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6 MARINE REVIEW. CHICAGO LAKE INTERESTS. WESTERN OFFICE, MARINE REVIEW, { No. 13 Western Union Building, CHICAGO, IIl., Sept. 29. The tugs are now trying coke as a smoke preventive. The kind they are using was kept in the oven but six hours instead of the usual time of forty- eight hours. In the six hours it is believed that all the smoke producing ma- terials are removed, without too great loss of the heat producing qualities. At best, fuel for tugs will cost at least 60 per cent. more with coke than soft coal. All this means that towing charges, already considered too high by many vessel owners, must be materially advanced. This year they are 80 per cent. of the tariff. Next year they must be at least 90 per cent. to cover the extra cost of fuel. The tug men have nothing else to do but to burn the more expensive fuel, and charge more for their towing. They cannot afford to pay enormous fines for smoking, nor will they continue to be hounded as they have been this season. " No smoke" is expensive, but Chicago people are bound to have it. It is said, from Washington, that Secretary Foster was going to reinstate Col. Ludlow, and that the light-house board will resign in consequence. If this is correct, the light-house board is entitled to more credit than usually is given it by marine men here. The board would do a splendid service to the lake marine by resigning. {ts course in not seeing that there was money to light the new Squaw Island light-house when completed shows the timber of the present board. A new board could not be worse than this one in many respects, and might be better. The Coty administration is endeavoring to have one of those hydraulic lift bridges, described in the REvirw some time ago, at South Halsted street. Work has been commenced on the jack-knife bridge at Canal street. These two bridges are not far apart, and if a hydraulic lift is placed at South Hal- sted street the two will form the great curiosity of Chicago river. The funda- mental idea in these bridges is to avoid the center pier, leaving the center of the river clear as a channel for boats. Chicago underwriters say that there is nothing in the report of a meeting at Detroit to overhaul and reform lake insurance. It is evident that they will not be represented at the meeting, and will give the movement no support. When the Lake Carriers' Association was formed a committee on mutual in- surance was appointed. What has become of it? Col. Robert Rae is still in Washington, and from the reports in the news- papers, he is doing an immense amount of labor for the public good in secur- ing government aid in locating yacht harbors for visitors to the world's fair next year. Col. Rae is the commodore of the Chicago Yacht Club, which is composed of live, public spirited citizens, who have undertaken to secure com- modious harbors for visiting yachts next season. The Mackinaw vessel reporter will willingly furnish signals without ex- pense to all boats whose owners or captains apply for them. This would' be a great help in correctly reporting passing boats, if marine men would generally adopt it. With a very little assistance on the part of steamboat captains the report of the boats passing Mackinaw could be made far more complete than it is, and vessel owners and agents would be the great gainers. All that is needed is a letter or postal card to Mrs. Luella Stimpson, at Mackinaw City, Mich., and she will furnish the whistle signals to be used when passing the most northerly point of the lower peninsula, where her signal station is located. Contracts for New Boats in Canada. Special Correspondence to the MARINE KEVIEW. Krnesron, Ont., Sept. 29.--The North Shore Navigation Company has awarded a contract to Captain John Simpson, of Owen Sound, for the build- ing of a magnificent steamer for the 'Soo' route. The vessel will be built this winter. She will bea propeller, considerable over 200 feet in length, with special qualities for making fast time; with elegant appointments, and will cost, it is estimated, nearly $100,000. Captain Bassett, of the City of Mid- land, has left that steamer in order to superintend her construction. Captain F. Lafrance, formerly of the Carmona, has taken command of the Midland for the balance of the season, and will probably retain it next year. An attempt is to be made by Captain Leslie to raise the sunken steamship Cynthia, which collided with the steamship Parisian, three miles below Mon- treal three years ago, ina fog. The Captain has sent his patent pontoons for- ward to the wreck. If he is successful there will be considerable money in the work. The Montreal Transit Company has started the comstruction of a lake barge to carry 30,000 bushels. It will be ready for work early in the