best iron sailing ships also came from the 
Aberdeen shipyard. Well known ships from this dockyard were the following: 
STORNOWAY (527t), CHRYSOLITE (440t), CAIRNGORM (939t), SCHOMBERG 
(2,284t), REINDEER (965t) SOBRAON (2,131BRT) and the CALYPSO (1,061BRT).

In the port of Galveston in Texas one can still admire to this day the only intact 
sailing ship of the Hall brothers. This is the iron bark "Elissa" with 430BRT built in 
1877.

This ship was restored at a cost of one million dollars and since 1982 has been 
sailing the seas in its original condition.

It would be too difficult to mention here all good shipbuilders of the 19th. century. 
But one must not forget the Alexander Stephens & Sons shipyard in Scotland. With 
the fully-rigged iron ship "Storm Cloud" a ship was launched in 1854 which caught 
all eyes. She was built in accordance with the plans of Alexander Stephens at the 
shipyards own risk. With a long, sharp and concave bow she was practically the 
transposition of the wave theory by Russell. In 1855 her sister ship "White Eagle" 
put to sea.

Another well known shipbuilder was William Rennie. He was co-owner of the 
shipyard of Rennie, Johnson & Rankine in Liverpool Among his other ships the 
"Sappho" (359 t) and the "Fiery Cross" (688 t) set speed records. Despite these fast 
clippers the shipyard went bankrupt in 1855.

Some of the best clippers originated from the Robert Steele & Co. shipyard. These 
tea clippers were built especially for the China voyages and they achieved some of 
the fastest passages to and from China. They offered the advantage of sailing 
quickly in light winds as well as in strong ones. A tea race of "Taeping" against 
"Ariel" (both built by Robert Steele) made history. The best ships from this 
dockyard were TAEPING (724 t), ARIEL (853 t), SIR LANCELOT (847 t) and TITANIA 
(880 t) all of which were composite ships.

Fate of the Famous Ships

Ships and especially sailing ships, were credited with all possible and impossible 
characteristics, but never was a ship regarded by sailors as an inanimate object. 
Many stories about the proud sailing ships were told, some true and others 
invented. Each ship had a special fate, often a tragic one. Even though the ships 
themselves have disappeared long ago, their stories and fame live on. The life 
stories of some well known ships are described in more detail as follows

The Flight around Cape Horn

In the year 1848 the whole of America was alarmed by the news "Gold in 
California". Within a shortest possible time the gold fever seized everybody in 
America. Numerous sections of the population of the East coast dreamt of quick 
riches waiting for them on the West coast. The only obstacle, however, was the 
journey to the West. Since the Journey over land was not a practicable, this left 
only the sea voyage around Cape Horn. At the time of the gold rush innumerable 
ships were built for the transportation of people, equipment and provisions.

Such a voyage promised enormous profit and it was, therefore, small wonder that 
the shipyards were almost unable to cope with the orders. For exactly this purpose 
the 1,783 t "Flying Cloud" was built in 1851 in the dockyard of Donald McKay in 
Boston.

She put to sea on the 2nd, June 1851 at New York under Captain Josiah Perkins 
Creesy. Heavy storms caused the ship problems. With fine weather restored, she 
reached a run (the distance covered per day from midday to midday ) of an 
incredible 325 nautical miles at a maximum speed of 18 knots. No other ship had 
sailed so fast up to that day. With the absolute and unbeaten time of 89 days and 
21 hours she put into the port of San Fransisco under full sail. As the gold a 
diggers and the sailors, who also wanted to try their luck in the gold fields were in 
a special hurry, the sails were not reefed as usual upon entry in the harbour.

Some over-hasty people even jumped off board in order to avoid losing time. The 
"Flying Cloud". then crossed the Pacific Ocean, took on a cargo of tea in Canton 
and returned to New York as a proud record holder.

The Great Tea Race

The British had always been enthusiastic supporters of bets. This betting passion was 
also practised on the tea clippers and enormous sums were placed on certain ships. 
Generous premiums for the first cargo of tea of a new season brought ashore were 
paid for by the tea merchants and sold at especially high prices. Thus real tea races 
took place every year between the fastest ships. The last and most well known tea 
race took place in 1866. Referred to in the history of shipping as the "Great Tea 
Race".

In May of this year 16 clippers were at anchor in Fu Tschou. Five of these ships 
were classed as favourites for the imminent race, namely the four times winner 
"Fiery Cross", the "Taeping", the "Serica", the "Taitsing" and the "Ariel"

With great haste the first crates of tea were stowed away and on the 28th. May the 
"Ariel" put to sea first with 1,108,000 pounds of tea aboard. It was the bad luck of 
the ship that she had taken an unreliable pilot on board. She, therefore, lost her 
lead and was overtaken by the "Fiery Cross". During the crossing of the Equator 
"Fiery Cross", "Ariel" and "Taeping" were equally placed even though they were out 
of sight of each other.

On the 5th. September "Ariel" and "Taeping" reached the coast of Southern 
England almost at the same time. The "Fiery Cross" had already been beaten. At 
Dungerness the "Ariel" was the first ship to ask for a pilot. The captain of the 
"Taeping" was going to snatch away the pilot and only a daring run in front of the 
bow on the pact of the "Ariel" prevented this.

But she was unlucky once again, this time with the tugboat which was to tow her 
up the Thames. Helplessly the crew had to look on as the "Taeping" went past. She 
reached the London dock a few minutes before "Ariel"

According to the rules however, the race was only then finished when the last crate 
of tea was brought ashore. Tension was maintained. In the meantime the price of 
tea had dropped sharply in London. Therefore the owners of both ships agreed to 
share the premium before it was possibly cancelled, and although the "Ariel" had 
unloaded her cargo first the "Taeping" was declared the winner. During this year 
over ten million pounds of tea were brought ashore within a few days. This caused 
the prices to drop to such an extent that a regular tea race was never again staged. 
However, the competitions of well known ships for the fastest voyage home were 
still held as before.

The "Thermopylae" was designed by Bernard Waymouth and built in the year 1868 
in Aberdeen by Walter Hood & Co. She was a composite ship with a length of 64 
metres and 947 t. As an extreme clipper she reached a run of 348 nautical miles 
with a maximum speed of 26 knots. She was planned to be used as a China clipper 
for tea passages.

On her maiden voyage she broke all records in all sections. She achieved the 
voyage from Fu Tschou to London (the famous tea run) in 91 days though the "Sir 
Lancelot" lowered this record two weeks later. On her voyages to Australia she 
normally managed in 69 days and on her tea voyages she reached an excellent 
average of 106.5 days. This made her a typical example of the beautiful and 
efficient clippers of composite design.

In 1887 her masts were shortened and in 1892 she was re-rigged to serve as a 
bark. After serving as a Portuguese training ship she was sunk by a Portuguese 
torpedo.

The Last Witness - the "Cutty Sark"

It may safely be said that the best known clipper today is the "Cutty Sark". She is 
also the only surviving clipper of the big time and tells the story of the good old 
days of the sailing ships in her dry dock in Greenwich. As an active ship she 
achieved the record, for her voyage from Sydney to London in only 79 days.

She was built in 1869 as an extreme clipper with a length of 64 metres and 921 t. 
Towards the end of the second clipper boom she was one of the last ships built for 
speed. Although she was never brilliant during the China voyages her trips to 
Australia were still remarkably fast. In order to reach full capacity, however, she still 
needed strong and constant winds.

In 1895 she was sold to Portugal and re named "Ferreira". Captain Dowman 
bought her in 1922 and refurbished the rigging which had been altered. In 1954 
she went into her own dry dock in Greenwich once again under her own name 
"Cutty Sark" and she has been preserved as a national monument for admiring 
future generations as the only surviving extreme clipper.

The Unlucky Giant

The steamer "Great Eastern" was to impress the world. Designed by the famous Sir 
Isambard Kingdom Brunel this ship was ahead of its time by over forty years. The 
building of this "Giant of the Seas" began in 1854 Her length came to a legendary 
211 metres. She had two paddle wheels with a diameter of 17 metres and a 7.3 
metre propeller at the stern. Five funnels and six masts with a sail expanse of 5,400 
square metres. Based on ten watertight sections and a double bottom the ship was 
to be made unsinkable. Indeed she never sank despite all the misfortune she 
suffered the only thing the "Great Eastern" did not have was good luck.

Misfortune began when one day a riveter and an apprentice disappeared, The 
workers believed that both had been encased in the double bottom by accident 
where the riveting hammers drowned their cries for help. Their request to open up 
the bottom once again was rejected for cost reasons. From that time onward the 
ship was hounded by bad luck. The first launching took three months.

