From a local paper, date and publisher TBD
The Irene
Mr. A.L. Hamill has put his
handsome little boat, the Irene, in first class shape, and she will be taken
this week through the straits to Cheboygan, and through the lakes and rivers to
Oden. She is 65 feet long, with a 12 feet beam, and has fine lines.
Her boiler is a water tube boiler of the approved make and her engine 10 x 12.
The hull is nearly new and she has just been completely refitted by Mr. Hamill,
who has spared no expense in providing elegant accommodations for his
passengers. The deck forward is furnished with fifty folding chairs,
upholstered in leather. The cabin, which will hold thirty people, is
carpeted with velvet, and the locker seats upholstered in ribbed plush.
A handsome, new upright piano stands against the bulkhead, and folding card
tables suggest a friendly game of pedro. The toilet rooms are neat, and on
the little deck in the stern are two stools to accommodate the one spoony couple
of lovers always found on a trip. When we asked Dolly why he gave them
stools instead of chairs, he said:
"Pshaw, man! Backs would be in the way. With
stools they have a valid excuse for holding each other up. See?"
Over head are stowed life preservers for her full complement
of passengers and crew, and on the hurricane deck are two new yawls. She
is well dressed in bunting, carrying in addition to their own colors, streamers
for each port on the Inland Route from Oden to Mackinac Island. If she
behaves as well as she looks, the Irene will be a dandy, and under the
experienced command of Captain Bassette, who was a captain of the Juliette,
ought to popular with tourist during the season.