spring. It is estimated that about 2,000,000 bushels of grain come through the "'Soo"' canal each season to Kingston. While the imposition of the tolls will not affect Kingston to that extent, the change is certainly making itself felt here. This being such an exceptionally fine fall, much of the Northwest grain might have been brought forward. As it is, all the boats owned here which went to Lake Superior are now going to Chicago. The Minnedosa and Gleno- ra, which always went either to Port Arthur or Duluth, brought 120,000 bush- _els from Chicago this week. A line of steamers to run from Duluth to Oswego will be placed in service next season by the N. Y. O. & W. R. R. An elevator will be built at the lat- ter place. This will evidently affect Ogdensburg's trade, Particulars of the Chicago Passenger Steamer. The Lake Michigan and Lake Superior Transportation Com- pany's passenger steamer, to be built by the Chicago Ship Build- ing Company, is expected to be ready for service by June 1, 1893. 'The construction will be of steel throughout. The di- mensions are: Keel 275 feet, over all 295 feet, beam 42 feet, depth to spar deck 24% feet, depth to hurricane deck' 32 feet, double water bottom for ballast 3% feet. The triple expansion engines are 23, 38 and 62 by 36 inches stroke,and the two boilers will be double-ended Scotch, 11% by 20 feet. The hull will be divided into seven water tight bulkheads, one at each end of the ship, two in the freight hold, one at each end of boilers, and one aft of the machinery. There will be stateroom accommoda- tions for about 400 passengers. The passenger gangways will be broad, aft of the engine on main deck, onto a quarter deck fin- ished in polished mahogany, where the clerk's office, steward's office, coat rooms and baggage rooms will be located. A grand staircase will lead from this deck to the saloon deck, having a double tier of staterooms on each side, making a fine apartment all finished in mahogany, lighted through a beveled glass dome. The dining room will be forward on the same deck, finished in birch, and will be one of attractions of the steamer. It will ex- tend the full width of the ship and be about 50 feet long. . It will be divided from the main saloon by large sliding: beveled glass doors. 'The hurricane or promenade deck will be reached by a wide staircase from the main saloon, all under cover, and will be about 13% feet wide and about 290 feet long on each side of the ship. A large ladies' parlor and music room will adorn the upper deck in the rear, while the gentlemen's smoking room will be located forward. The furniture, stateroom fur- nishings and general outfit will be of the finest. The ship is to be lighted throughout by electricity supplied by two dynamios, one of 500 and the other of 125 lights, furnished by two separate automatic driving engines. The steamer is intended to ply be- tween Chicago, Mackinac islands and Sault Ste. Marie, in con- nection with the other steamers of this line, although nothing definite has as yet been decided upon. She will have two masts. The freight capacity will be about 1,500 tons, with which load she will be expected to make 16 to 17 miles an hour. Capt. Maytham's Criticisms. Only one criticism as yet printed on the story of H. W. Stewart, survivor of the Western Reserve disaster,seems deserv- ing of attention. It is that of Capt. Thomas Maytham of Buf- falo, who, when interviewed in Buffalo a few days ago, asked these questions: "How does Stewart know the vessel was being forced into the heavy sea at full speed, if, as he says, he was in his berth asleep at the time of the accident? How could he see the opening or crack in the deck over which he de- clares he jumped? The night was dark and such an opening could not be easily perceived. Had there been an opening of three feet in the deck, as stated by Stewart, the wheel chains would have parted at once Allcontrol of the rudder would then be lost, and the vessel would have rounded too in the trough of the sea. A break of this size amidships would cause the ends of the vessel to drop at least ro or 12 feet, no mention of which can be found in Stewart's interview."' Stewart's story of .he vessel breaking in two will, however, be fully credited by most people well versed in lake marine af- fairs, mainly on account of the intelligence shown by the young wheelman since he has been brought into prominence by the accident. Still allowance must be made for the excited state of mind that would certainly follow any human being through the entire course of such an experience. __ An inventor proposes to use a propeller torpedo to carry a life line ashore from wrecks. As shores where vessels are wrecked are not made to order, in nine cases out of ten the an- chor would not ground even if it reached the shore.