96 INTERIOR DECORATION OF VESSELS. 



the most part. But here many of the difficulties caused by the structure could be 

 avoided if those in charge of the structure and decoration would work together 

 and a little flexibility exercised together with a little judicious scheming. Stanch- 

 ions, girder lines and web frames can almost always be placed to suit architectural 

 requirements without sacrificing the strength of the vessel. 



One of the greatest difficulties to a good architectural effect is the crown of 

 the deck. This does not add to the strength of a steel vessel, and, except for the 

 weather deck or a deck affected by freeboard regulations, could be made flat. In 

 fact, the weather deck of the American line steamers St. Louis and St. Paul was 

 made flat, but is the only case I ever remember seeing. This crowning of the decks 

 prevents horizontal lines so important to architecture and spoils many good archi- 

 tectural details if they happen to come off the center line. 



The sheer of the deck can hardly be avoided in most vessels, and, not being 

 so severe as the crown, does not do so much harm to the design. 



The low deck heights, being all out of proportion to the size of the average 

 room, are hard to treat and require resourcefulness unless the public rooms are 

 under the boat deck. The writer had the good fortune, when about to design the 

 interior of the steamers Great Northern and Northern Pacific, recently built by 

 Wm. Cramp & Sons, to have also worked out the preliminary arrangement of 

 these vessels, and was enabled to form in mind at the same time the scheme of in- 

 terior decoration which made it much easier to carry to a conclusion than if sev- 

 eral persons were engaged at different times for the different parts. 



In these vessels the public rooms except the dining saloon were all on the 

 promenade deck, and, by following the type set forth by most foreign-built liners 

 of carrying the deck-houses above the level of the boat deck, we had a good pro- 

 portionate height in comparison to the size of the room. The dining saloon, which 

 was on a lower deck within the hull, was made lo feet high by making this the 

 deck height throughout the length of the vessel. This height answered very 

 well, considering that this room was a very large one. 



As these vessels were treated throughout, except the smoking room, in the 

 Colonial style I was enabled to have fanlights over doors and windows, arches and 

 other details so characteristic to this period of design. The lofty appearance of 

 these rooms was greatly improved by placing the chair rails as low as 30 inches 

 above the floor, making the upper panels of good length. 



That ship decorators appreciate more height to a room on shipboard is shown 

 as far back as the steamers City of New York and City of Paris, now the New 

 York and Philadelphia of the American Line. The dome over the dining saloon of 

 these steamers was the beginning of a new era and has been followed out with 

 many improvements ever since. On some of the large liners built abroad in recent 

 years we find some of the public rooms carried up two deck heights. Of course this 

 takes up valuable space that could be used for staterooms, and, unless the vessel 

 is a very large one, could hardly be afforded by most owners. 



Most of the Long Island Sound and Hudson River steamers have had the 



