Chapter 32
OLD SHIPS The glory of the American merchant service so far sailing vessels are concerned has passed into history. Comparatively few sailing vessels, save coasting schooners, ply the seas as steam has taken the place of sail. The majority of old ship captains are either dead or commanding
ocean liners or coast-wise steamers. In the old days, sailing clipper ships made the trip from New York to San Francisco in 100 days, while the voyage of ordinary ships was two or three times as long. The old ship Lightning sailed from Boston to Liverpool at a greater speed than that obtained by any steamship of its day, the vessel often logging over 500 miles in 24 hours, and it made the trip in a little less than 14 days. The James Baines sailed from Boston to Liverpool in 12 days
and six hours and broke the sailing record between these two ports. The same vessel made the trip from Liverpool to Melbourne, Australia in 63 days and returned in 69 days. The Red Jacket sailed from New York to Liverpool in 13 days, one hour and 25 minutes. The Flying Cloud and Andrew Jackson sailed from New York to San Francisco in 89 days and the Sea Witch made the trip from Canton, China to New York in 74 days, 14 hours. These early clipper ships were quite small, many of them not
being over 200 tons. The first large clipper ship was the Anne McKim, which was 43 feet long and 493 tons burden. Subsequent sailing vessels of enormous size were built, the John Bertram, having a tonnage of 1,080, the Gamecock 1,320, the Staghound 1,535, the Flying Cloud 1,783, the Staffordshire 1,817, the Sovereign of the Seas 2,421 tons and the Great Republic 4,555 tons. Palmistry. The study of the lines of the palm, which the ancients believed indicated character
and future. Palmistry is today practiced by three classes of people. One, professional palmists most of whom are charlatans. Two, as a diversion. Three, by superstitious people who believe in it. A scientific study of the subject does not furnish any evidence that the lines of the hand have any special significance and no scientific person gives them any credence. Partnership. A partnership is an agreement usually written between two or more persons for the doing of business or for the
carrying out of any contract or for the accomplishment of any work. The partners may have equal ownership or it may be unevenly divided. In the equal partnerships, each partner has the same financial interest and share in the profits and all the same right of control. In other partnerships, the financial investment or interests are unevenly divided and the one who holds more than half interest controls the business unless otherwise provided for in the partnership agreement.
Partners may be a name only and not own any of the property. Active partners are those who give practically all of their time to the conducting of the business. Silent partners are not likely to take any active part in the management of the business but they may control it if their financial interest is sufficient. Under common law, no partner has a right to engage in any other business which would injure the partnership unless permitted to do so by the other partners. The acts of one
partner bind all of the rest. If one partner commits fraud in the name of the firm, the others are financially responsible although they may have had no knowledge of his action. The partnership or business may or may not be liable for the private debts of any one partner. Usually a partner cannot be held for more than his interest in the firm. Partnerships may be dissolved by mutual agreement or by judicial act and it is usually to publish the dissolution of partnership
in one or more of the local newspapers and to send notices of it to the trade. A limited partnership does not hold any partner or the concern itself liable for more than the amount of the property in the business but a partnership will not be considered limited unless it is publicly announced. End of section 32.
