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CHICAGO LAKE INTERESTS. WESTERN OFFICE, MARINE REVIEW, ' No. 13 Western Union Building, CHICAGO, LI1., Nov. 10. There is a great deal of quiet talk among underwriters here as to the effect the loss of the Western Reserve and the Gilcher will have upon lake insurance next season. About the middle of December another meeting of lake under- writers will be held in New York atthe call of the American Ship Masters' Association, with regard to having that classification adopted on the lakes. It is now quietly said that the insurance companies themselves will step in and have something to say about the classification and rating of lake boats. As it has been, few general agents cared to place themselves in the position of re- formers. That would have made enemies among many vessel owners, and a general agent can not afford to needlessly antagonize anyone. No one can blame them for this. 'They make their money out of commissions, and beyond a feeling of satisfaction or otherwise, it is quite indifferent to them whether their companies make or lose. While every general agent around the lakes might think that the change of classification and rating is desirable, it is very likely that not one would of himself have made a serious effect to secure a change. The two disasters have attracted the attention of the insur- ance companies to to their lake business, as nothing else would have done, and it is reported that the companies will take hold of this question, without regard to their general agents and revolutionize the present system of lake under- writing. When vesselmen read in the morning papers column after column of news from lake wrecks from one end of the lakes to the other, they little realize the amount of work, that correspondents, many of them situated long distances from a telegraph office have-had to do the day before. The heroic efforts of many of these correspondents to get their news to the outside world are entitled to all credit. The following from Deer Park, Mich. is a fair sample of some of the difficulties correspondents at out-of-the-way places experience. The statements are from a letter to the Lake Marine News Association. "I suppose you were somewhat disappointed in not getting my dispatch earlier than you did. But our phone got blown down in the gale, and could not get the mess- age to you any sooner. After walking about eight miles along the beech and then getting back and finding the line would not work I felt pretty sick. I got a team aud commenced to fix the line. I drove about twelve miles and made about sixteen splices. Then it was about dark and I thought I was O. K., drove back to the park and was as bad off as ever. I then hunted around and found a man who was going to Newberry early in the morning and gave him the dispateh to take in. Iam working to-day to make up for the day I lost yesterday, but hope the next time to have better luck. The wind blew so hard that there was tree after tree across the road."' A new steamer which is to have temporary passenger accomodations dur- ing the world's fair year and then be converted into a freighter is still being talked about here, and it is not improbable that talk will take the more sub- stantial form of a contract within the next fortnight. Many vesselmen as well as outside capitalists are now in the project. with the Chicago Ship Building Company. A Canadian Vessel Owner's Argument. Special Correspondence to the MARINE REVIEW. Kineston, Ont., Nov. 10.--The new steel steamer which the Montreal Transportation Company will have built in Ireland this winter will be 253 feet over all, aud cost $150,000. Captain Gaskin, the outside manager for the Company here, was asked why they did not have the boat built in Kingston. He replied in effect that workmen here did not do a fair day's work for a fair day's wages. Instead of working with their employers and doing the best they could in their interests, they combined against them and prevented employers from making financial successes of their undertakings. He further claimed that the shipbuilders received higher wages in the United States, they did far more work and fully earned their money. When Canadians went over there they had to work much harder than they did while in Canada. Unless work- men made greater effort in behalf of their employers Kingston would never be- come a manufacturing center. It isrumored in political circles that the government intends handing over the Intercolonial Railway to the Canadian Pacific Railway Company for a consideration not yet mentioned. If the Company secures the road it will establish a line of steamers between Halifax and the old country that will cross the ocean in three days. The Intercolonial has been a white elephant on the hands of the government for many years, inasmuch as the officials are far too numerous and high-salaried for the amount of freight and passengers car- ried. It now looks as if the reciprocity in wrecking bills, passed by the Ameri- can and Canadian governments will 4mount to nothing, for some time at least. It appears that the authorities at Washington desire that Canadian canals be included in the term Canadian waters, which the authorities at Ottawa are determined to oppose. No doubt it would haye been allowed had not the re- cent canal difficulty arisen, but as the matter stands at present it would be safe to say that unless the "Soo"' tolls are removed reciprocity in wrecking will not be afforded. Further, the government alleges that it would be very weak on Figuring is being done MARINE REVIEW. their part to spend a Jarge extra sum on the Canadian "Soo"' in order to hurry its completion, and then not reap any advantage whatever from it. Another fact in this connection is that the Hon. Geo. A. Kirkpatrick, who had parliament and secured its passege, has been appointed charge of the bill in therefore unable to take the interest lieutenant governor of Ontario, and is he would like to in the matter. Washington Criticism of the Light House Board. Special Correspondence to the MARINE REVIEW. Wasuineron, D. C., Nov. 10.