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ee MARINE REVIEW. DEVOTED TO LAKE MARINE AND KINDRED INTERESTS. Published every Thursday at No. 409 Perry-Payne building, Cleveland, Ohlo, by John M. Mulrooney and F. M. Barton. Susscrrprrion--$2.00 per year inadvance. Single copies 10 cents each. binders seut, post paid, $1.00. Advertising rates on application. Convenient Entered at Cleveland Post Office as Second class Mail Matter. The books of the United States treasury department on June 30, 1896, contained the names of 3,333 vessels, of 1,324,067.58 gross tons register in the lake trade. 'The number of steam yessels of 1,000 gross tons, and over that amount, on the lakes on June 30, 1896, was 383 and their aggregate gross tonnage 711,034.28; the number of vessels of this class owned in all other parts of the country on the same date was 315 and their tonnage 685,204.55, so that more than half of the best steamships in all the United States are owned on the lakes. 'The classification of the entire lake fleet on June 30, 1896, was as follows: Gross Number. Tonnage. UGRINGVOSSCIS. sscscccisccncssdsccsocdsvcsscupseesinvesveaccess 1,792 924,630.51 Sailing vessels and barges 1,125 354,327.60 CATALDO RES co cctectcceccessnaseve ase 416 45,109.47 INO Ga rec eva ve thee ame EE has Snthcaonat 8,333 1,324,067.58 The gross registered tonnage of the vessels built on the lakes during the past six years, according to the reports of the United States commissioner of navigation, is as follows: Year ending June 30. 1891 204 111,856 45 Ss es se 1892... 169 45,968.98 es sf ie 1893... i 175 99,271.24 s ce we 1894... 106 41,984.6 fs st H A BODY Seton: sossteseets sce eect cnscscetcetees 93 36,352.70 i ' as 1896.. 117 108,782.38 IG agli eet ete veer aalh feckcee sacs su ueissousdasbiporseasoial, iL OOL sg 444,216.36 ST. MARY'S FALLS AND SUKZ CANAL TRAFFIC. (from Official Reports of Canal Officers.) St. Mary's Falls Canal. Suez Canal. 1895* 1894 1893 1895 . 1894 1893 No. vessel passages.,........... 17,956 14,491 11,008 3,434 3,352 3,341 Tonnage, net registered..... 16,806,781] 13,110,366] 9,849,754|| 8,448,383] 8,039,175] 17,659,068 Days of navigation.............. 231 234 219 365 365 365 > *1895 figures include traffic of Canadian canal at Sault Ste. Marie, which was about .% per cent. of the whole, but largely in American vessels. Some misinformed newspapers, and even two or three of the ma- rine publications, have been claiming that a bill supported by Senator Frye proposes to restore flogging in the merchant marine. The sec- tion in question is section 18 of H. R. 2,663, which is as follows: "Eivery master or other officer of any American vessel on the high seas, or on any other waters within the admiralty and maritime juris- diction of the United States, who from malice, hatred or revenge, and without justifiable cause, beats, wounds, or imprisons any of the crew of such vessel, or withholds from them suitable food and nour- ishment, or inflicts upon them any cruel and unusual punishment, shall be punisheil by a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprison- ment not more than five years, or by both." The amendment proposed by Senator Frye strikes out the words "from malice, hatred or revenge." That is the only change made by it in the present law. The present law requires the sailor to prove, in case of an assault, not only that it was without justifiable cause, but also that the motives prompting the assault were "malice, hatred or revenge." It is almost impossible for the sailor to prove one of these motives. By striking them out of the section, Senator Frye's bill makes it possible for a sailor to secure conviction when assaulted by an officer, under this section, which is now impossible. Although it is quite probable that the Consolidated Lake & Canal Co., or some other power that intends to use the improved New York state canals, was back of the movement that resulted in an appropria- tion of $9,000,000 being secured for enlargement of the canals, the posi- tion of some of the Buffalo newspapers just now, in opposition to corpor- ations of more than $50,00) capital engaging in canal commerce, is cer- tainly of asuspicious kind. Buffalois, and always will be, opposed to. any movement that threatens advantages derived from the transfer of freight at that point, but its elevator combine, with excessive terminal charges, is gradually meeting with strong opposition. Transportation charges by lake have been reduced to a point that is simply amazing', but terminal charges (transfer, storage, commissions, etc.), especially at Buffalo, have not fallen to anywhere near the same extent, This is one of the drawbacks of