All manner of things happened until in the end the giant floated on the Thames. 
The first company were declared bankrupt because of increased iron prices and the 
second was ruined by the cost of the fittings. The day before the ship sailed Brunel 
collapsed with a stroke during a photographic session. He died a week later at the 
age of 53. On the same day five people died when a funnel exploded during the 
transfer trip. Besides everything else the captain drowned when his boat capsized on 
the way to the landing stage. Since such an accident before or during the maiden 
voyage was a bad omen the reputation of a jinxed ship stuck to the "Great 
Eastern". The third company also pulled out.

The famous shipowner Sir Samuel Cunard then took over the ship as the new 
owner.

At last on the 16th June 1860 the "Great Eastern" started her maiden voyage with 
only 38 paying passengers and a crew of 418 men aboard, not a profitable 
undertaking. However, her arrival in New York was celebrated by thousands of 
enthusiastic people. An outing was arranged and enormous prices were charged but 
only 300 beds were available for the 2000 passengers. The outing was eventful 
with a burst pipe spoiling the provisions and due to a navigational error the "Great 
Eastern" went badly off course.

On the return voyage to England the series of mishaps continued. A drive shaft 
broke down, two people drowned when "The Great Eastern" became entangled with 
the hawser of a small ship and as a conclusion she also rammed the "Blenheim". 
She crossed the North Atlantic for four years and was involved in accidents again 
and again causing enormous repair costs.

In 1864 Cunard gave up as well and auctioned the ship off at a ridiculous price 
which did not even cover cost of the last repair. She was converted to a cable 
laying ship for the first undersea cable from Europe to America, but when special 
cable laying vessels were built in 1874 she was sold again.

In 1888 she was finally scrapped with the aid of specially designed tooling. To the 
horror of the workers the skeletons of the riveter and his apprentice who had 
disappeared were, indeed found in the double bottom. Everybody was now 
convinced that the dead were the reason for the lasting bad luck of the "Great 
Eastern". It was not until 1899 that a larger ship was built again.

BASIC PRINCIPLES OF SHIPBUILDING
 
The layman often looks upon sailing ships as untidy vessels which are burdened 
with useless ropes and indefinable rigging. In reality extremely strict order prevails. 
Even the smallest part has its place and each manual function has to be carried out 
in a certain manner. Only in this way was it possible to carry out vital manoeuvres 
practically blind, in the night or in heavy seas. Even on ships with dubious crews, 
order was maintained since every sailor knew that his life could depend on such 
order. He had to be able to rely on everything being in the proper place n the 
same way that he relied on the man before him having fixed a rope properly when 
he balanced at giddy heights above stormy seas. It was no problem for the sailor to 
recognise and name the innumerable elements of a sailing ship right off the bat. 
Also the non seafaring population of the 19th century was quite able to tell the 
difference between a bark and a fully rigged ship. One could tell sailing ships apart 
in the same way as nearly everybody can make a distinction between leading car 
makes nowadays

Life on Board

There is much to report on about life aboard a ship even though there are not 
many authentic contemporary reports available. Additionally the reports of that time 
are romantically coloured and exaggerate or understate the dangers and joys of life 
aboard One has to bear in mind that shipping in the 19th century and everything 
connected with it was very much in the centre of public interest. Departure 
schedules were always issued and the deeds of famous captains were constantly 
talked about.

Work on Mail Ships

Nowadays it is often presumed that the profession of a sailor required no 
qualifications, but in actual fact it was a very demanding and instructional 
profession in which one had to learn everything from scratch. Captains especially, 
who in most cases started their career as ordinary sailors, were extremely respected 
persons.

To work on mail ships men of special calibre were required. They had to carry out 
hard work even in bad weather, put up with bad food and little sleep and often 
suffer rough treatment from a strict captain.

To run a mail ship required two to three dozen such men. The crew was responsible 
to the captain, the first coxswain and the second coxswain Additionally a carpenter, 
a cook a boatswain, some cabin boys and one or two stewards belonged to the 
crew. A capable sailor had to be well versed in many a trade. He had to be able to 
handle sails, booms and ropes, forge hooks and rings and work as a carpenter or 
weaver during repair jobs. The sailors work, therefore, was in no way limited to 
setting and hauling down sails.
 
The crew was split into two watches taking turns. In charge was always one of the 
two coxswains. One sailor had to be at the helm at all times. In stormy seas it was 
often necessary for two sailors to hold the rudder. They had to brave the waves 
beating over board and sometimes they faced the danger of being washed over 
board. The crows nest too, at the bow was constantly manned. This was a pleasant 
job in fine weather but pure hell in bad weather. Part of the crew was continually 
busy doing maintenance work. To knock rust off the anchor was frequently a 
punishing job. The most monotonous of all work, however, was the scrubbing of 
the deck. Every morning this work was carried out at the commencement of the 
morning watch at 04.00 hours. It was considered to be a matter of honour to 
execute all work without objections and grumbling. In order to ease frequent 
monotonous work the sailors sang appropriate songs. For each activity there was a 
rhythmic shanty which exactly sited the rhythm of the work and was often over one 
hundred years old. Especially popular and respected were the sailors who were able 
to incorporate in the words of the songs the characteristics of individual crew 
members.

Normally the watch was relieved every four hours. In his leisure time there was 
hardly any diversity for the sailor. When there was a storm the rest period was 
often interrupted by the shout "All Men". In spite of hardship and danger the 
sailors on mail ships earned very little. Since most of them spent there money on 
alcohol and women, only few sailors managed to provide for old age. Therefore, in 
most cases sailors ended up as dossers in some seaport town.

Few were offered the possibility of promotion from sailor to coxswain. Most officers 
on mail ships were ordinary sailors before. The second coxswain could possibly be 
promoted to first coxswain, Usually such promotion was effected at the age of thirty 
years. The first coxswain was responsible for navigation and cargo. Beyond that he 
had to have a wide all round knowledge in order to take the place of the captain in 
an emergency. Approximately every third coxswain could hope to be given the 
position of captain, but whoever was not a captain by the age of 35 years, 
remained third coxswain and normally turned out to be a very strict superior.

Old Salts of the Land

After months of hard work and having been cooped up on a ship, the sailors craved 
for any kind of fun. One voyages pay was nearly always spent in one day on 
alcohol and prostitutes. The seaport towns offered many opportunities to spend 
money. Around the harbour the place was alive with inns, cheap and nasty theatres 
and brothels.
 
Numerous public houses invited you to indulge in enormous drinking bouts. The 
different entertainment places outbid each other in an attempt to promote business 
with the sailors. It is mentioned in reports about a famous Liverpool establishment 
that their patrons could inhale from containers filled with laughing gas in order to 
get them into a euphoric and generous mood after a few puffs.

Among the entertainment establishments there were the pawnbrokers shops easily 
recognisable by three gold-coloured balls by the door. Often the last pair of 
trousers were pawned here in order to obtain money for a last drink. Tattooing 
salons also offered their services. The sailors liked to have their upper bodies and 
arms decorated with all imaginable pictures. Especially popular was a big cross 
which was to take care of a Christian burial in the event that the corpse was washed 
up on some heathen coast.

As soon as money ran short the pleasures came to a sudden end. Often the 
insolvent sailors were handed over by the pub landlords to agents. When once 
again sober the sailor found himself on a strange ship putting to sea. The landlord 
and the agent received a payment for this which was later deducted from the 
sailor's wages.

Last Anchorage

Most sailors failed to manage to provide for their old age. The purse strings were 
far too loose during stays on land with alcohol, women and pleasures too tempting. 
The sailors finished up as dossers in seaport towns and often died on the street. 
With effect from 1833 a protective haven was offered to sailors by the Sailors Snug 
harbour which provided a chance for pleasant and Secure retirement. This Sailors 
home was founded on Staten Island and it was financed with the estate left by the 
ship owner John Randall. Its objective was to take care of old and needy sailors.

"They took me in because I am a cripple. They washed and shaved me and gave 
me a room which was as clean as the Captain's cabin on a warship and they said' 
Here you will be well and safely looked after for good!". Thus wrote a sailor in his 
memoirs who found refuge in Snug Harbour.

The destitute sailors were accommodated in comfortable rooms and provided with 
good food. A doctor and a nurse looked after their physical well being. With 
different kinds of work the sailors were able to earn some welcome pocket money. 
Alcohol was absolutely taboo for the residents inside and outside the home. 
Violation of this rule was punished with the withdrawal of the chance to work, 
house arrest or smoking ban. There was a similar punishment for non-attendance of 
church services. Most people accepted their obligations willingly since it secured for 
them a protected and pleasant retirement.

