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MARINE REVIEW. 'Vor. XIV. --_ a= Season's Ore Shipments, Reports from all upper lake shipping ports to the association of ore dealers are now near enough to actual, figures to indicate the sea- son's entire shipments. of the association placed the season's shipments at nine and a quarter millions, but the November movement has been a little in excess of the estimates, and it is now quite generally agreed that the total for the full season will be about 9,350,000 tons. As compared with the previous six years, ihe 1896 record of ore shipments is, therefore, as follows: Season of Gross tons. 1896. (estimated): <0. ts eee see eee eee 9,350,000 GUS Odes. socieg dhe ee wate Das ee ada te came ge eae 10,429,037 jRosegehert Add Ged eeaute, tps ne #748, 223 TOS re eee cr eed ee aca net Tee 6,065,716 BOR wollle syilivaey CO, dot ture ee 9,072,241 REO, .. ee eo gin un ee ele ane 7,071,053 aggnib, tev': wineron nents nee 9,003,725 It will thus be seen that, notwithstanding the depressed condi- tion of the iron ore industry for six months past, which reduced the production of pig iron and steel to about half the capacity of the country and lowered prices to figures unthought of in the industry, the shipments of iron ore this season are exceeded only by the season of 1895, when the total was nearly ten and a half millions. It is evident now that a production of twelve million tons of ore, which was figured on last spring, would have made the season profitable to | the vessel interests, notwithstanding the increase in the lake fleet and the great increase in capacity, due to greater draft in connecting channels. This is proven by the fact that the freight movement on the lakes as a whole during 1896 has been largely in excess of all previous years. The grain movement has been double what it was in 1895. From Lake Superior the figures on grain of all kinds moved eastward are 73,081,593 bushels to Nov. 1, 1896, against only 29,589,- 325 bushels on the same date in 1895. But the shrinkage in spring estimates of ore shipments, due mainly to political disturbance, can not now be made up, and there is little prospect of profit in freights for the remaining few weeks of the sea- son.. Ore shipments are practically at an end and advanced prices in grain have cut off the export demand for the present. Reaiers of the Review remember the failure of the Merritts of Du- luth in their attempt to develop iron mining properties and a railway on the Mesabiiron range. They will also remember the consolidation of a large number of iron mines brought about by representatives of Mr. John D. Rockefeller, who had Joaned money to the Merritts and others in their enterprise and who was afterward compelled to take up and complete the railway and develop the mines. Following these transactions, Alfred Merritt sued Mr. Rockefeller claiming damages on account of alleged fraudulent misrepresentations. He obtained a verdict in the United States district court for $940,000. The verdict was a big surprise, and the case was, of course, carried to a higher court. Now it is announced from St. Paul that the United States circuit court of appeals has ordered the case back to the lower court for a new trial. A cargo of grain aggregating 5,328 net tons has just been delivered at Buffalo from Duluth by the steamer Queen City, and that boat again holds the Lake Superior cargo record. The largest Lake Super- lor cargo previous to. this one was carried by the Bessemer company's ° Steamer Sir William Siemens, and consisted of 174,500 bashels, equal to 5,235 net tons. The Queen City's cargo of 5,328 net tons consisted of 66,283 bushels of oats, 50,360 bushels of corn and 95,326 bushels of wheat. The steamer Yale has just taken out of West Superior, on 1) feet 9 inches draft, a cargo of 43,000 barrels of flour, the largest load of its kind ever moved from Lake Superior. CLEVELAND, O., NOVEMBER 12, 1806. Without full reports for November, officers INO; -20;77 Negotiations for New Ships. Just before going to press, it is learned that Robert R. Rhodes of Cleveland, who is now in Giese with James Wallace of the Gleve- land Ship Building Co., has closed a contract with the Chicago Ship Building Co. for two steamers of Welland canal size, about 252 feet keel, that will cost between $100,000 and $125,000 each. Boilers and engines will be built by the Cleveland Ship Building Co. The boats will be suited to handling package freight. | Builders of steel ships are all asking for options on material aia auxiliary machinery, which would indicate some figuring for new vessels. It is announced definitely that the Minnesota Iron Co., represented by Pickands, Mather & Co., of Cleveland, will build a large steel tow barge, and they are also considering the advisability of adding 48 feet to the length of one of the original small steamers of the line. If these steamers were increased 48 feet in length, they would be brought into the class of vessels that carry about 3,000 gross tons on 154 feet draft. The expense in each case would, however, be about $40,000 for a gain of about 500 gross tons capacity, so that the matter of alterations will very probably be given careful con- sideration before it is undertaken in all of the boats. Rumors of contracts for two new steel freight vessels at Wheeler & Co.'s yard, West Bay City, are referred toin the newspapers of that place, and it is also said that Mr. Wheeler expects to build another big steel car ferry for the F. & P. M. Ry. Co., but there is nothing defin- ite about these reports. Capt. James Davidson' is said to pe preparing to put down, next week, the keel for a large wooden tow barge that will be practically a duplicate of several boats of this kind which he has built during the past year. At Buffalo plans have been made by the Union Dry Dock Co. -- for alterations in the Union line steamers Owego and Chemung, with a view to additional capacity and economy in operating expenses. Further than this nothing is said, as the alterations are under advise- ment and not decided, but it is well known, of course, that these boats, which are the flyers of the lakes, are not Cee freighters The American Steel Barge Co. has begun, at West Superior, the work of lengthening the two small barges brought up from the Atlantic coast. -They will be hauled out of the water for this purpose, and it will not, therefore, be necessary to give up the use of the com- pany's big dock for the work. The United States light-house board, Washington, D. Ce will in a few days call for proposals on three light-ships and two lpn house ~ tenders. It is understood that none of these vessels are for the lakes but all of them will probably be of a size that will permit of their pas- sage through the St. Lawrence canals to the Atlantic, No other iron range so far discovered possesses greater apparent reserves than the Mesabi of Minnesota. Conservative estimates form- ulated from the records of properties now exploited and worked, to- gether with others determined by systematic explorations and an- alyses, show that the Mesabi range can supply ore (which will equal in average iron and phosphorus contents) double the quantity which the entire Lake Superior region has produced in fifty years. This means 200,000,000 gross tons. In this estimate there are not included a number of properties which have been imperfectly eur ae oly, Birkinbine, mining expert. Q County officials at Ashtabula are still fighting the order of the war department with reference to the county swing bridge at Ashtabula Harbor. The war department has declared the bridge an obstruction to navigation and is demanding a reconstruction of it that will involve heavy expense. Col. Jared A. Smith, government enginer in charge of the district, has been joined by Col. John W. Willson, another mem- ber of the army engineer corps, and the two officers will make another investigation, jointly, before final action is taken by the department.