In her early years she sailed from Hamburg to and from China, Australia, and the East Coast of the United States.

[1] In 1900 and 1901 Palmers Shipbuilding and Iron Company in Jarrow, County Durham, built a set of four sister ships for HAPAG.

She had a single screw, driven by a three-cylinder triple-expansion engine that was rated at 642 NHP and gave her a speed of 11+1⁄2 knots (21 km/h).

[10] She loaded cargo including 10,529 bales of wool, 7,894 bags of wheat, and 1,000 tons of iron ore, for Antwerp, Bremen, and Hamburg, and left Sydney on 9 February.

There The Portland Daily Press said of her "The German ship is one of the handsomest that has been here this winter and caused much favorable comment around the wharves".

[17][18] On 17 April 1902 Abessinia arrived in New York carrying a wide range of animals that Carl Hagenbeck was exporting from Hamburg to customers including Ringling Brothers Circus, Cincinnati Zoo, Bronx Zoo, and several animal dealers.

The cargo included 81 baboons, 79 monkeys, 12 elephants, 12 horses, nine big cats, four camels, six deer, one wildebeest, one sable antelope, one polar bear, and various birds.

[20] HAPAG ran a joint freight service to the Pacific coast of North and South America via Cape Horn, in partnership with DDG Kosmos.

[23] On 18 April she reached San Francisco to disembark her passengers from Valparaíso and discharge her cargo.

[36] She called at Mazatlán in Baja California, and on 6 October reached San Francisco, 146 days out from Hamburg.

[38] In March 1911 Abessinia left Hamburg, and on 17 April she passed Fernando de Noronha off the northeast tip of Brazil.

[40] She called at Los Angeles, and on 7 August reached San Francisco, 144 days out from Hamburg.

[49] In a storm in the North Atlantic on 2 January 1913 Abessinia lost her rudder; broke either her propeller shaft or crankshaft (sources differ); and was drifting.

[50][51] On 11 January the White Star Liner RMS Cedric sighted Abessinia at position 42°40′N 53°21′W / 42.667°N 53.350°W / 42.667; -53.350, about 100 nautical miles (190 km) southwest of Cape Race, flying distress signal flags.

[52][53] Armenian steamed 29 or 50 nautical miles (54 or 93 km) (accounts differ) to Abessinia's position, but took five hours to arrive due to rough weather.

[52][53] However, Abessinia's crew rigged an emergency rudder and repaired whichever shaft had broken, which enabled her to proceed slowly under her own power.

[50][51] When the First World War began in August 1914, Abessinia took refuge in Callao in neutral Peru.

On 9 October 1914 she left Callao, reportedly to be escorted by the German cruiser SMS Leipzig.