The Life of the Captains

As no other, the profession of a captain was surrounded by romantic charm during 
the 19th. century. The representatives of this profession enjoyed a high social 
prestige and associated with well situated circles. It was quite customary to invite 
captains to social gatherings of the so-called high society. For especially fast 
crossings or other achievements, the captains as well as their ships received praise in 
the newspapers. Many people sought out their company and some passenger 
planned their voyage in such a way that they could be at sea with their favourite 
captain.

The captains of mail ships led a pleasant and luxurious life on land. Many of them 
were the owners of magnificent mansions and they stayed at elegant hotels.

Even their attire displayed a certain elegance. The mail ship captains earned 
especially good money as they shared in the considerable profit. For example they 
received prime money amounting to 5 % approx of the freight charges as well as 
25 % of the fares of the passengers. Some captains even received the whole charge 
of mail consignments. It was customary on many ships to place at the captains 
disposal a small part of the cargo space to enable him to conduct his own business. 
Therefore, their earnings were often thirty times as much as those of a sailor.

But such money has to be well-earned in the first place. Although the captain could 
delegate such tasks to his coxswains, the responsibility was always his. In order to 
adhere to sailing times or to break the records of other ships and captains, each bit 
of sail had to be raised. In doing so the ship was not to be seriously damaged. 
Frequently daring decisions were called for which verged on the narrow edge 
between irresponsibility and the pleasure in taking risks. The necessity to get the 
ship ahead all of the time was such an ordeal for mail ships' captains that hardly 
any captain stood the pace of transatlantic routes longer than five years. Upon the 
first signs of a drop in performance a captain would be dismissed by the shipowner. 
Therefore, many captains left voluntarily before it came to this. If savings sufficed, a 
captain could go into retirement.

Many captains took on new activities such as ships inspector for insurance 
companies or advisor to shipbuilders.

Captain H. Marshall was the proverbial exception to the five year rule. The gruff 
and cantankerous captain spent altogether 27 years at sea and he was a mail ship 
captain for 12 years. He was born the son of an old whaler family in Nantucket. At 
the age of 24 year he was already appointed as captain of the 350 t ship "Julius 
Caesar ". During his course of duty he distinguished himself as a great go getter. In 
1822 he commenced duty as a mail captain with the Black Ball Line. In 1834 he 
acquired the major portion of shares within the company, settled in New York and 
managed the business from there. He was a famous example of how far a captain 
could advance.

Another famous captain was Samuel Samuels. So many passengers wanted to sail 
with this infamous man that tickets for his ship had to be booked a season in 
advance. With his 1,400 ton luxury mail ship "Dreadnought" he sailed the 
transatlantic route

Samuels made the shipping agents a unique offer. He was so convinced of being 
able to adhere to the running times that he offered to pay back the freight charges 
in case the cargo was not delivered on time. Supposedly he never faced the 
embarrassing situation of having to fulfil his offer. Sailors often rumoured that 
Captain Samuels probably knew a secret route between New York and Liverpool.

Another famous captain was Nathaniel Brown Palmer affectionately known as 
Captain Nat. The man from Connecticut went to sea for the first time when he was 
14 years old and he became captain of the mail ship "Garrick" at the age of 38. 
Furthermore he was a partner of the Dramatic Line which owned this ship. When in 
the harbour of New York he liked to display his nautical skills.

Whilst all the other ships arranged for the putting into and leaving the port to be 
made easier by using tug boats, he insisted on sticking to the old method of sailing 
into and out of the harbour under his own power with great public interest. In 
1840 he managed the crossing from Liverpool to New York in only 15 days with 
the "Siddon". This record was never broken by another mail ship.

Travel in The Luxury Class

Cabin passengers could expect the sort of luxury on their travels which compared 
with the better hotels. So reports an enthusiastic journalist in 1843 after inspecting 
a mail ship's facilities. No salon or boudoir on land displays better white and gold 
colours, as in the time of Ludwig XIV or XV, the dining room of the "Marco Polo" 
as follows: "The ceiling is panelled with maple wood and the square support 
columns are encased with decorated and silver-plated glass on which coins from 
different countries represent a novelty".

Both the furnishings and the meals were lush and extravagant. According to a 
contemporary report the breakfast served at nine o'clock consisted of "Black tea, 
coffee, biscuits, fish, chicken, lamb and eggs". Lunch consisted of a large selection 
of cold meats. The main meal was served at four o'clock in the afternoon and often 
lasted hours.

On the menu were "Soups, fresh lamb, beef, pork and sometimes veal, chicken, 
bacon, plum pudding, preserves and cakes". For desert different nuts and fruits 
were served and drinks such included Madeira, Port and Bordeaux, Frequently real 
champagne was put onto the table. On some ships dinner was served again at 
seven o'clock. In the period between meals, which must have been short for some 
passengers, there were different ways to pass the time. A popular pastime was 
chasing rats and also shooting at bottles with rifles or pistols. Sometimes daring 
passengers, would jump overboard and swim around the ship. On some ships there 
were even orchestras, Then of course there were popular games such as draughts, 
dominoes, chess, backgammon, whist and poker. At that time the custom of placing 
bets on the number of kilometres sailed per day was also introduced. If famous 
actors were on board, for instance Tyrone Power who crossed the Atlantic often, 
private performances contributed to the entertainment of the passengers. The fun 
and the pleasure was spoiled only during dead calm or storm.

In such situations the sea voyage could be torture for even cabin passengers.

Pilot on Board

On the open sea countless dangers lurked for the ship. But these dangers were not 
over when approaching a port. Entering port represented an obstacle run between 
shifting sandbanks and changing currents with the constant risk of running aground. 
Especially demanding for the captains was the port of New York, a distance of 25 
miles from the fireship Sandy Hook to the piers on the East river. Therefore, most 
captains made use of a harbour pilot to ensure safe entry. These pilots knew 
everything about shallows and currents. They managed to cope well with the often 
temperamental winds and they could tell a sandbank which had shifted after a 
storm by slight changes in the colour of the water. Correspondingly their judgment 
was highly appreciated. With the subtle intuition they knew how to guide the ships 
entrusted to them safely into the harbour.

With effect from 1837 the New York Harbour Authority made it compulsory for 
ships to take a pilot aboard prior to entering New York harbour and imposed a fine 
on every captain who entered without one.

As soon as the fireship "Sandy Hook" was sighted the captain called for a pilot by 
using flare signals. With up to eighteen pilot boats continuously cruising off the 
coast, three to four boats would immediately set course for the ship wishing to be 
put into port. Races often took place as the pilot who reached the ship first was 
always awarded with the assignment.

Depending on the size of the ship, the pilot demanded 20 to 25 dollars for his 
work. Many pilots brought along the latest newspapers, fresh laundry for the 
captain and also freshly caught fish The pilots did not take command of the ship, 
but the captain based his instructions on the advice of the pilot. Slowly but surely 
they then proceeded in the direction of the port. The pilots did not attach any 
importance to speed as their reputation depended only on how safely they guided 
their ships into port. A voyage from Sandy Hook to the harbour normally lasted 24 
hours but it could take days or even weeks in storms.

Catastrophes at Sea

Mail ships were very much endangered at sea. This was not because they were built 
badly, but because the captains often had to take, risks in order to adhere to the 
running times For a mail ship, bad weather was not a reason to heave to, or to 
delay the start the voyage

On the 1st April 1822 the 434 ton mail ship the "Albion" left the port of New 
York. She was a robustly built and well-proved ship serving the Black Ball line, 
sailing under the command of Captain John Williams. He was 37 years old and at 
the height of his career. He was the unofficial commodore on the Black Ball fleet. 
Within the excellent time of 21 days the ship reached the Irish coast in pleasant 
weather But then the visibility deteriorated and white squalls appeared. Towards the 
evening the storm changed to hurricane conditions and the ship was seized by a 
huge wave and slung to the side. Many passengers were injured and the main 
mast, the top of the mizzen mast and the front of the Marsstenge broke off. The 
lifeboats, the deck-house, quarterdeck equipment, compasses and all axes were 
washed overboard. Six crew members and passengers were swept into the sea. 
Without the rudder the ship was no longer controllable and was carried by the 
waves. At about one o`clock in the morning the end was in sight. The captain 
declared the ship lost. The first coxswain said later: "At that moment our situation 
was indescribable. I dare not think of the horror nor do I want to tell the details".

