​A scene at Princes Landing Stage, Liverpool depicting two cabin liners on the Canadian service. In the foreground is the Albertic, which joined the White Star Line fleet in April 1927. She began life as the Norddeutscher Lloyd's München but she was transferred to the British Government under the Versailles reparation arrangements before beginning commercial service. Initially operating as the Ohio for the Royal Mail Steam Packet Company, she was transferred to the White Star Line fleet after Lord Kylsant's acquisition of the company earlier that year.

The Albertic, suitably renamed in White Star style, initially served on the Liverpool service for less than a year. During this time, she was the largest steamer operating on the Canadian service. In March 1928, she joined the Megantic in inaugurating a fortnightly service between London, Le Havre, and New York, later extended to Canada. She returned to the Liverpool service from May 1930. This photograph might have been taken during either of her stints on this route.

Behind her sits one of the 'Mont' class steamships of the Canadian Pacific Line; Montclare, Montrose, or Montcalm. These three sisters had been a critical addition to the company's cabin class service from the early 1920s. Originally built as 'cabin' and 'third' class only ships, they were reconfigured to include tourist-third cabin in 1927. For passengers travelling between Europe and Canada, there was a range of choice in cabin liners across different shipping lines, offering steady and comfortable passage at moderate fares.

​At Christmas 1905, a glittering embossed postcard arrived at the residence of Madame Cornel of Paris. It depicts the great White Star Liner RMS Celtic. The sender must have been known to her, because it is not signed. The message simply reads "good day, but very tired. Received your letter this morning". This is an American-made postcard. Perhaps the sender chose a festive view of the ship on which they had just travelled, or perhaps it was simply the nearest card to hand. If they had just made a crossing, who knows what has taken them to New York in the Christmas season.

If they had just crossed on the Celtic, they had the pleasure of travelling on the third largest ship afloat. Indeed, the 'Big Four' of the White Star Line collectively still held the size record on the North Atlantic, although RMS Baltic would be exceeded by SS Kaiserin Auguste Victoria the following spring. This is 21 years before Celtic and Cedric will serve as 'cabin liners', still in their early days offering the finest and most spacious first class accommodations at sea.

Cabin Liners wishes you a warm and wonderful Christmas, and the very best wishes for 2026!

​There is very little explicit information about how this piece came about but we can infer some details from the working practices of Tin Pan Alley music at the time. Companies such as Leo Feist normally purchased music from aspiring songwriters who came to the company to demonstrate pieces that they wished to sell. Publishers also kept a commission of decent songwriters who they could approach for music directly. It is possible either that this piece was (i) sold to the company independently who saw its marketing potential for Cunard, or (ii) specifically written upon commission of the shipping line.

​The second option seems more likely to me given that the lyrics of the song seem to refer indirectly to the R.M.S. Mauretania in the line; “He’s on a five day greyhound traveling fast”. At the time, the Mauretania held the unofficial “Blue Riband” title for the fastest transatlantic crossing. Only she and her elder sister R.M.S. Lusitania would be candidates for the reference of these lyrics. It is also copyrighted “by courtesy of the Cunard Steamship Co. Ltd.” which suggests some right of ownership to the piece. 

Songwriter Joe ​Goodwin is not a well-known name, likely one of the many modestly successful writers of popular songs which New York publishers could rely upon. He was born on 6 June 1889 in Worcester, MA and died on 31 July 1943 in The Bronx, New York. Although he wrote a number of songs pre-WWI, it was not until the late 1920s and early 1930s that his writing became more prolific.

​Lew Brown is better known although arguably not nearly as widely as he deserves to be. Brown began composing songs for Tin pan Alley in 1912. Like Goodwin, this little commission piece was probably one of his first songs - a daily-bread piece of work with little significance to his future career. From 1921 to 1935, Brown was part of a successful song-writing trio along with Buddy DeSylva and Ray Henderson. After this, he went on to write for Broadway and Hollywood. His works include some of the most popular songs of the era including “Button Up Your Overcoat”, sung by Ruth Etting, and “Don’t Sit Under the Apple Tree”. The latter became popularised by Glenn Miller and the Andrews Sisters who are frequently mistaken to be its original creators.

​This little pre-war piece establishes a quant link between the two eras of Mauretania's career, written in her pre-war days by a songwriter who would become responsible for some of the most popular music heard during the "Cabin Liners" era of the late 1920s and early 1930s.