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ee ee ee MARINE REVIEW. Tie XVIII. CLEVELAND, O.,, JULY. 28,, 1898. . No. 3. Heavy Ship but Big Carrier. In accordance with a policy that seems to prevail in all places where the interests of John D. Rockefeller are represented, it is seldom that any- thing pertaining to the affairs of the Bessemer Steamship 'Co. (with offi- cial sanction to it) is found in print. Interviews with Mr. L. M. Bowers, general manager of the Bessemer company, have been very rare, but when it was announced from Duluth, a few days ago, that the steel barge John Fritz, recently built at West Bay City, had taken on a cargo of 7,795 net tons of iron ore, he did not hesitate about giving expression to the great satisfaction which the dispatch contained for him. This immense cargo was carried on a mean draught of 17 feet 1 inch. It has been claimed in all parts of the lakes that the three vessels of the Bessemer company that have been under construction at West Bay City were entirely too heavy for requirements in the lake trade; that they were so loaded down with material, in order to gain great strength, that there would be a marked loss in their capacity as compared with other vessels of about the same dimensions. It is a fact that these three vessels contain full 8,000 tons of material; that is, hull material, irrespective of machinery, boilers or equipment of any kind. This is said to be about 25 per cent. more material than has been used in some vessels that are well up to the dimen. sions of the new West Bay 'City ships. 'The policy of making these ves- sels so strong involves, of course, a great many considerations, not least of which is safety in operation and the probability of the larger steamship lines meeting with conditions later on that may prompt them to undertake their own insurance. Mr. Bowers referred to these points while review- ing some figures on what the big barge would carry on deeper water and in other lines of the lake trade. ""T have just called up Mr. R. L. Newman, of tthe Globe company," he said. "Mr. Newman is entitled to full credit for the plans of that vessel, as well as the two others building at West Bay City. Before the vessels were ordered he was consulted, with several other builders on the lakes, and the ideas adopted regarding the different questions entering into the system of construction to be followed were practically all submitted by him. He worked out the scheme of distribution of material that has made this vessel so satisfactory. The highest estimate we 'had of capacity from any of the builders on the dimensions and weights proposed was 6,500 gross tons on 16 feet 10 inches draught. The vessel has carried 6,960 gross tons on 17 feet 1 inch." The actual weight (including 1 per cent. for moisture) of the cargo carried by the Fritz was 6,960 gross, or 7,795 net, tons. It is by long odds the largest load of any kind ever moved on the lakes. It is equal to 260,000 bushels of wheat. If loaded into cars of twelve tons each the-e would be 650 cars, or sixteen trains of forty cars each. If the Fritz had loaded to 17 feet 5 inches, a depth to which some vessels are now loading from Lake Superior, her cargo might have been increased to about 7,200 gross, or 8,064 net, tons. If loading grain out of Chicago on 18 feet draught this vessel would carry 285,000 bushels of wheat, or 530,000 bushels of oats, provided, of course, that space could be found for the latter. Differences With Underwriters. Owners of the steamer Ed. Smith No. 2, sunk in Lake St. Clair, Sun- day, had hardly abandoned the vessel to the underwriters (McCurdy-Prime syndicate of Chicago) when it was announced in the newspapers that the abandonment would not hold. A newspaper decision on such a point is, of course, not of much consequence to either owners or underwriters in- terested in this vessel, especially as the announcement is made in advance of any definite information as to the condition of the steamer, cost of raising and repairing her, etc. 'But this dispatch, prompted probably by the opinion that there will be difficulty in settling losses on all ships of the older class in future, has again caused considerable discussion regarding the policy of underwriters this year toward wooden vessels. The impres- sion has gone out, since the refusal of the Chicago syndicate to accept the steamer Outhwaite or 'ther consort Barr as a total loss, that the Chicago interests, having the bulk of insurance this year, will undertake a more exacting policy than in the past regarding wooden vessels, and quite a' feeling of resentment has been stirred up among the owners of this class of tonnage. Officers of the syndicate are undoubtedly aware of this feel- ing, but thus far they 'have seen fit to refrain from any public reference to the matter. (Owners of the 'Outhwaite and Barr have begun suit in Cleveland to recover the full insurance on both vessels, $120,000, and the action will undoubtedly be very earnestly contested. The Barr, which was repaired y the underwriters, lies idle at Detroit, the owners refusing to accept her, and the same will undoubtedy be the case with the Outhwaite when her repairs are completed at West Bay City. Several experts on both sides have watched repairs on the vessels, and the action in the courts when it comes up will be of a very spirited kind. everal interests are involved in the sinking of the Smith. It will probably be another suction case, if it goes into court, with the Minnesota line steamer Mesabi made a party to the action. The Smith and the Steamer Aurora are insured with the (Chicago syndicate, while the Au- rania's insurance, placed through 'C. A. Macdonald & Co. of Chicago last year, is probably theld by companies represented by Mr. Macdonald and Johnson & Higgins. The latter firm also has the insurance on the Mesabi. Chief Mordecai Endicott of the bureau of yards and docks of the navy department, in writing to the Review with reference to the two floating dry docks for which bids are soon to be solicited, states that no