At three o`clock in the morning the "Albion" crashed against some rocks on the 
shore. The ship broke apart, the captain was swept overboard and came to an end 
in gale-lashed sea.

Only a few people managed to escape to the cliffs where they held on for dear life. 
It was only after several hours that the storm abated and some helpers managed to 
free the survivors from their precarious situation with the aid of ropes.

The seas proved their power in other ways, too. Some ships for instance disappeared 
without trace on high seas. In November 1844 the 650 t "United States" and a week later 
the 729 t "England" left Liverpool harbour. Although both ships were considered reliable 
they never arrived in New York, their destination. On the 7th March 1845 they were 
finally listed as missing.

On the 24th August 1848 the 1,301 t "Ocean Monarch" put to sea from Liverpool. There 
were large quantities of cargo and nearly 400 passengers on board. Still in the channel 
the ship met with the 1,404 t "New World". A race between both ships was imminent. 
But round about lunchtime a fire broke out in the rear section of the ship. Within a 
short time the entire aft the rear of the ship was burning. All attempts to extinguish 
the fire achieved nothing. Two boats could be lowered into the water and the first 
coxswain, some crew members and some passengers were able to save themselves. The other 
boats burned before they could be lowered. But it was a blessing in disguise that the 
"Ocean Monarch" was still close to shore where many ships were about. The life boats 
of these ships fished the survivors out of the water. The ship was completely destroyed 
by fire. Nearly half the passengers and crew lost their lives, but the reminder were rescued.

In most cases the insufficient number of life boats was responsible for the tragic 
outcome of many a disaster at sea. If one had secured a much sought after place in 
the boat, this did not mean ultimate safety. The boats were often overloaded and 
liable to sink. Often macabre fights developed in a boat promising salvation. 
Especially horrible is the story of a life boat on the "William Brown" which collided 
with an iceberg in June 1841. The life boat, over which coxswain Alexander Holmes 
had taken command was hopelessly overloaded. Holmes ordered the crew to throw 
sixteen passengers overboard. The first to go overboard was a man called Frank 
Carr. Despite his fervent pleas to have mercy on him, he was thrown into the sea. 
Horrified, his youngest sister Mary called: "If you throw him out, throw me out as 
well. I want to die in the same way as my brother. Please do not separate me from 
my brother." Promptly she was taken at her words and also thrown overboard 
without hesitation, together with another sister. A little later the life boat was 
sighted by a ship and the passengers were taken aboard. The witness accounts of 
the surviving and horrified passengers later led to the conviction of Holmes for 
manslaughter

The Lifeboat Pioneer

Life boats were not built to withstand rough handling. Many were wrecked during 
hectic lowering onto the water. Furthermore, they were not seaworthy on stormy 
waters. They keeled over easily and high waves the boats to sink quickly.

Joseph Francis from Boston dedicated his life to the improvement of life boats. At 
the age of eighteen he won a prize for designing an unsinkable rowing boat, the bow 
and the stern of which were filled with cork.

He went to New York to find buyers for his invention and to continue his work on 
better life boats. Up to 1837 his success was very modest but in that year he 
introduced his newest invention to the public and the press in a spectacular way. 
His new boat had cork chambers at the bow and the stern and also additional air 
chambers made from copper at the sides and underneath the benches. On the sides 
lifelines made it possible for up to 40 persons to hang onto the boat. The boat was 
turned around and the water drained away quickly through the perforated bottom. 
Attempts to sink the boat failed. Following this demonstration and other similar and 
successful ones, Francis was able to look forward to a secure future. Already in 
1840 it was compulsory for all American warships to have Francis' life boats 
aboard. During the following years he perfected his life boat by substituting metal 
for wood.

His next invention was a recovery vehicle. It was to facilitate the saving of passengers 
from ships aground close to a coast. To date it was often not possible to reach these 
ships from the shore since the rescue boats would have been destroyed in the stormy surf

The new rescue vessel was an enclosed metal boat with space for up to five persons. 
By means of a hawser harpooned from the shore to the ship the vessel was securely 
pulled along above the raging sea.

The Pioneer of Steam Shipping

In the first years of mail boat shipping it was taken into consideration as to whether 
steamships could fulfil their task in a better and more rational way. They were of 
course largely independent from the wind and it was widely believed that their machines 
would not withstand the stresses of such a voyage.

Junius Smith believed in steam ships and wanted to open a steam ship line across the 
Atlantic. He travelled across to New York in order to find financial backers for his 
undertaking. Greatly disappointed, by the unwillingness of New York financiers to take 
risks, he returned to London. In the end he found financial backers for his project. 
Subsequently he founded, in 1835, the British and American Steam Navigation Company. 
The first ship was completed in 1838. She was the 1,850t "British Queen". But competition 
was not napping either. The Great Western Steamship Company founded one year later 
also planned a crossing of the Atlantic with the "Great Western", Smith had to charter 
the small steamship "Sirius" which arrived in New York on the 23rd April 1838 as the 
first ship having crossed the Atlantic with steam drive only.

She arrived barely eight hours before the "Great Western"
 
Thereafter the "British Queen" sailed on the London to New York route. For her voyage 
to the West she took 16 days on average and in the other direction two days less.
 
Many sailing ships took twice as long for this run. The greatest coupe of Junius 
Smith was the commissioning of the "President" in 1840 With 2,866 t she was the 
biggest and proudest ship. Subsequently Junius Smith the daring innovator, was 
showered with honours Rumour had it that he was even to be knighted.

But in 1871 the "President" sunk. All 136 crew members and passengers died. Among the 
passengers were such famous persons as the Irish actor Tyrone Power. This disaster in 
shipping occurred and not on the seas. On the 16th December 1835 a fire broke out in 
the business quarter of Manhattan. Starting in a warehouse a devastating fire developed. 
Due to strong winds the fire spread rapidly. Additionally the hydrants were frozen so 
that the fire brigade had to look on almost helplessly. Most captains succeeded in 
taking their ships to the open sea before the flames reached the pier. Only a few 
ships caught fire.

On land the owners of warehouses had to look on as their properties were consumed by 
fire. There was unimaginable chaos. Within 24 hours 674 buildings were destroyed. It 
was only on the next day that the fire would be brought under control.

THE HANDBOOK FOR THE SUCCESFUL SHIPOWNER

Operations From 1869

Success of course does not come about by itself. A ship owner of the last century 
had to be well informed in many areas. Not only the knowledge about the secrets 
of trading ensure success but also an excellent knowledge in the field of shipbuilding, 
types of ships, running a ship, nautical science, readiness to take risks, and last 
but not least being informed about the political and economical situation of the world 
were absolutely essential for the running of a shipping firm.

As 1869 includes true historic events, it is important to spend one or two hours of 
your leisure time reading this handbook. In so doing you will be able to appreciate 
the finer points of 1869 and give you a competitive edge over rival "shipowners". 
For example at the time of the American Civil War your competitors may be trying 
unsuccessfully to buy cotton in Savannah, you may have long seen the signs of the 
times and ordered your merchant fleet to go to more profitable and safe ports.

In 1869, as in life generally, "Knowledge is Power"

Running 1869
 
If you wish to play 1869 from disk, insert disk A in the disk drive. Now switch on 
your computer or call from workbench the 1869 game icon by double clicking on the 
1869 disk icon.

You may also install 1869 on hard disk. For this purpose use the INSTALL icon from 
workbench. Once installed, to start the game, sekect the 1869 Icon from workbench.

Start of the Game

At the start of the game you have the following possibilities regarding selection and 
entry:

Control

You can select whether you wish to play with the mouse or via the keyboard. (Mouse 
operation is recommended).

New or Old Game

If you begin a new game, press the space bar. In order to load an old game. press 
J. You can then select the game from previously stored games.

Number of Players

Enter the number of players. Up to four players may take part

Name of player

Here you can enter your name. You will also be addressed by this name by the player 
name coming up in the game. It goes without saying that such pseudonyms as Capt Hook 
are also permissible.

Sex

In order to ensure that you are correctly addressed by merchants, dockyard owners 
and bank directors you should state your sex here.

Name of Firm

Now you should give your rapidly flourishing and growing firm an attractive name.

Location of Firm

Select where the principal town of your firm is to be. In this town you will have 
your company office and also your first store. Each of the five towns for selection 
have their advantages and disadvantages which will become evident as you 
progress.
 
When all players have completed their details you will be asked whether all details 
are to your satisfaction. If this is so, then there is nothing in the way to begin a 
thrilling and entertaining game.

