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' brought together. More t 1899.) MARINE REVIEW. ne present system one bureau brings its work to the point of readiness for the work of another, which is not always ready for it. There is neces- sarily a lack of that adaptation and harmony of movement which one head would secure. If this consolidation were effected, the matter of furnishing coal and other current supplies, which is now under the direc- tion of the bureau of equipment, could be easily transferred to the bureau of supplies and accounts, and such other incidental changes made as be- came necessary. This suggestion is made solely with a view to an im- provement in departmental organization, and with the highest apprecia- tion of the ability and dutifulness with which these bureaus have been administered under their present heads. Efficient as they have been, however, their consolidation is recommended, because it is believed that if consolidated under the direction of any one of ther present heads, or of any competent officer, that efficiency would be still greater, less expense incurred, and a better business organization would succeed. The terms of office of the chiefs of the three bureaus will all expire in a little more than a year, two of those officers then going upon the retired list, and it is due to them all, as an assurance that the change is recommended on systematic and not personal grounds, to suggest that if made, it shall not go into effect until the beginning of the fiscal year after the expiration of their said terms." INSPECTION OF MATERIAL--MORE CONSTRUCTORS-- SUBMARINE BOATS. Referring to the inspection of steel for modern vessels of war under the direction of the bureaus of construction and repair and steam engi- neering, the report says: "During the past year there has been in- spected, tested and' shipped 36,210,675 pounds of material under the bureau of construction and repair and 10,587,175 pounds of material under the bureau of steam engineering. A comparison of the specifications for the battleships Maine and Texas, issued in 1888 and 1889, respectively, with the requirements for the same class of material for the ships author- ized May 4, 1898, shows the great improvements made in the manufacture of steel. In the case of the Maine and Texas, the specifications for shaft- ing required a tensile strength varying from 56,000 to 70,000 pounds per square inch, with an elongation of 16 to 20 per cent in 2 inches, both de- pending on where the test piece was taken. The specifications for the new vessels require for these forgings a tensile strength of at least 95,000 peunds per square inch and an elastic limit of 65,000 pounds per square inch, with an elongation of 21 per cent in 2 inches. This result is largely due to the efficient system of government inspection at the works of t'e manufacturers." The number of constructors now allowed by law is forty. This num- ber is reported by the chief of the bureau of construction and repair, the secre'ary says, as insufficient to perform the arduous, increasing and re- sponsible duties devolving upon the construction corps with the large amcunt of construction which is at present in progress. It is therefore recommended that this limitation as to the number of constructors be removed, and that it be left to the discretion of the secretary to appoint to this corps, from graduates of the naval academy, such additional assistant constructors as the demands of the service make advisable. The secretary says on the subject of submarine boats that a series of requirements for the Holland type of boat, suggested a year ago by the board of inspection and survey, were fulfilled in the trials that took place early last month, and he is therefore of the opinion that the results thus "far obtained are indicative of the very important possibilities of this type - of naval war vessel. RECORD CRUISE OF THE BATTLESHIP KENTUCKY. The new battleship Kentucky, mention of the official trial of which was made in the last issue of the Review, has returned to the yard of her builders, the Newport News Ship Building & Dry Dock Co. The vessel's run down the coast at cruising speed under natural draft constitutes one of the most remarkable performances of the kind on record. From South Shoals the Kentucky ran 360 miles to Cape 'Charles in 24 hours, 7 minutes, making an average speed of 14.93 knots an hour under natural draft. A distance of 44 miles between Winter Quarter light and Hog island light the Kentucky made at the rate of 15.3 knots an hour, also under natural draft. From the time the battleship left Boston light until her arrival at Cape Charles, the trip consumed just 36 hotirs and the average speed for - the entire distance was 14.6 knots. The engine and fire room performances of the Kentucky on her offi- cial trial were even more favorable than those of the Kearsarge, for the reason that her propellers turned as rapidly, on an average, under a smaller head of steam. About 45 tons of coal were burned, or about 32 pounds an hour per square foot of furnace area, under three double-end and three single-end Scotch boilers. No water worth speaking about was used on the journals. 