--In dircet contrast to the views expressed editorially by the Post of this city, concerning the action of the executive offi- cers of the light-house board in the Ludlow matter, that paper publishes an editorial more favorable to Col. Ludlow, and says, and declares with empha- sis, that the recent action of the board in relieving Col. Ludlow and Com- ST ede ee ICs adi eee Se mander Heyerman. from further service "evidently does a gross injustice to two meritorious officers."? The Post says that the more closely the case is scrutinized the worse it looks, and adds that it 'clearly calls for intervention by the treasury department, in order that a great wrong may be set right." The editorial succinctly reviews the circumstances leading to the case, and con- cludes that the official reason assigned for the removal of the officers is not in- subordination, but "failure to comply promptly with recent instructions; in- structions that unquestionably involved a statutory offense." "One of the most surprising features of this extraordinary performance," the editorial continues, "is that after Col. Ludlow and Commander Heyerman had been relieved and their successors appointed, the latter were given full dis- cretion as to placing the lights, and adopted exactly the plan that Col. Ludlow had recommended, and which the board now approves." The editorial fur- ther emphasizes the statement by reproducing in italics the language quoted, and says further that the whole credit is due to Col. Ludlow, and the "return he gets for his valuable services is a relief from duty on charges which he has no opportunity to disprove, and for confronting which he cannot even haye the benefit of a conrt of inquiry."' "Tn view of these cireumstances," says the Post, "and especially in view of the fact that the light-house board is no military board, and that its pro- ceedings are subject to review by the secretary of the treasury in his capacity as president, is it too much to expect that Col. Ludlow and his associate may be afforded prompt opportunity for vindication and relieved, not from a ser- vice to which they have rendered laudable contribution, but from the wrong- ful and injurious attitude which they have been made to occupy on the official records?"' With the Post's regard for fair play, and persistency in righting wrongs, it is probable that that paper, now that it has thrown itself into the breach, will make things lively for the light-house board from now on. St. Mary's Falls Canal Traffic in October. The total number of net tons of freight passing through the St. Mary's Falls canal in November was 1,432,536, of which 1,013,316 tons was eastbound and 419,220 tons westbound. Following is a classification of the tonnage: : Eastbound. Westbound. Coat eee k ks doh. Gusts Silaajes gam eh octet came 092,027 tons. Flour Peer Rar aren uGrenerie cte ees 782,316 bbls. 81 bbls. Grain Brdeencie Jue saustbedeiies arene aye eee Secs 16,145 bu. Orne ey ore ease awe oe se eae: 181,000: bu. eee Wheat EG anes eee eae ei sce 6,098;5857 Dus eee Hyun Mo SEO TC se ge arent cele ene a Bj002 TONS i) seer (WG Weteecm cme yecsccusadie aera cee S,020°tons. cee Misia ete Cir Onli -necrsecseceeg eet ronamecere 9,592 tons. Tron, OF€.......scs.seeeeeeesesceeteneeeee 594,436 tons. ss ss. nee Iron, Pu Gar ncentcomtnchoneta (ec as cee ce 7,936 tons. nena Sin theese Wetec Cane oe si aote pectin aioe 47,405 bbls. Lumber Teac eal Rene ae ae Oe T1574 M feet. Aire DUNVEERORG sacs. snaasnorecsiaestt cee: 890 fONS eee eee Wnelassified freight.............-.... 15,958 tons. 48,150 tons. PaSSONPEMSs uuctt ce. cceccenc set nec SON 639 "642 Record of Speed and Big Cargoes. [Masters or owners of freight boats are invited to report improvements on this list.] Iron ore: Maritana, Minnesota Steamship Company of Cleveland, 4,260 gross, or 4,771 net tons, Escanaba to South Chicago; Maryland, Inter-Ocean Transportation Company of Milwaukee, 8,663 gross, or 4,103 net tons, Escanaba to South Chicago, draft 17 feet 4 inches. a Grain: E.C. Pope, Eddy Bros. of Bay City, 125,730 bushels of corn, Chicago to Buffalo; same steamer, 120,191 bushels of wheat, Chicago to Buffalo; Onoko, Minch estate, Cleveland, 113,839 bushels of wheat, Chicago to Buffalo; W. H. Gilcher, J. C. Gilchrist of Cleveland, 113,820 bushels of wheat, Chicago to Buffalo. Coal : KE. C. Pope, Eddy Bros. of Bay City, 3,950 net tons anthracite, Buffalo to Chicago. Speed: Owego, Union Line of Buffalo, Buffalo to Chicago, 889 miles, 04 hours and 16 minutes, 16.4 miles an hour. : :