The Ship Auction

For more than one player 1869 begins with a ship auction. Many favourable bargains 
can be had here, but care is needed as many a player has ruined himself at the start 
by aggressive over-bidding.

A ship is called up by the auctioneer at a minimum price. Each player can now 
participate in bidding by clicking his players name. Thereby the offer increases by 
fixed values. The name of the player offering the most at this time is displayed. If 
there is no more bidding for a certain time, then the highest bidder receives the 
addition.

The auction can be speeded up with the ESC key. The highest bidder will receive the 
addition immediately and the auctioneer continues with the next ship. If there are 
no bids for a ship then there is no sale.

An auction also takes place when a player has ordered a ship but is unable to make 
payment. The completely built ship which has not been paid for is released by the 
shipyard for auction. Some time before the date of the auction each player receives 
notification enabling him to be at the location of the auction in time.

You may only participate in an auction if you are present at the location of the 
auction either on a ship or in a branch office ensuring of course that on this ship or 
in this branch office sufficient funds are available. Auctions prove again and again 
to offer a popular opportunity to acquire cheap and good ships.

Fast Entry for the Impatient

Successful shipowners distinguish themselves by showing patience, control, and 
readiness to take risks and the instinct to know the right moment for action. 
However, for the very impatient player we have a few tips for a quick entry to the 
game.

First go to the shipyard and buy a second hand ship. When the ship is yours, go to 
the tavern, not to drink of course, but to hire a Crew for the ship. The landlord of 
the tavern is pleased to give assistance. The quality of the crew should match the 
quality of the ship. It takes a few days for the landlord to drum up the crew. In the 
meantime you may take money from the warehouse to the ship since merchandise always 
has to be paid for on the spot. Since it is not your intention to go on pleasure trips 
you are urgently advised to call at the office in order to purchase goods. Only with a 
relevant cargo in the ships hold does she become a trading vessel.

Do not go on excessively long voyages to start with. Call only at safe ports and 
trade merely with safe goods. Your ship should always be fully loaded since half 
filled ships can ruin a company in a short period of time.

Game Aims

In the single player mode it is the aim of your game to be included in the "List of 
the Best" after a certain number of years. In the multi player mode there is the 
possibility of a "knockout" victory if all competitors have been eliminated. Winning 
can also be defined as the player who has the strongest company after the end of 
playing time.
 
The main chart is the central control element of the trading simulation in 1869. 
From here you manage your world spanning company, direct ships and enlarge your 
trade empire,

By simply clicking on sections of the chart you get comfortably and quickly into the 
individual action screens. The chart consists of a large main field which depicts one 
of the four continents of the world and different control parts, the importance of 
which are explained in the following.

Name of Firm

This is the name of the active firm which is taking its turn during the present move 
of the game.

Calendar

The actual date may be taken from this calendar.

Clicking the calendar finishes one's current move. With only one player participation, 
the calendar flicks to the next event. When there are several players the players move 
in turn. When all players have completed their moves, the calendar goes on to the next 
event. Now it is the turn of the player whom the occurring event concerns. Subsequently 
all the other players may participate in the game.

There are the following events: A ship has put into harbour, a ship has been completely 
rebuilt or repaired, a hired crew has come aboard or a crew is completely rested after 
a break in the harbour.
 
Ship's Control

If one clicks the ship with the left mouse key one enters the ship dispatch mode.

If one clicks the ship with the right mouse key the ship status screen appears with 
the information and sets possibilities with regard to the condition of the ship, cargo 
and crew.

Actual Capital in Cash

Here you see at a glance how much actual cash is at your disposal currently. This 
includes all cash in branch offices and on ships, Each player begins with a capital of 
$7,000.

World Map

By clicking the relevant continent the view in the main field changes to that desired 
continent.

There are four continents, namely North America/South America, Europe/North 
Africa, Africa/ South Asia and Asia/Australia. The views overlap a little to permit 
optimum operations.

Bank

By clicking the symbol you can enter the Bank and take out new loans or extend 
existing ones.

Records

Clicking this symbol leads to a memorial tablet on which the eternal records of 
crossings are retained. It is the dream of every captain and shipowner of course to 
see the name of his ship on this tablet.

Balance sheet

This is an extensive listing of the firms expenditure. It offers a means of drawing 
comparisons between individual firms.

Options

Here you are given the possibility to load or store positions in the game, to switch 
on or off messages and to end the game.

Ship

This symbol indicates a ship lying in the port which is available.

Branch Office

If one has a branch office or head office in the port the relevant port symbol is 
indicated by a flag.

Port

If there is no ship of one's own, branch office or head office in the port clicking of 
this symbol causes a view of the port to appear as well as the information window 
showing the name of the current town, its main export goods and the political state 
of the country.

By clicking on a port, with the mouse, where you have either a ship or a branch 
office, you get to the office.

If click such a port with the right mouse key, a symbol listing appears with up to 
four possibilities of selection.

Info

The information panel belonging to the port appears.

Beer Jug

Enables you to visit the tavern in the port where one can hire crews and also pick 
up some useful tips

Anchor

This symbol leads to the shipyard. The symbol only appears in the case of ports 
with a shipyard.

Crate

Allows you to go to the store or the head office. The symbol appears only in the 
case of ports where you have a warehouse or head office.

Dialogue Operation

With 1869 you need not make any entries via the keyboard. All actions, dialogues 
and transactions can be made using the mouse. During the course of the game you 
conduct discussions and negotiations with different persons. You may select from a 
number of sentences that which suits your taste and intentions. This means of 
communication applies throughout the entire game.

On some occasions the dialogue concerns amounts of money or quantities of goods. Such 
sentences always begin with three dots (for instance "How much would 200 crates of 
textiles cost me" ) Here you adjust the quantity or the amount by clicking. If you 
click such a sentence with the left mouse key, the set quantity or amount is increased. 
By clicking with the right mouse key the quantity or the amount is reduced. Therefore, 
the rule is always: Quantities or amounts are increased with the left mouse key and 
reduced with the right mouse key.

In order to confirm purchases, sales or other transactions you always select a 
sentence beginning with "OK". For instance if you wish to confirm a purchase you 
click the sentence, "OK load everything." The set quantity of goods will then be 
taken to the ship and the purchasing price will be debited.

If you have several sources of money in a port (for instance a ship and a warehouse) 
you can enter the money source from which the money is to be debited with the following 
sentence: "I have $3000 at my disposal in the warehouse".

Here again the following rule applies: up with the left mouse button and down with 
the right button.

Since this kind of operation remains constant throughout the game you quickly 
become competent in the games methodology.

The Shipyard

Your first steps in the game should take you to a shipyard except if you have already 
bought a ship at the auction. At the shipyard you can purchase a second hand ship or 
order a new ship. Remember, second hand ships are somewhat cheaper than new ones and 
your budget is not very high at the beginning. Even if the idea of a new ship seems 
attractive you should take into consideration that you have to purchase goods, hire 
a crew and that your competitors may already be making a profit during your waiting 
time by using a second hand ship with a shorter delivery.

Ships can also be repaired in the shipyard. Depending on necessity barnacle growth 
can be removed from the hull (scraping), the hull can be painted and sealed, the 
rigging or steam engine overhauled and the ship generally serviced this being the 
most expensive option. Depending on the extent of repair work this will take a few 
days. During a repair the ship is not at your disposal and the relevant ship symbol 
disappears. Also only ships without cargo may be taken in for repair.

If you wish to buy a second hand ship or choose to have a new ship built you can 
select the desired ship from the model catalogue. Second hand ships must be fully 
paid for immediately in cash and they will be placed at your disposal after four 
days.

For a new ship a down payment of 25% of the purchase price is due immediately.

The remaining 75% of the purchase price can be paid to the shipyard at any time 
prior to completion of building. If the total purchase price is not paid by the 
completion date, weekly interest will be charged. In this instance caution should be 
exercised as the ship is released by the shipyard for auction if the interest exceeds 
the down payment made. However, up to the date of the auction the original purchaser 
is offered the possibility at any time to pay the outstanding amount.

When buying new ships you can trade-in your old ships. If you finds that the sales 
price for an old ship is higher than the cost of the new ship, then the ship yard will 
pay the excess into the next available money source. If there is a warehouse in the 
town it is paid into that, otherwise it goes to a ship.

If one has selected a new ship, she can be formally named. A heraldic figure appears 
on the screen in which you can enter the name of the ship. The first letter of the 
name must not be a zero symbol. If you press the ENTER key without naming the ship 
the purchasing procedure is called off. If the name has been entered the down payment 
is required to be made at the office immediately. But it is also possible to withdraw 
from the purchase at the office.

