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MARINE REVIEW. 9 Dollar Ore for Next Year--High Freights. One firm of Cleveland ore shippers has offered to make contracts with owners of a few large steamers at $1 on ore from the head of Lake Supe- rior for the season of 1896, and although the facts can not be obtained it will very probably develop later that some business has already been done on this basis. Negotiations of this kind with vessel owners have thus far been confined to one house that controls both mines and furnaces, and is on that account in a position to close up freight contracts in advance of sales of ore for next season, but the fact that there is any talk of next season's business is an indication of the strong condition of the iron market and the bright prospects for another year. In afew cases some business has been done in ore contracts for the balance of the present season, notably a transaction with M. A. Bradley of Cleveland, who claims to have been paid better than $1.25 from the head of the lakes for Sep- tember, October and November. Of course there is no doubt now of a steady advance in lake freights right up to the close of navigation. Predictions regarding high grain freights are heard on all hands, and the movement of grain will undoubt- edly be large enough under any circumstances to cause advances over the present figure of 3% cents from Duluth to Buffalo, but the hopes of 5 or 6 cents being paid on wheat are dependent largely upon the export demand. Coal shippers will be called upon to pay their share of the higher freight rates if the movement of coal is to come up to even the require- ments of previous years. On Sept. 1 the soft coal shipments to all Lake Superior ports aggregated only 1,063,476 net tons, the shipments during August footing up only 400,846 tons, against 648,042 during August of last year. The shortage in anthracite coal is even greater than that noted in bituminous. Notwithstanding the demand for vessels toload grain at Duluth, vessel owners find difficulty in forcing the ore rate from the head of Lake Superior much above $1, and at this writing the Escanaba rate is 70 cents with only 90 cents offered from Marquette. This wide difference between grain and ore is due tothe fact that although there is a real boom in the iron business--pig iron selling above $18 in Pittsburg--the advantages of the situation are not to be fully realized in ore this fall. Stock piles have been moved and with a great scarcity of labor in the mining region it is impossible to swell the output of the mines, which are simply getting out ore that was sold and covered largely by freight contracts early in the season. Of course it is expected that "wild" ore freights will show a further advance, but there will be no big strides above the dollar mark from the head of the lakes. Closing Contracts for New Ships. The contract for another 400-foot freight steamer closed by Gen. Mngr. James Wallace of the Cleveland Ship Building Co., Tuesday, brings the list of steel freight and passenger steamers now under contract in lake ship yards up to ten. This includes the passenger boat building at Detroit and the revenue cutter at Cleveland, but has noreference to boats that have been launched and are being finished up for service this fall. Neither has it any reference to what Capt. James Davidson of West Bay City and others may do regarding wooden ships. The Cleveland Ship Building Co's latest contract is with A. B. Wolvin of Duluth and others, mostly owners of the Zenith City. The steamer will be 400 feet keel, 420 feet over all, 48 feet beam and 28 feet hold. She will be constructed on the channel system and will have a water bottom of five feet depth. Twelve hatches will be provided for handling cargo. Engines will be triple expansion, the same as those in the Victory and Zenith City. June 1, 1896, is the date fixed for her completion. The list of new aids to navigation upon which Secretary Keep and Treasurer McKay of the Lake Carriers' Association have been engaged for several days past will be made up largely of gas buoys, which will be sought for the foot of Lake Huron, Graham shoal in the straits and points in the Sault river and above the St. Mary's Falls canal in the entrance from Lake Superior. There are also two light stations with fog signals that will be asked for. One of these is for Middle island, Lake Huron, and the other for Crisp's point, twelve miles west of Whitefish, Take Superior. A light-ship for Martin's reef, between Detour and Mackinaw, is also on the list. THREE BOOKS OF SAILING DIRECTIONS, ONE COVERING LAKE SUPERIOR AND THE ST. MARY'S RIVER, ANOTHER COVERING LAKE MICHIGAN AND THE STRAITS OF MACKINAC, AND A THIRD TAKING IN LAKES HURON AND ST, CLAIR WITH DETROIT AND