Part: 123456789         Session: 1         Page na123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536373839404142434445464748495050a51525354555657585960616263646566676869707172737475767778798081828384858687888990919293949596979899100101102103104105106107108109110111112113114115116117118119120121122123124125126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151152153154155156157158159160161162163164165166167168169170171172173174175176177178179180181182183184185186187188189190191192193194195196197198199200201202203204205206207208209210211212213214215216217218219220221222223224225226227228229230231232233234235236237238239240241242243244245246247248249250251252253254255256257258259260261262263264265266267268269270271272273274275276277278279280281282283284285286287288289290291292293294295296297298299300301302303304305306307308309310311312313314315316317318319320321322323324325326327328329330331332333334335336337338339340341342343344345346347348349350351352353354355356357358359358359360361362363364365366367368369370371372373374375376377378379380381382383384385386387388389390391392393394395396397398399400401402403404405406407408409410411412413414415416417418419420421422423424425426427428429430431432433434435436437438439440441442443444445446447448449450451452453454455456457458459460462463464465466467468469470471472473474475476477478479480481482483484485486487488489490491492493494495496497498499500501502503504505506507508509510511512513514515516517518519520521522523524525526527528529530531532533534536537538539540541542 of 542

of the American Hawaiian Line. That was all I knew about him.

I draw out of him something about his background. I really don't think I had to draw it out. I think he was in one of these revealing moods. He told me how he had been born in Connecticut. I know the name at once then. The Lapham family is a very old family in Connecticut. They were all pre-Revolutionary people. He had an ancestor who was one of the carly Governors of Connecticut. They were this and that in Connecticut. They had always lived there, and so forth.

I talked about shipping and shipbuilding and I told him how I knew so much about shipping, because I too grew up with my feet in the salt water. Then he wanted to know if I knew anything about how ships were built at Mystic, how they used to build ships way up the rivers in Connecticut and drag then down by ox teams overland, or with the keel in something that was hardly bigger than a brook, dragging then down by ox team on either side of this small stream until they got down to a big stream where the water was big enough so that they could launch them. Oh yes, I had heard about that. We exchanged views on that.