A ship which is no longer required can be sold to the shipyard. However, this can 
only be done when there is a second ship in the port or a new ship ordered from 
the shipyard.

In addition to large and famous shipyards there are also some smaller shipyards. 
Some of these only carry out repairs or offer smaller types of ship. You can also 
sell ships to these yards. These are kept on the books as second-hand vessels for 
a period, after which they are scrapped. As happens so often in life, repairs at 
the smaller shipyards are often cheaper than the big and well known dockyards which 
are over burdened with orders.

In The Tavern

As a respectable shipowner, one does not visit the tavern, to drink grog. With 
business in mind you can hire a ships crew from the landlord. This means that if 
you have the choice you also have the worry. The question is should you hire top 
people with correspondingly high wage requirements or a normal crew or even a 
low paid crew who mix up port and starboard? The scope is wide and this is where 
your instinct comes in. Generally the motto "The right crew for the right ship" 
applies. Even a top crew cannot perform miracles with a ship that is half-wrecked 
and a lot of landlubbers will not achieve record times even with the proudest 
clipper. But do make sure that you are able to afford the monthly wages as without 
pay even the most reliable crew will revert to mutiny.

By clicking the desired crew with the right mouse key the confirmation sentence "OK, 
I take the people" appears on the screen. By selecting this sentence you are hiring 
the crew. The landlord will then inform you in how many days the new crew will arrive 
on your ship.

The landlord also provides information regarding the cost of a branch office in this 
port. If you wish to open a new branch office you may do this here and now.

Additionally you can transfer money in the tavern from one ship to another. For 
this purpose you select first the source ship and then the receiving ship, enter the 
relevant amount and confirm as follows: "OK, I will send the money to the..".

Since many people from all over the world call into port taverns and as alcohol 
makes people very talkative a lot of useful information comes to the landlords ears. 
For a round of beers he might perhaps let out some secrets to you.
 
Branch Offices and Head Office
 
In the town which you select as your starting point at the beginning of the game 
the head office of your firm is located. The head office and possibly further branch 
offices are marked on the main chart by a flag.
 
At the head office or the branch offices goods can be stored and then loaded onto 
a ship. Money can be transferred from a ship to the warehouse and vice versa.

The appearance of head office, depends on the value of a company. The bigger the 
firm the more sumptuous the head office, but unfortunately the same applies the 
other way around. The head office of a company can neither be moved nor closed.
 
You may establish branch offices in any, port. However, a warehouse also swallows 
up running costs. The costs of establishing a branch office are dependant on the 
chosen location. At strategically important points establishing and maintaining a 
warehouse is very expensive in most cases. But a warehouse offers the advantage 
that one is always informed of the kind and price of the offered and required goods 
in the relevant port.

Every warehouse with the exception of head office can be closed down as required.

At the beginning of the game one should proceed with caution when considering the 
opening of new branches as the costs of them are high. Consider the location of a 
new warehouse very carefully and observe the cost/ yield factor.

Selling and Purchasing in the Office

Since it is certain that you are not sending your mercantile fleet across the oceans 
of the world for the fun of it, you should visit the office frequently. This is the 
place of transshipment of goods in a port and here all purchases and sales of goods 
are dealt with.

You will see on the board which goods are required or offered by the dealer. The 
price either which he demands or offers will vary as not every dealer pays the same 
for goods and a comparison is always worthwhile. For urgently required merchandise a 
high additional premium is often offered. On the other hand it can happen that a dealer 
does not need a full ship's cargo of a certain kind of goods. This happens regularly 
in smaller ports.

When you offer a dealer goods he will first tell you the required quantity and the 
possible premium. This quantity is automatically entered with the sentence "How much 
do you pay for.....?" If you enter the sentence "OK I will sell the goods" without 
changing the quantity, then you sell the dealer the quantity he requires and for 
which he may pay the premium. Of course one can also sell to him the rest as long as 
he offers a reasonable price.

Generally you can sell anything to a dealer. He will, however, pay a minimum price 
for non required goods which is below the cost price in most cases. If possible you 
should avoid such loss-making business.

You can also purchase goods from the dealer, but only the merchandise that he has on 
offer. If you have several ships or one warehouse in the port you can select where 
the goods are to be delivered to. The dealer always offers the quantity of goods first 
which corresponds to the maximum loading capacity of the ship or to have maximum 
available capital. Naturally one can buy less. If you do not have enough money on the 
ship for the desired goods you can also pay for these from a second ship in the port 
or from a warehouse in this town, in some offices notes are displayed on the counter. 
If you click any such note you will receive special orders or passenger conveyance. 
Some of the special orders are very favourable but they also entail great risks (For 
instance: supply of arms to countries at war)

If you have a ship fitted with cabins you may convey passengers. In this case a group 
of passengers may want to be taken to a certain port. These people will disembark only 
in the port of destination. Since costs will be incurred for supplying food for passengers, 
you should not arrange any sightseeing tours but head for the port of destination as 
quickly as possible.

Route Planning

Once the ship has been loaded you should send her to the port of destination. But what 
is the good of the most valuable cargo if it cannot be sold. In order to send a ship 
to a definite port you have to enter the ship dispatch mode. For this purpose you 
click the large ship on the main chart by using the left mouse key

The ship selection menu appears giving you the names of your ships as well as the 
status symbol, the location and technical conditions.

The status symbols provide information regarding the availability of the ship and crew.

Their meaning is as follows:

Ship under sail:        Ship is available
Hammer:                 Ship is being repaired
Ship's hull:            Ship is being built
Wave:                   Ship is in transit
Men with question mark: No crew on board
Men with luggage:       New crew still to come

Only available ships may be selected The names of non-available ships always appear 
in the selection menu in red print. When you have selected the desired ship a wild 
rose is shown instead of the usual mouse indicator (dispatch indicator) and the 
departure port is indicated by a rotating square. Additionally the navigation points 
can be seen. All selected ports and navigation points are always marked with a rotating 
yellow rectangle. Two of the sea navigation points are put on the land within the 
chart, namely the navigation point at Cape Horn and the Suez Canal.

Dispatch indicator (click with upper left hand corner)
Navigation Point (not marked)
Selected Navigation Point
Selected Port or Port of Departure

If you click the port of destination by means of the left mouse key the temporary 
navigation points are selected simultaneously they are recognisable by yellow rotating 
markings. In the case of some routes it may happen that other ports are also marked. 
These ports serve as navigation points only as the ship will not put into port. By 
clicking the port of destination with the right mouse key you confirm the course and 
send the ship on her way. If a ship is on route she cannot be manipulated until she 
arrives at the port of destination.

The automatically set route, however will not always be the most favourable one. With 
the aid of weather and flow charts you will be able to make a decision regarding a 
better route. By clicking the last valid route point with the left mouse key all 
following points are cancelled. You can now enter all desired route points individually. 
Note: that a longer route with more favourable current is better than a short route 
with a strong counter current.

Steamships have a limited range since they have to refill the coal bunkers during 
the voyage. Therefore, you can only map out their route within relevant reach. On 
the other hand steamships are largely independent wind and dead calms and they are 
also some what faster than sailing ships.

When planning the route always take into consideration the weather and current charts 
as well as the seasons. Excessively long voyages cause reduction of the freight rates.

Furthermore, you should reckon with the possibility that your ship may get into a 
heavy storm resulting in serious damage or in the worst case she may even sink.

The extent of damage is shown in detail on the ship's status and the dispatch menu 
in the form of a percentage.

You must check on the condition of your ships regularly. Damaged ships result in 
unsatisfactory crossing times with correspondingly bad freight rates. In the case 
of iron ships you should check for barnacle growth regularly as excessive growth 
considerably slows down a ship. It is also recommended to arrange for a ship to be 
overhauled at a shipyard from time to time. The costs incurred are in most cases 
compensated by freight rates increasing afterwards. Do not attempt to save money 
unwisely.

Ships Status

You access the ship's status by clicking the large ship in the main chart with the 
left mouse key. Thus you can inform yourself of the technical state and you can also 
control and manipulate the crew.

On the ship's status screen you will find information regarding the cargo and the 
cash carried on the ship. Furthermore. you will be informed about the current 
location of the ship. By clicking the ship hull you can access all your ships.

Check your cash flow at regular intervals. For planned purchases there must always 
be sufficient money in the ship's cash account if for instance you want to buy goods 
in Bombay, the money in the Liverpool head office does not help. Goods always have 
to be paid for from a ship or warehouse in the port where the purchase is effected.

