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IO MARINE REVIEHW. Ship Yard Matters, All but three of the Rockefeller steamers are now in the water. The boats still on the stocks are a steamer and barge at West Bay City and a steamer at the yard of the Cleveland Ship Building Co. Wheeler & Co. had planned to launch their steamer on Saturday next, but may be delayed until next week. They expect anyhow to finish her by Oct. 1, as boats at their yard are almost ready for sea when launched. Their intention regarding the barge is to haye her follow about ten days after the steamer. The steamer at the Cleveland yard is nearly ready for launching. e ' A Detroit dispatch says: are pleased with the announcement that the steamer Fairbairn, first of the Rockefeller steamers which they built, has just loaded 4,008 gross tons of ore, with 135 tons of fuel, on a mean draft of 14 feet 7 inches, or exactly what their contract called for. The Dry Dock Engine Works has just closed a contract with the copper rolling mills of this city for a set of fore-and-aft compound engines, marine type, with cyl- inders 16 and 32 by 36 inches."' The latest report from the bureau of navigation, treasury depart- ment, giving tonnage and official numbers of new lake vessels has the following: Steam--Sir William Fairbairn, Detroit, 4,219.74 tons gross, 3,181.95 net, No. 116,736; Superior, Benton Harbor, 70.93 "Officers of the Detroit Dry Dock Co. --_ was 294 miles, or 1jmiles more than they give us credit for. On the 294 mile basis our speed per hour was 18.6 miles. With a boat making her first run on July 4, then laying up for three weeks, and going into a race 'on Aug. 13, we think the performance very credit. able. The Enquirer could have done a great deal better in a time race," Capt. Todd of the Say When does not answer the inquiry so clegy. ly. He agrees with the officers of the Enquirer that the course was full 29 miles, on account of the start being at a point north and east of Fairport piers. The mean draft of the Say When, he says, was 6 feet 4 inches. He gives dimensions of cylinders somewhat different to those published, taking the figures, he says, from measurements made recently by the engineer. The dimensions he gives are: High pres. sure, 114 inches; intermediate, 164 inches; first low pressure, 224 inches; second low pressure, 224 inches; third low pressure, 224 inshes; stroke, 15 inches. The greatest pressure of steam carried at any one time, he says, was 230 pounds. New Battleships and Torpedo Boats. It is more than probable that the Cramps of Philadelphia, the Newport News Ship Building and Dry Dock Co., and the Union Tron Works Co. of San Francisco will each build one of the 11,000- ton battleships, for which appropriations were made by the last con- gress, and which are to be among the finest in the world. Bids. Pitta tyne 'aa Sait as aieetdeataRoens net { . [ aon 7 3 a : . , eee A daa ; y | Vee 1 ae tons gross, 48.23 net, No. 116,737. Sail--Alfred Krupp, Chicago, 3,259.43 tons gross, 3,124.70 net, No. 107,242; Geo. H. Corliss, Chi- cago, 3,259.43 tons gross, 3,124.70 net, No. 86,363. Mr. John F. Pankhurst, general manager of the Globe Iron Works Co., says that no more vessels will be put down in the Globe yard on builders' account. He says that in view of their past experience with work of this kind, which was planned to keep ship yard forces together, it would be especially hazardous under present conditions to build any more vessels without contracts for them. All stocks are now empty in the Globe yard. ar Still Discussing the Yacht Race. In a communication discussing the Enquirer--Say When steam THE COMANCHE--ONE OF THE OLD TYPE OF ERICSSON MONITORS NOW IN ORDINARY AT SAN FRANCISCO. which were opened on Monday last, were as follows: Newport News Ship Building & Dry Dock Co., one ship for $2,595,000; John H. Dialogue & Son of Camden, N. J., one ship for $2,661,000; Bath Iron Works of Maine, one ship for $2,680,000; William Cramp & Sons of Philadelphia, one ship for $2,650,000, and two for $2,650,000 each; Union Iron Works of San Francisco, one ship for $2,674,950. Thus the three lowest bidders are in order the Newport News company, Cramp & Sons and the Union Iron Works, the latter company being allowed a margin of 4 per cent above the lowest eastern bid to offset the difference in prices between the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. The department, under act of congress, must awardthe contracts for build- ing these ships by Oct. 8 next, and the vessels themselves must be completed within three years thereafter. The limit of cost fixed for each ship was $3,750,000, including the hull armor. It is estimated yacht race, in the Review of August 27, Wm. A. Fairburn, naval architect of Bath, Me,, suggested a desire to obtain from owners of these yachts a correct statement as to their draft and also the horse power developed during the race. Capt. Samuel Golden and Engineer Wm. Skelton, Jr., answer this inquiry as follows, in a letter to the Review: "The horse power developed by the Enquirer in her race with the Say When was 634 atid the revolutions 856. Nowas you have correct dimensions of the hull, engines and boiler, we do not think it necessary to say anything more along this line, but as we notice that Fred A. Ballin, superintendent of the Detroit Boat Works, and others have claimed that the distance covered in the race was only 28 miles, we can not allow such statements to pass without correction. A. direct line overland from Fairport piers to the Cleveland club house is 284 miles, and the course we took was from a whaleback barge lying about 14 miles to the north and east of Fairport piers, so that in view of the course necessarily steered, the shortest we can make the run that this armor can be supplied by the department for less than $1,000,000. On Friday, the 18th inst., bids will be opened for thirteen torpedo boats, three of which are to haye a speed of 30 knots. These three fast boats are to cost, together, not more than $800,000, while there is an appropriation of $500,000, or an average of $50,000 each, for the ten slower vessels. Specifications for all of the torpedo boats, as well as the battleships, have been printed in previous issues of the Review: For some time past we have found difficulty in obtaining good photographs of lake vessels when needed in the Review. We know that owners have also met with the same trouble. We have a photo- grapher now engaged exclusively on this work. Order photographs from the Marine Review, 409 Perry-Payne building, Cleveland. The new Goodrich steamer Iowa is to be fitted with the Globe steerer that was on exhibition at the World's Fair.