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Peculiar Condition of the Iron Market. ; t, The course of the iron trade has always been peculiar. Its history is 'one of surprises. The unexpected happens, while that which should take _ place, according to general reasoning, fails to materialize. Those who have been in business for many years as iron merchants or consumers of iron are full of reminiscences of how they failed to correctly interpret trade indications, and either bought at the wrong time or failed to buy at the right time, made contracts running too far into the future or else lost fine money-making opportunities by not making long contracts. It is, in fact, not really necessary to go back further than two years to recall notable in- stances of mistakes made by men of national prominence in the trade. Even their superior resources for securing reliable information of the great im- pulses which influence general business weré not trustworthy in endeavor- ing to read the future of iron and steel to only a limited extent. ; The outlook at present is just as puzzling as at any previous time. Men are mystified by the singular steadiness of prices under the strongest of all influences. Huge contracts have beem made, exceeding anything ever before known in the history of American iron and steel, until plant after plant has been forced out of the market with its order books over- flowing, and yet the market appears placid. Some advances have taken place, but they have been very moderate. At any previous period of active buying the placing of so much business would have caused a "bulge" of large proportions.. When the fact is considered that all the large steel works are crowded with orders for delivery up to the close of year, that they have in some cases been obliged to purchase from other works to fill pressing specifications for shipment, and that they are being urged to "open their books for orders for next year's delivery, the maintenance of 'quotations at their prevailing low level is most remarkable. It is this persistency of low prices which makes many men uncertain as to the future. They argue that the trade in general is not: yet conyinced that business is on a permanently stronger footing, and they, will not believe 'it until they see a substantial advance. A fair advance, would undoubtedly be welcomed by all parties, manufacturers and consumers, but it is certainly to be hoped that it will not be unreasonable. The iron market at present is not unlike a tinder box, needing but a Spark to. make a flame. The great producers probably realize this, and are, therefore, continuing to quote low prices, even if they can not book the business offered.--Iron Age. Cargo Records of Lake Ships. ' Iron Ore--Steamer Empire City, owned by A. B. Wolvin of Duluth, 5,622 tons gross, or 6,296 net, Two: Harbors to Cleveland, draft of 17 feet 2 inches; schooner Amazon, James, Corrigan of Cleveland, 5,603 tons gross, 6,275 net, Duluth to Ashtabula, draft of 16 feet 8 inches; schooner Polynesia, James Corrigan of Cleveland, 5,477 tons gross, 6,134 net, -Du- luth to Fairport, draft of 16 feet 8 inches; Andrew Carnegie, Wilson Transit Co.-of Cleveland, 5,425 tons: gross, 6,076 net, Two Harbors 'to _ Cleveland, draft of 17 feet 4 inches. ae i Grain--Steamer Crescent.City, A. B. Wolvin of Duluth, 225,000 -bush- els of corn, equal:to 6,300 net tons, South Chicago to Buffalo, draft of 17 feet; steamer Empire City, A. B. Wolvin of Duluth, 205,445 bushels of wheat,, equal to 6,163 net tons, Duluth to Buffalo; schooner Amazon, James Corrigan of Cleveland, 217,000 bushels of corn, equal to 6,076 net tons, Chicago to Buffalo, 16 feet 6 inches draft; steamer Crescent City, A. B. Wolvin of Duluth, 318,000 bushels of oats, equal to 5,088 net tons, Duluth to Buffalo. is Coal--Schooner Aurania, John Corrigan of Cleveland, 5,187 net tons 'bituminous, Toledo to Milwaukee; steamer Andrew Carnegie, Wilson Transit Co. of Cleveland, 4,997 net tons of bituminous, Cleveland to She- boygan, draft of 15 feet 2 inches. In His Native Country. . Frederick Arsenius, who was for some time employed as draftsman ' with the Cleveland Ship Building Co., and who was later with the Cramps, -of Philadelphia, is now in the employ of the government of Sweden, his "native country. Writing to a friend in Cleveland he says: "Although I have nothing more to do with ship building, the industry on the Great Lakes will always be remembered as a remarkable example of American enterprise, energy and push, and I will follow its progress with interest, I must therefore ask you to send me an occasional copy of the Marine Re- view. I think I wrote you that I had been appointed a torpedo engineer in the Royal Swedish Navy, and for that reason I left the United States and sailed on the 5th of June, for these old shores. After thirteen stormy days at sea, I landed in Christiania, Norway, and from there took 'the railway at Stockholm. Stockholm is a beautiful city as you will have heard, but just now it is prettier than ever. There is an exhibition going on--a Northern exhibition, including Russia. It is a World's Fair on small scale and everything, buildings, mounts and exhibits, are of a high order and very artistic in appearance. The army and navy exhibits are very complete, and I was, of course, most interested in the latter. There were models from our