But you must also avoid leaving too much money on a ship. The ship may sink in a storm 
and then money would be lost. It is therefore recommend to transfer the excess cash of 
profit yielding ships from time to time to a branch office or to head office. It is 
also possible in the tavern to transfer the excess money to another ship.

Technical State

In order to obtain exact information regarding the technical condition of a ship click 
the state key. You will receive detailed information regarding barnacle growth, the 
taking on of water, condition of rigging or steam engine etc. You should take special 
notice of this information before planning repair work. It does not make sense for 
example to generally overhaul an otherwise completely intact ship with barnacle growth. 
A cheaper and quicker scraping job would suffice in this case.

Crew Status

You access the crew status by clicking the crew key of the ship status screen. 
Thereby you can check and manipulate the crew of each ship, however the latter is 
only possible when a ship is at disposal.

Each ship has her own crew with their condition. ability and motivation directly 
affecting the ship's condition and speed. Within the crew control field you can 
obtain information regarding the vitality and experience as well as motivation of 
the crew. Furthermore, you can enter the amount of wages, alter the captains order 
and forecast a success premium.

A bar chart provides information indicating the vitality and experience of a crew. 
The upper bar identifies the vitality and the lower bar refers to experience. The 
longer the bar the more rested or experienced the crew

Vitality

The more vitality a crew has the better it performs. Caution! A badly exhausted 
crew may get the idea of putting an end to their suffering by mutiny.

Vitality is influenced by the length of a voyage, storms and by the captain's order. 
Do not deprive your crew of a relaxing break in the port after a long and stormy 
voyage. They will repay you by increased performance.

Experience

The experience of a crew plays a big role during storms. An experienced crew will 
master dangerous voyages for instance around Cape Horn. Additionally, ships with 
an experienced crew are less heavily damaged during storms, The experience of a 
crew also affects the speed of a ship.

Once a crew has mastered a storm or another difficult situation, their experience is 
enhanced. In this way a moderately reasonable crew can turn out to be a top crew.

When hiring a new crew the following rule should be applied: The more experienced a 
crew the higher are the wage demands. Therefore, you must make sure to select a crew 
to suit the ship.

Motivation

With the aid of the portrait you can determine the contentment or motivation of a 
ships crew. A smiling face indicates a happy crew. A grim faced crew is perhaps 
already thinking of mutiny. If instead of a portrait the window is closed then there 
is no crew on board.

Payment of Wages

The motivation of a crew is affected by the payment of wages. If one would rather 
fire a crew than re-motivate them one simply sets the payment on zero. Without 
payment of wages even the most loyal crew will not stay aboard. Members of the 
crew, however, who are still waiting to be paid off will not leave until the dues 
have been paid

Captain's Order

With the aid of the captain's order you can determine how hard the captain drives 
the crew and how fast sailing is to proceed. These settings affect the vitality.

If you set an order on "EASY" it means that the crew is faring well, they can take 
their time and have sufficient breaks. This humanitarian viewpoint will not affect the 
vitality.

With the setting "MEDIUM.' the crew has to achieve more, any breeze is used, additional 
sails are used so the work is hard. Sailing times are reduced but with the adoption of 
this view point vitality is decreased. Treat your crew to a break now and then.

If the ship sails under the order "HARD" the crew have to do their utmost, Sailing 
goes on day and night and the sails are not reefed even during storms. With this 
sweat and strain the crew's vitality is of course greatly affected and therefore, you 
should keep an eye on your ill treated crew.

Premium

In order to make sure that the men really drive the ship forward to achieve record 
times you can put up a premium. Every sailor can use additional money and they will 
make an almighty effort correspondingly. In the case of voyages with deadlines premiums 
are very high.

Always bear in mind that in order to achieve an optimum speed the condition of the 
ship and crew is decisive. Even the proudest clipper will not bring about record 
times when damaged nor can a completely exhausted crew achieve peak performances.

Historic Connections

Since 1869 incorporates actual historic events messages regularly appear they may 
bear a direct influence on the happenings of the game. The historic section of this 
handbook, therefore, may give you a decisive advantage over your competitors. Whilst 
your uninformed competitors may get entangled in the troubles of the American Civil 
War you will already have shifted your interests toward safer areas. Of course as a 
fair shipowner you should allow your co-players to gain an insight into this handbook. 
Astute business people, however, will mercilessly keep the handbook under lock and key.

Not all events have the same effect on the course of the game. The opening of the 
Suez Canal in 1869 causes a shortening of the voyage times to Asia which is a positive 
event indeed. On the other hand there was a sea blockade near Odessa during the Crimean 
War around 1854 coupled with the risk that ships may be captured. Accordingly this is a 
negative event which perhaps is only Positive for the risky arms trade within crisis areas.

Due to crisis and wars ports maybe closed temporarily. During a civil war there is 
the danger that warehouses will be raided and burned down. Above everything however, 
wars and crises affect the production and consumption of goods in a country.

Some newspapers reports concern technical developments or even inventions. Not all 
wars or clashes are reported in the papers as some of them are of local interest 
only. Prior to putting into harbour you should, therefore inform yourself about the 
active state of the country by using the information panel.

Options also offer the possibility to exclude newspaper reports. As before, the events 
will take place but they are no longer registered.

1869 represents a very accurate trade simulation as never seen before. We would, 
therefore, advise only historically well informed players to switch off the newspaper 
reports. Do not underestimate the effects of daily historic happenings on world trade.

The Bank

By clicking the coin symbol of the main chart you may visit the bank at any time. It 
is located in the town of the firms head office.

At the bank you may take out loans or pay back already existing loans. However you 
became credit worthy only when you provide securities such as ships, warehouses or 
cash. In the case of loan applications without adequate security bankers react very 
unfriendly. The maximum extent of a loan depends on the value of your securities.

You may pay off loans at any time before the due date. Since this enables you to save 
considerable interest you should, if possible repay loans as soon as possible. Loan 
repayments must always be effected by head office. Therefore you must make sure under 
all circumstances that there is sufficient money in the kitty of the head office.

Settlements of accounts are always dealt with On the 31st December of the current year. 
If a player is not solvent at this point in time then he must declare bankruptcy and 
is eliminated from the events of the game.

Therefore, be very careful with loans. The Balance Sheet screen provides an overview 
of existing loans.

Tax Regulations

As you might expect 1869 also includes unpopular tax regulations. The state requests 
you to pay up and you have to obey.

Taxes depends on the total tonnage of your merchant fleet and is based on the tax 
regulations of Great Britain in the 19th century. The Balance Sheet screen constantly 
provides an overview of the tax due for repayment.

Taxes become due for a whole year on the 31st December of the following year. For 
instance the taxes for the year 1854 have to be paid on the 31st December 1855. 
Debiting is effected automatically from the cash account at the due date. If you 
are unable to pay the taxes your firm has to declare bankruptcy and you will be 
eliminated from the game.

The Balance Sheet

The balance provides a survey regarding due dates of taxes and loans. Furthermore 
you can check your stock of goods and cash flow.

Keep an eye on turnover and development of the firm, You are given the choice to 
either quickly look at a graphical representation or a listing of figures. The 
representation of turnover and company development assists in a very good way to 
recognise economic tendencies. Moreover it permits direct comparisons with your 
competitors and you are able at any time to see how you are placed in the race for 
the distinction of greatest shipowner of the century.

Using cunning, dexterity and by knowing the tricks of the trade you have the chance 
to become the best shipowner of the century in history and to be included in the list 
of the elite.

The List of Records
 
If one of your ships manages to achieve a new best time for crossing on a record route 
it will be immortalised in the list of the fastest ships. This not only lifts the mood 
of the proud shipowner but it also increases the sales value of the ship. Providing 
circumstances are good one may possibly be able to sell the ship at a price which is 
higher than her original price.

Record times are also reported in the papers. These record times relate to all stored 
games.

Options (Loading and Storing)

The option screen offers possibilities such as loading, storing, new game or finish. 
In order to load a game status you have to click the desired name and select "LOADING". 
You can also cancel a game status.

In order to store a game status you click initially the first empty stop of the stairs. 
Now give the game status a name and click "Storing".

In this connection, too, you can exclude or include newspaper reports or leave 1869.

TIPS & TRICKS

In real business life and in this game too there are some golden rules which should 
be observed under all circumstances. Only in this way will one achieve the success 
hankered and way hoped for. Beyond that of course there are numerous tricks which help 
a business man on the road to success. Every successful trading tycoon has his own 
special tricks and knacks which he will not disclose. For all budding shipowners we 
want to reveal here some golden rules and tricks.
 
