The Hamburg-American Packet Company has four express steamships, forming a weekly service from New York, and which is almost entirely devoted to the passenger business. These vessels each accommodate about 1,250 passengers of all classes. They have a small freight capacity—from about 600 to 700 tons of light cargo being the limit. No perishable goods are taken.
The Guion line steamships Alaska and Arizona have passenger accommodations for 1,300 and 1,100, respectively, and their freight capacity is about 2,000 tons.
The Compagnie Générale Transatlantique, or, as it is more frequently called, the French line, has six express steamships, with a freight capacity of 2,500 tons each, as well as accommodations for about 1,000 passengers.
The Wilson line, with its thirty steamships, is one of the greatest freight carriers in the world. There are four distinct lines from New York, one running to Hull, one to Antwerp, one to Newcastle, and one to London. The latter is known as the Wilson-Hill line. The Atlantic fleet, flying the Wilson flag, has 114,000 gross tonnage. Some of the steamships of this line have passenger accommodations, but the company confines itself almost exclusively to the carrying of freight.
The number and gross tonnage of steamships of the different lines are shown in the following table, the tonnage being from “Lloyd’s Register:”
Transatlantic Lines.
| Lines. | Number of Steam- ships. | Total Gross Tonnage. |
|---|---|---|
| Wilson | 30 | 114,000 |
| North German Lloyd (12 direct and 9 calling at Baltimore) | 21 | 111,585 |
| Hamburg-American (including Baltic line) | 19 | 82,589 |
| Anchor (including Mediterranean service) | 15 | 63,083 |
| Netherlands (9 direct and 4 calling at Baltimore) | 13 | 43,314 |
| National | 12 | 54,062 |
| Sumner | 12 | 42,800 |
| White Star | 10 | 58,162 |
| Florio | 9 | 22,500 |
| Red Star | 7 | 33,959 |
| Fabre | 7 | 23,600 |
| Mediterranean & New York S. S. Co. | 7 | 15,000 |
| Inman | 6 | 41,276 |
| Cunard | 6 | 40,253 |
| French | 6 | 46,927 |
| Allan | 6 | 23,738 |
| Liverpool, Brazil & River Plate (Atlantic service) | 6 | 12,000 |
| Guion | 5 | 22,651 |
| Bristol City | 5 | 24,000 |
| Beaver, during winter months | 5 | 17,500 |
| Arrow | 5 | 13,000 |
| Thingvalla | 4 | 11,985 |
| Union (Sloman’s) | 4 | 11,750 |
| Marseilles | 4 | 12,000 |
| Great Western S. S. Co. | 4 | 10,000 |
| Bordeaux | 3 | 6,000 |
| White Cross | 2 | 5,169 |
| Linha de Vapores Portuguezes | 2 | 3,777 |
| Insular Navigation Co. | 1 | 2,893 |
This list gives only the regular lines engaged in the freight and passenger business, besides which there are the tank steamships, the tramp steamships, and a large number of vessels which call for orders from other ports, as well as steamships which are chartered for special freights.
Central and South American, West Indian, and other Lines from New York.