oldest wooden frigates up to our very latest armored ships, and outside in the lake rode barges 300 years old side by side with the modern torpedo boat. The exhibition of modern artillery was very fine and it is in this respect that Sweden has made the most re- markable progress since I was home last. The new guns with their ingen- ious breech mechanisms, the armor plate and projectiles, were well up to anything I have seen. In other respects, too, Sweden has not been asleep, and I was well proud of my native country. I was ordered to the naval station at Carlskrona, which is a city of about 22,000 inhabitants, built en- tirely on an island, half of which nearly is taken up by the navy yard, which is of magnificent proportions. A hundred other islands scattered all around make natural fortresses and the place is well fortified." ~ Bulkheads of the United States cruiser Chicago are being equipped - with a new system of watertight doors. The doors are opened or closed by hydraulic pressure from a central point, and indicators show the con- dition of the doors at all times. If the system proves a success the navy department may introduce it on other vessels. io MARINE REVIEW. A Steamboat Man of Nerve. All praise to the steamboat captain who can run his ship alongside a sinking schooner and save the lives of her entire crew in darkness and a heavy sea on Lake Superior. It is said of J. C. Gilchrist, vessel owner of Cleveland, that he aims to select young men, and men of small stature, 'in preference to big men, for vessel captains. He argues that.men of great physique are liable to become logy, and that the cool-headed, little fellow makes the best ship master. He has several of this latter class in his fleet, and not least among them in point of nerve and good judgment is Capt. Win. Blattner of the steamer J. C. Gilchrist, who rescued tthe entire crew t of the schooner H. A. Kent on Lake Superior on Thursday night last, in a storm that was severe enough to cause the vessel to founder. Capt. . Blattner's bravery is all the more commendatory from the fact that his own ship was deeply laden and the tow was in mid-lake at midnight off Stan- ard rock when the schooner went down. Men of less merve, to use a popular phrase, have been covered with medals. _ The manner of rescuing all hands from the sinking schooner by Capt. Blattner and'the crew of the Gilchrist should be noted by lake captains gen- erally, as they may at any time find themselves called upon to perform a similar service. It was about 11:15 at night when Capt. Sullivan of the schooner signalled that his vessel was sinking. There was such a heavy sea on that it was dangerous for men on the steamer to go amidships. The captain of the Gilchrist ordered the mate's watch aft and called his own watch forward, using a speaking tube for orders. Wien the tow line was cast off he rounided to and came up under the schooner's stern, but the schooner, which had some sail set, forged ahead ttoo fast for the steamer. With the second effort the Gilchrist was put alongside the Kent, but too far away to be of any assistance. On a third trial the Gilchrist came up on the Kent's quarter, the bow of the steamer lapping the stern of the schooner for about 15 feet. Heaving lines were used, as the vessels surged - around too much in the sea to attempt to use a ladder. Attention was first given to the children. A line was tied under the arms of each of them in turn and they were dropped into the water from the Kent and hauled up and aboard on the Gilchrist. Within an hour from the time the schooner signalled, her entire crew was aboard the steamer, and fifteen minutes later she went down. One of the little ones saved from the Kent was a baby, and an effort was made to swing the little tot across the space between the vessels without dropping it into the water. The rope slipped, however, and.to keep the child from dashing against the side of the steamer, it was allowed to drop into the water. Although it was dressed only in a night shirt its sudden bath in the cold waters of Lake Superior didn't even make it cry. Two-Thirds of Iron Ore Output is from the Lakes, Notwithstanding the extensive development of iron mining properties in the south of late years, especially in Alabama, Virginia and Tennessee, which states produced together in 1896 about 2,500,000 gross tons, the Lake Superior region contributes about two-thirds of the ore used in the United States, and its proportion of the entire output of the country in- creases each year. The relation between the total output of ore in the United States in recent years and that from Lake Superior region appears in the following, all in gross tons: United States. Lake Superior. Per Cent. TO Saeed ferent ere ce fetes ets 16,296,666 9,564,388 58.7 PSO eeepc tartare: sis tags ae isi se ayes es 11,587,629 6,594,620 56.9 LS Oa re Tevcks ious cigeeretcaecti elt one) tes cl oi 11,879,679 7,682,548 64.7 TS OP eis Bierce en olga Me astelayt nae 15,957,614 10,268,978 64.3 USD Ome rere sors Sisse yikes ce 16,005,449 10,566,359 66 The figures are from the portion of the 1896 report of the United States Geologic Survey that is prepared by John Birkinbine of Philadelphia. An electric light plant is a feature of additional equipment that is be- ing installed at the dry dock portion of the American Steel Barge Co.'s plant, West Superior.