Manhattan to H

Coincident with the departure of the Earl of Balfour from England for Palestine, the President Arthur sailed from Manhattan for Haifa, the port of Jerusalem.

It was a historic occasion marked by the presence of 5,000 excited Jews, for the President Arthur was inaugurating a new steamship line and carrying the flag of Judea (six-pointed star of David) on the high seas for the first time in 2,000 years. Men and women wept from emotion and when they were not weeping they were singing Hatikvah, Zionist anthem, or The Star Spangled Banner.

Considerable difficulty was experienced in getting visitors off the boat, and as a result it was nearly an hour late in sailing. Finally, an official of the Line pleaded that, if the boat did not catch the tide, the company would lose $15,000. Soon after this, the President Arthur weighed anchor.

*British mandate.