the present situation as regards lake transporta- tion, but it isacting now against the railways, and against Buffalo too in the big export business in grain, flour, etc., from the west aa northwest that is going to southern ports instead of takine the more direct central route to New York through Buffalo, js It is certainly unfortunate that political differences in Ohio seem i to stand inthe way of the appointment of M. A. Hanna to the Uniteg F States senate to succeed John Sherman. This matter is not an Ohio affair. If the business men of this country, and especially those con- nected with the great iron industry, and the various branches of lake commerce that are largely dependent upon this industry, could have the ear of Gov. Bushnell, they would tell him that he should rise above local questions in Ohio and appoint Mr. Hanna to the senate to represent in that body a president who was elected purely and simply on ques. tions relating directly to the business affairs of the nation. Everybody connected with lake commerce is especially interested in this matte, and there would be no impropriety in commercial bodies or individuals in all parts of the lakes presenting their views to the governor of Ohio. The announcement from Washington that the appropriations committee of the house has decided to include, among other items jp the sundry civil appropriation bill for continuing contract improy- ments, an appropriation of $400,000 for Cleveland harbor, is a mattey of importance to all places on the lakes that were accorded recognition under the continuous contract system in the last river and harbor bill. It will be recalled that the appropriations committee was not disposed to make appropriations for continuous contract improvements unti] the contract for the work had actually been let. Cleveland is one of the places where a contract has not as yet been entered into, and had the committee adhered to its first plan, the improvements at this port, as well as at others where contracts have not as yet been let, would have been delayed for another year. In view of the general depresssed condition of the iron industry, stock holders of the Chandler Iron Mining Co., who have just been paid a dividend of $10 a share, certainly have reason to feel thankful. It is understood, too, that this does not represent the full earnings of the company last year, and that with the mine charged off the company's books, or rather put down nominally at $1, there are still assets suffic- ient,in a large surplus and other substantial items, to quit business and pay $35 ashare. The stock is selling at about $40. But the Chandler is an exception among Lake Superior iron mines. Members of the United States board of supervising inspectors of steam vessels, which has been in session at Washington for several dasy past, are: Jas. A. Dumont, president; John Birmingham, first district; Geo. H. Starbuck, second district; W. H. Murdaugh, third district; James O'Neal, fourth district; W. R. Tibbals, fifth district; James N. Thompson, sixth district; E. P. Ckancellor, seventh district; John H. Galway, eighth district; M. Galvin, nineth district; Mathew O'Brien, tenth district. Again it is announced that the advocates of the Nicaragua canal scheme have suspended operations. They are satisfied that the passage of their bill would be doubtful in the senate and impossible in the house, and they have given up the effort as far as the present congress is con- cerned. But they will, of course, be heard from again when the new administration comes into power. Artificial Draft. Kditor Marine Review:--Replying to the inquiry of Mr. C. W. Whitney, N. Y., C. 8. for the Globe Iron Works Co., as to why the Howden hot draft system was removed from the American: line steamers Berlin and Paris, we beg to say that the Howden system was removed from the old steamer Berlin, where it had done good service, and the Hllis & Haves substituted, in order to determine which system was the best to apply to the two great passenger steamers, St. Louis and St. Paul, which the company then contemplated building, and the fact that these ships are fitted with the Howden system 1s perhaps a sufficient answer to the inquiry. The Paris was originally fitted with the closed stoke hold system, and afterwards with the Howden system, which was not an improvement, owing to the design of the boilers not being adapted for that system, and she is now worked ---- on the closed stoke hold system as orignially constructed. We are pleased to note that where the Serve tubes did so well in the expetl mental plant they were fitted with our retarders. Dry Dock Engine Works. Detroit, Mich., Feb. 8, 1897. .