OCR Text |
Show mm !S QUALIFIED MM OF BOAT I Miss Elise Belluomini of Viareggio, Italy, Enjoys Unique Distinction. (Correspondence of tiie Associated Press.) PARIS, Jan. 25. Italy claims the first woman to qualify as a captain of a merchant mer-chant vessel in the ocean-going trade. She is Miss Kiise Belluomini, a young woman of Viareggio. Italy, who has just passed her final examinations and is awaiting an assignment to active service. ser-vice. Born and reared among a seafaring folk. Miss Belluomini developed in early life an ardent desire to follow the sea for a career. She communicated her ambition am-bition to her relatives and friends, but they laughed at her. a woman sailor! It was impossible, they told her. Tho young woman was not to be swayed from her purpose, however, and she finally found a sympathetic friend in a retired sea captain, who told her of having seen women navigators in the coastwise trade of the Hawaiian islands. The girl's icmarkable knowledge or" the sea surprised the old captain, who gave her every encouragement and finally recommended rec-ommended her to the maritime authorities' authori-ties' of Livourne. Some months later Miss Belluomini was, by special decree, allowed to take a course in the Nautical institute of Viareggio. Her progress was astonishing. astonish-ing. - The ease and facility with which siie mastered the difficult nautical problems prob-lems submitted to her won the admira-tion admira-tion and respect of her professors and fellow students, wjio aided her in every way possible. New difficulties presented themselves, however, after she had passed the required re-quired examinations at the institute. The : Mariners' union refused at first to break; Its traditional policy by admitting a woman into its membership. The giri's perseverance finally triumphed tri-umphed over all obstacles and she received re-ceived tiie coveted master's license in t:ie ocean-going trade. Concerning her plans Miss Belluomini said : "I enter sea service at a troubled period, when each day one risks ids h:"e at sea, but I will attempt to demonstrate to my sailors that a woman may be just as courageous as a man. If 1 shall be unfortunate un-fortunate enough to have my boat torpedoed. tor-pedoed. I shall follow the traditional policy of the sea and see that the crew is saved first, i shall be the last to leave tiie boat that has been confided to my care. My life ! I am ready to sacrifice it. I am today at the service of my country and of her dear and noble sisters, sis-ters, Fra nee, America and En gland." |