1869 makes available a wide field for experiments and strategies. Find your own personal 
tricks and try out these to see which is the best way to succeed.

Ten Golden Rules

Rule No 1:  Always load ships fully. It is better to have a ship fully loaded with 
            cheap goods than to have a ship half loaded with expensive merchandise.
Rule No 2:  Undertake as few profitless voyages as possible Especially avoid voyages 
            with no cargo.
Rule No 3:  Always keep ships in good condition. The advantage of an intact ship 
            offsets repair costs
Rule No 4:  When purchasing a ship leave enough money to buy goods.
Rule No 5:  Always pay taxes on time and keep money for this in reserve.
Rule No 6:  During route planning current and weather charts help to save time, and of 
            course time is money.
Rule No 7:  Leave only as much money on a ship as required for purchasing goods, wages 
            and repair costs. Surplus money should go to the warehouse or even better 
            to head office.
Rule No 8:  Watch political conditions in ports. Unsafe ports mean high risks.
Rule No 9:  Keep an eye on the crew and select the crew to suit the ship
Rule No 1O: Do not miss good business.

Where do I purchase the right goods?

This trading simulation is based on the economic system of imperialism (see chapter 
"Imperialism"), Raw materials are imported from colonies and under developed countries 
then they are processed. The finished products are in part sold back to the colonies 
with high profits.

Many products such as fruit, cotton, and tea depend on harvests and are not always 
readily available. This means you have to be in the right place at the right time. 
Produce that depend on harvests can be contaminated during a long voyage and become 
useless. If one has perishable goods on board one should try to reach the port as 
soon as possible. Produce deteriorates at the same rate for instance fruit spoils 
much quicker than tea. One should also bear in mind that naturally such goods can 
get spoiled in a warehouse. The motto should therefore be to get perishable goods 
to the buyer as quickly as possible.

You can learn about the main export goods of a port using the information panel.

It provides information regarding the goods and their largest quantities kept in 
storage ports. Thus harvest bound goods are also indicated since they are the main 
export article. During harvest time when accurately observing the relevant information 
panels one can be fully informed regarding the relevant harvest times.

With harvest dependent goods it is absolutely necessary to reach the relevant port 
in good time. In most cases the product is available for two to three months only. 
Therefore plan your arrival in such a way that you arrive at the right time. You 
should take into consideration the possible duration of the trip.

At the beginning of the game it is best to restrict yourself to trade in nearby ports, 
Only with sufficiently large financial reserves, may one dare to venture to such far 
away markets as Asia.

Second Hand Ships at the Beginning

At the beginning of a career one should, if possible, refrain from having new ships 
built or buying expensive second hand ships. When purchasing ships make sure that 
sufficient money is left for the cargo. What is the use of the nicest and fastest 
clipper if it is used for futile voyages only 

No Risky Freight at the Beginning

Keep your hands off risky freight at the beginning of the game for instance arms 
deliveries into territories at war. Even when the profit seems tempting the risk of 
losing perhaps your one and only ship is simply too high. If, on the other hand, you 
have several ships later on in the game it could turn out to be a most lucrative 
business even though it may not be exactly honourable, to load arms onto a second-hand 
ship and sell them at a high profit to a territory at war.

Taking into Consideration the Political State

It is extremely important at all times to keep an eye on the political state of a 
country. If a country is in a stable state then it is not dangerous to put into its 
ports and conduct trading. But if there is unrest it may happen occasionally that 
roaming gangs raid and plunder your warehouse or ship. The cautious trader takes 
little or no cash at all on voyages to countries where there is unrest. If uprisings 
are the order of the day in a country it can happen that your warehouse or ship is 
plundered completely so that you have to put to sea without money or goods. Therefore, 
without very good reason one should avoid such ports.

Under no circumstances should you put into port in territories where civil or other 
wars are being waged. If one is unlucky the ship might be sunk without warning or 
explanation. That is the risk with which arms dealers have to live. It is true of 
course that a large profit can be made when delivering arms to territories at war 
but in the worst case the ship complete with cargo is sunk.

Ship to be Loaded Fully at all Times

Always ensure that your ship is fully loaded It is far better to load a ship fully 
with cheap goods than to half load her with expensive merchandise. Try to make as few 
empty voyages as possible otherwise your budget will be consumed by running costs. 
Take only as much money as needed for trading. Surplus money is best kept at head 
office It is safe there and prevents you from getting embarrassed when loan repayments 
or taxes become due.

Repairing Old Ships

The older a ship the more expensive the repairs. With the same extent of damage the 
repair to an old ship costs more than for a new ship. At some time the point will be 
reached with each ship when the repair costs exceed the purchasing costs. Meaning 
that repair work is no longer worthwhile. Therefore sell old ships in good time

The Right Crew at The Beginning

To begin with you should not burden yourself with the wages required by a top crew. 
As in all probability you will own an average ship, therefore you should also hire 
an average crew. Proven to be reliable and dependable men, they do not cost too much 
and they are not landlubbers either.

It can happen that you are stuck in a port without money or goods. The crew refuses 
to work as they are not paid wages. In this case you can dismiss the old crew and 
hire another one. The new crew expects wages after their first voyage.

This very unkind method will only work, however, when there is no cargo on board. 
Otherwise one would be forced to sell a part of the cargo at a low price so that 
after paying the crew one can convince to carry on working

Breaks for the Crew

Since the speed of a ship is considerably affected by the crew you should always keep 
an eye on the vitality of the crew. If their vitality sags the ship will go slower. 
Therefore, it is an advantage not to go on stop over long distances but to call at a 
port in between and let the crew have a short period of rest Thus the men can replenish 
their strength. vitality is increased and with it the speed of the ship. The time lost 
in the port is compensated by an increased sailing speed.

Use Breaks for Repairs

Whilst the crew recuperates in the port you can use the time to have your ship 
overhauled quickly. This is advisable especially after stormy crossings which can 
often cause severe damage. A damaged ship loses speed and by having her repaired 
you effectively gain time. When planning the route for long voyages bear in mind 
that during the voyage you will not be given the possibility to act, meaning that 
even after heavy storms you cannot simply take your ship to the next dockyard. 
Therefore, to be on the safe side stop on the way when you are making a long voyage.

Save Repair Costs

It need not always be one of the best known or famous shipyards. Give a small 
dockyard for instance in Bombay or Kapstadt a chance and you will see that these 
shipyards carry out the quality of work at a lower price.

Terms of Loans

When taking out a loan you should agree such terms so that the loan expires at the 
beginning of a year. The bank always settles up on the 31st December. This means 
that if loans are unpaid by this date and interest for delay to be paid, then 
bankruptcy procedure is introduced at a time of maturity. If the terms finish at the 
beginning of the year then one still has time to raise the sum at the end of the year. 
However, this is not an easy undertaking when one thinks of the very high interest 
on delay.

Observe Due Tax Dates

Taxes for one year have to be paid at the end of the following year. This means 
that the tax due is automatically debited from head office accounts. On the 31st. 
December,

Bankruptcy Even in the Case of a Firm Doing Well

If there is not sufficient money in the head office account bankruptcy procedure is 
introduced. Even a busy firm with sufficient capital or assets can become bankrupt 
when at the tax due date there is not sufficient money in the office account or when 
due loans are to be repaid. If the value of a firm drops below a certain limit a 
bankruptcy procedure is also introduced.

Delivery Times for the Purchase of Ships

Take note of the delivery time of a ship since you have to pay the tonnage tax due 
retroactively for the whole year. Therefore, one should plan the purchase in such a 
way that the ship is delivered at the beginning of the year. Thus it is ensured that 
one does not pay taxes needlessly. For the same reason you should sell ships at the 
end of the year.

Locations of Warehouses.

Think carefully about the location of a new warehouse. Each warehouse costs money 
and after closing a warehouse this money is lost and the value of the firm's assets 
are reduced.

Warehouse at Strategic Points.

Wherever possible establish your warehouse at strategically important points to 
enable you to control and cover the market.

Tea Races and Special Orders
 
Tea races and special orders placed with your office is good business. For tea races 
you should aim to arrive in good time in India during the harvesting period with a 
fast ship and a good crew. The newly harvested tea is to be loaded and the port of 
destination headed for as fast as possible. For the first cargo of tea one receives a 
good premium. If you are too slow then someone else will snatch the premium from under 
your nose.

End of Civil Wars and Wars

After the end of civil wars and wars there is usually an enormous demand for goods 
from the reopened trade merchants. Putting into such ports will certainly bring 
about some good business