designs have been prepared, as it is the desire of the government to purchase docks already built. These are docks that will be sent to Cuba. Case Against Ore Roads--Pioneer Mine. Duluth, Minn., July 26--Testimony is still being submitted to the state railway and warehouse commissioners here in the action brought by the 'owners of the Pioneer mine to enforce a reduction in freight charges on the Duluth & Iron Range and Duluth, Mesabi & 'Northern roads. The commissioners have made a trip over the road accompanied by the lawyers and other interested parties. Testimony during the past few days per- tained mainly to cost of building the railways and was not of general in- terest. It is still the general opinion 'here that the case of the complain- ants is not nearly as strong as what was expected from the so-called inde- pendent mine interests. _ Inthe course of this hearing some facts have been brought out regard- ing the ownership and operation of the Pioneer mine. The property was bought by Dr. Conan and others in 1883 for something less than $23,000, and in 1886 was leased to the Pioneer Iron Co. for twenty years at 50 cents a ton royalty, with a minimum output of 20,000 tons. The mine 'thas been operated with more or less energy since then, and last year produced 207,000 tons, its total for the entire term of the lease being 417,000 tons. The royalty has been kept up, but now the mine is closed and the lessees are endeavoring to secure a reduction to 30 cents. Concessions already made reduce the royalty to 40 cents on the first 75,000 tons, and 35 cents on all above that in the year. The stock of the lessee company is held as follows: Oglebay, 'Norton & Co., 'Cleveland, 13,000 shares; Tihos. Bardon of Ashland, who is president and general manager, 5,500 shares; J. B. Spooner of Wisconsin, W. H. Phipps, and J. A. Humbird of Hudson, Wis., 16,300 shares; W. J. Conan of Superior, 4,000 shares, and J. G. Brown, 1,200 shares; total capitalization, 40,000 shares of $25 each. The stockholders of the lessee company have already put $250,000 into the mine above their receipts from 'sales of ore. The ownership of the fee to the property is 'held by W. J. Conan and wife, and one-sixth each by Martin and Wm. Pattison of Superior, and R. Whitesides of Duluth. The ore deposit is very large, being estimated all the way from 10,000,000 tons to twice that figure, and is a deep continuation of the Chandler's famous deposit. The two mines join and there have been many rumors as to purchases of the Pioneer's lease by the Chandler's owners. In the natural course 'of events, the Chandler people would be the proper persons to buy the Pioneer, as they are equipped with machinery, pumps, shafts, etc. The Oliver Mining 'Co. is also watching this mine with interest and has certain deals pending that may result in purchase. It has offered for an extension of the present lease for twenty years additional a bonus of not far from $400,000, and is willing to agree to a minimum royalty of 30 cents on 500,000 tons annual output. Machinery of the Belle Cross. Duluth, Minn., July 27.--In 1897 the steamer Belle P. Cross, which has had an eventful career since reaching the thead of the lakes from Cleveland, was libeled for supply bills and repairs. Sometime previous to her arrest, her machinery had been removed and incorporated into the tug Tomlinson. Writs were issued against the Cross and the machinery of the tug. The Cross was allowed to go to sale. The owners of the tug bonded her machinery at its appraised value. Subsequently an inter- vening libel was filed by the Inter-Ocean Coal & Coke Co., and another writ issued against the Tomlinson's machinery, which was again bonded. The case came on for hearing, and District Judge Lochren of Minnesota held that the machinery of the Tomlinson was liable for the debts of the Cross, and that the stipulators must pay each of the bonds given for the release of the machinery. The questions involved were the right to pro- ceed in rem against the machinery, necessitating the detention of the tug, against which no claim was made, and whether the owners of the Tom- linson and the stipulators on their bonds could be held for more than the value of the machinery, or should the case be treated as one under general admiralty, rule 8, which would simply require the owners of the Tomlinson to deliver up the machinery or pay its value as part of the fund arising from the sale of the Cross. 'No opinion 'has been filed, and the case will doubtless be appealed. All Under One Management. In accordance with negotiations that have been under way for some time past, a reorganization of the Ship Owners' Dry Dock Co. of Cleve- land has finally been effected, and the three dry docks of Cleveland are now under one management. The Cleveland Dry Dock Co. winds up its affairs, but Capt. W. W. Brown, who has been very successful in the management of that concern of late, and who was quite active in bring- ing about the consolidation, has 'been given the management of the com- bined plants. He will undoubtedly apply additional energy to the en- larged enterprise, and will find opportunity in the control of three docks, to hold a full share of docking and repair work in Cleveland. 'No im- provements in any of the docks are contemplated just now, but the entire plant will undoubtedly be kept up to the requirements of a very large amount of repair work that is continually going on in Cleveland. There will, of course, be no change in charges for docking vessels, as the sched- ule of rates is uniform throughout the lakes. Directors of the new com- pany are H. M. Hanna, L. C. Hanna, Luther Allen, R. L. Newman, Capt. John Mitchell, H. A. Hawgood and R. L .Ireland. H. A. Hawgood was elected president, Capt. John Mitchell vice-president, R. L. Ireland treas- urer, and Capt. W. W. Brown secretary and manager. J. C. Gilchrist has traded another house and lot for a vessel. He takes the schooner Charles Foster from Valentine Fries of Milan, O., in ex- change for a place on Amesbury avenue in the East End, Cleveland. ee