Speed, Elegance and Luxury : 341 



with varying degrees of success, by the other major lines. Despite the 

 general excellence of dining services, some ships have also been pro- 

 vided with specialized privately operated restaurants. 



It must not be supposed that every liner even in the luxury class is 

 always equipped with all the frills and flourishes referred to in the 

 preceding paragraphs. Certain lines and certain ships have always 

 selected features that they felt would appeal to their clientele. Many of 

 the features and services have found a place at sea only by trial and 

 error over a long period of time, in fact, it is difficult to assign the 

 ship and the time of origin of most of the special services. It is possi- 

 ble to do so in a few cases. 



Electricity has become so essential not only to the comfort but also 

 to the safety and control of big ships that it is interesting to note that 

 the first successful installation of electric current and light was made 

 on the American sail and steam auxiliary ship Alameida in the year 

 1 881. The plant and installation was made by Thomas Edison and the 

 engineer in charge was Hubert Wilson. The vessel sailed around 

 South America to the west coast and later to the Orient. 



Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse, 14,350 tons, built in 1897, seems to have 

 been the first ship to provide a nursery and playroom for children. The 

 origin of the steamer swimming pool seems to be uncertain. Apparently 

 the first outdoor swimming pools were improvised affairs. In the early 

 part of the present century improvised pools were found on quite 

 small vessels such as operated in the American tropics and on southerly 

 nms to the Mediterranean. After the ship left port a different frame- 

 work was erected on the main cargo hatch or on some other advan- 

 tageous location. On this framework was hung a collapsible tank of 

 rubberized canvas or otherwise waterproof fabric. When warm weather 

 and warm waters were reached the tank was filled with salt water. The 

 Grace Line ships, operating in and through the American tropics, have 

 made a special feature of outdoor swimming pools and also of dining 

 saloons with movable roofs that can be opened to the night's sky in 

 favorable weather. 



As early as the beginning of the century English ships, both Cunar- 

 ders and White Star Line vessels, provided special quarters for Turk- 

 ish baths and other bathing services. These were sometimes equipped 

 with what were then called "plunges" or "swimming baths" and such 

 installations seemed to have been the forerunners of the indoor swim- 

 ming pool. By 1910 indoor pools appeared as a feature of a number of 

 the larger and newer liners. 



The first seagoing bookshop appeared on the Anchor liner Transyl- 