ST, CLAIR RIVERS, ARE NOW OFFERED FOR SALE BY THE HYDROGRAPHIC OFFICE. THESE BOOKS ARE PARTS OF A WORK THAT WILL COVER THE ENTIRE CHAIN OF LAKES. THEY CONTAIN CHARTS OF LEADING CHANNELS AND HARBORS, AND MAY BE HAD FROM THE MARINE REVIEW, 516 PERRY-PAYNE BUILDING, CLEVELAND, AT $1 EACH. ¥ Lake Superior Coal Shipments--Canal Traffic. Figures relative to the Lake Superior movement of coal are again most interesting among the St. Mary's Falls canal statistics for August. Shipments of bituminous coal through the canal during August amounted to only 400,846 net tons, against 648,042 tons during August, 1894. Al- though practically no soft coal was shipped to Lake Superior until July in 1894, the shipments to Sept. 1 of this year are but 128,649 tons greater than they were on the same date a year ago. The following table gives the coal shipments in detail: COAT, SHIPMENTS TO LAKE SUPERIOR THROUGH SAULT CANAL, To Sept. 1, To Sept. 1, 1895. 1894. 934,827 288,323 BituMinOls et tOnsis creer paseernse seveceseeee] 063,476 Anthracite, net toms..........0c0-csescese ievoasedseemens 196,638 1,260,114. 1,228,150 General business of the canal for the month is again very heavy, and the season's commerce will, of course, exceed all previous records. Up to Sept. 1 the aggregate of freight passed through the canal was 8,858,148 net tons, of which 7,335,299 tons was east bound and 1,522,849 tons west bound. ST. MARY'S FALLS CANAL, TRAFFIC--OPENING OF NAVIGATION TO SEPT. 1, SEASONS OF 1894 anp 1895. EAST BOUND. Freight items. Designation. To Sept. 1, 1894. To Sept. 1, 1895. COPPeriirs.cccvecesentoceses Net tons......... ... 61,165 68,770 COrnieci eee Bushels ..........++0+ 1,314,603 16,85) - Building stone ......... Net tons............ ; 15,595 13,820 ESLOUENEE eee Miedo sitet Barrels ..........000¢ 4,523,296 . 4,676,592 Tron Ore........... sevceoee- NEL CONS...... aeeceee 4,206,894 5,484,152 Iron, pig....... Telecenesse NELELONS ae ls seeeenen 13,481 15,809 TG WMI DEL vecceessdsee caste Mirotteg Bs splVlesearne nest 435,633 495,332 Silver Ore............-.-.- Net tons.............. 412 100 WINGAt eres cen ce enacens Bushels............... 13,517,730 11,655,128 Unclassified freight...Net tons.,........... 83,727 99,354 Passengers.......... ..... Number........ eter 10,450 12,248 WEST BOUND. Coal, anthracite......... Net tons............. 288,323 196,638 Coal, bituminous....., Net tons............. 934,827 1,063,476 lounges cetenccosesn anes Bushels............... 753 2,150 Grainy sesso. siceeeeceeeees Bushels............... 2,500 31,650 Manufactured iron....Net tons....... seb ies 14,907 45,902 Salticccvsccassisees Saket Barrels...... Ses 99,876 157,720 Unclassified freight...Net tons ............ 138,075 167,150 PasSe€Ngers..........0008 Number...... Benton 10,926 13,119 The American Steel Barge Co. It might be expected that the present outlook in freights would cer- tainly warrant the American Steel Barge Company in going ahead with the construction of more ships at its West Superior yard, but for the present at least nothing has been decided upon in that direction. The recent meeting of stockholders at Superior was a regular quarterly meeting and was not called for any special purpose. Itis the custom of the company to hold one meeting each year at the head of the lakes. There was some talk of building two steamers during the winter, but action was deferred, as the policy of stockholders in control of the cor- poration is still against further building, and anyhow it would seem that the better part of judgment with a big company of this kind would be to sell a few of its smaller barges during the winter, when ships will probably bring fair prices, and then build big boats of modern dimen- sions. It is expected also that the demand for new ships during the coming fall and winter will be sufficient to give the management of the West Superior yard an opportunity to secure one or more contracts from =~ outsiders. Reference was made in the last issue of the REvIEw to the necessity of re-establishing the light and fog signal at Bete Grise bay, south side of Keweenaw point, Lake Superior. It has since been learned that not only has this light been authorized but an appropriation of $7,500 has been made for it by congress, and light-house officials will undoubtedly get around to the work of constructing it before long. AN EXCELLENT LIBRARY FOR A MARINE ENGINEER, CHEAP--KEY TO ENGINEERING; * WHAT AN ENGINEER SHOULD KNOW ABOUT ELEC- TRICITY; ENGINEERS' CATECHISM. ANY ONE OF THESE ARE WORTH A DOLLAR, BUT ALL THREE CAN BE HAD FOR $1. SEND TO THE MA- RINE REVIEW, 516 PERRY-PAYNE BUILDING, CLEVELAND, 0. MONEY REFUNDED IF NOT SATISFACTORY. ALL NEW HYDROGRAPHIC CHARTS ARE KEPT IN STOCK BY THE MARINE REVIEW, 516 PERRY-PAYNE BUILDING, CLEVELAND,