Cape, Emily Palmer, 1865-1953

In November, 1926, 60 year-old Emily Palmer (Mrs. Henry) Cape embarked upon a round the world cruise aboard the S.S. Belgenland, a ship of the Red Star Line. Departing from her native New York City on December 14, 1926, the cruise was scheduled to last 132 days, passing through the Panama Canal into the Pacific, and touching at Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Honolulu, before heading to Asia.

The Belgenland offered a routine typical of luxury cruises of the 1920s, though spread over an outrageously luxurious period of time. The days were spent in leisurely activities -- swimming at the pool, reading, playing games, sunning, and socializing -- and the evenings were enlivened by dinner parties and expert lectures on the ports of call. Cape consumed it all eagerly, leaping into the shore excursions, and fortifying herself by reading appropriate books in advance, such as Dhan Gopal Mukerji's Caste and outcast before landing at Calcutta.

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