'The temperature of the engine room was about 120 degrees. The highest steam pressure developed was 172 pounds. The boilers and machinery worked smoothly for four fu'l hours under forced draft. The average number of revolutions of the Kearsarge was 114.3; of the Kentucky 112.65, _ Local inspectors John Monaghan and M. F. Chalk of Duluth seem determined to enforce navigation rules at the head of the lakes. Only a few days ago they suspended for six months the license Ob Acme ent captain of the tug Industry, for a violation of rules that resulted in a collision between the steamer Peerless and barge A. Stewart on Sept. 7 last, and now it is announced that as a result of the sinking of the tug Record on Oct. 8 by the Rockefeller steamer Neilson, Capt. William J. Hunt. master of the Neilson, has been suspended for one year, and William Burnett, master of the Record, was suspended for four months. Both suspensions date from Dec. 12. The suspension of Capt. Hunt will prob- ably be appealed. a The commission in charge of the transportation exhibit of the state of New York at the Paris exposition announces that the display will in- clude the largest number of models of steam and sailing yachts ever 0 han thirty different types will be represented. MENCHANT VESSELS OF THE UNITED STATES. On the great lakes there are 399 steam vessels having a tonnage (gross iegister) of 1,000 tons or more. The aggregate tonnage of these vessels is G12,218, so that the average is 2,036 tons. In all other parts of the United States combined the number of such vessels (1,000 tons and over) is 258, the aggregate tonnage 584,899 and the average 2,290. It will therefore be seen that there are more steam vessels of large capacity on the lakes than are to be tourd in al! other parts of the countiy. These figures, as well as all others in the following tables are from the annual report of the United States commissioner of navigation, just issued, and which deals with the shipping of the United States on June 30, 1899. The tons are in all cases gross register tons. These tables also show that the fleet of steel vessels on the great lakes is fast assuming large proportions. There are 712 steel vessels (steam and sail) owned on the Atlantic coast, as against 296 on the great lakes, but the aggregate ton- nage of the coast vessels is only 685,368, against 572,947 on the great lakes. The average tonnage of the lake steel ship, therefore, is 1,935 against, only 962 for the Atlantic coast steel ship. On the Pacific coast there are only seventy-five steel vessels of 105,996 tons and on the western rivers only fifty of 11,313 tons. STATEMENT SHOWING THE NUMBER AND TONNAGE OF VESSELS OF ALL KINDS OWNED IN THE UNITED STATES ON JUNE 30, 1899, Ba ae pe Number Gross Districts. ; i -. of vessels. Tonnage. Atlantic and {Gul coasts qe. eer vaack ii clos vb 16,275 . 2,614,869 PacifiGg@oa Stine sa:gqiae cee nace vruhe aaa oelenns: Pp iarcGn: 1,970 539,937 (NOogthennedlalkcesm easier rier Gerace aes 3,162 1,446,348 Western :rivers ........ Beco Ree sebaucmey te ences ates Sls 1,321 263,084 Grand-stotall erator cuss aqstencka eke ee ease 22,728 4,864,238 Sailinp-tvesselis a ie, eee er ee ee eee 13,300 1,825,318 Steam evessel Sie ux. kc. See ee a eee 6,837 2,476,011 Gamaleib Oatsmecse ris cote ee eo es eee 629 71,101 | BBO rea elle Heh ae eNeeran ae RON eMule Ayn ides Gel 1962 . 491,808 (Greamal Worl ooooocouw curse eS ne at ao 22,728 4,864,238 STATEMENT SHOWING NUMBER AND TONNAGE OF STEAM VESSELS OF 1,000 TONS AND OVER OWNED IN THE UNITED STATES ON JUNE 30, 1899. Number Gross Districts. of vessels. Tonnage, Alario aunGl (Gull? COASIS cosnsdooccadcnccocdoue 258 584,899 PACiherCOASt aici eee ne ieee een mee 66 131,123 Northermmlakesmenic cu ick one ee 399 812,218 Wy Storie TiVelS ccc cee «onl Mets aces 12 17,381 NACA ice ene eae ene een ee 735 1,545,621 STATEMENT SHOWING NUMBER AND TONNAGE OF VESSELS OF ALL KINDS OWNED IN THE UNITED STATES ON JUNE 30 OF EACH YEAR FOR TEN YEARS PAST, FSA The STHAM. | TOTAL. June30. Number. | Gross tonnage.|| Number. | Gross tonnage.|,; Number.| Gross tonnage. 1890 17,502 2,565,409 5,965 1,859,088 || 23,467 | 4,424.497 2,668,495 || 6,216 2,690,504 || 6,392 2,641,799 || 6,561 2,494,599 || 6,526 9,423,159 || 6,554 2,016,264 || 23,899 | 4,684,759 2,074,417 || 24,383] 4,764,921 2,183,272 || 24,512 | 4,825,071 2,189,430 || 23,586 | 4,684,029 2,212,801 || 28,240] 4,635,960 1891 | 17,683 1892 | 17,991 1893 | 17,951 1894 | 17,060 1895 | 16,686 1896 | 16,313 2,396,672 6,595 2,307,208 || 22,908] 4,708,880 1897 | 16,934 2,410,443 6,599 2,358,578 || 22,633] 4,769,020 1898 | 15,993 2,377,815 6,712 2,371,923 || 22,705| 4,749,788 1899 | 15,891 2,388,227 6,837 2,476 O11 || 22.728 | 4,+64,238 * Includes unrigged craft. STATEMENT SHOWING GROSS TONNAGE OF VESSELS OF ALL KINDS BUILT IN THE ' UNITED STATES DURING TEN YEARS PAST. z Onn On nS pntite On the ear | On the Great ingle including | » Mississippi gaging | Oninken™ | New dingland | neiucine a | Riverand its] Tote! coast. tributaries. 1890 108,526 78,577 169,091 16,506 294.123 1891 111,856 105,491 237,462 19,984 369,302 1892 45,969 60,624 138,863 14,801 199,633 1893 99,271 37,091 102,830 9,538 211,639 1894 41,985 28,665 80,099 9,111 131,195 1895 36,353 26,783 67,127 8,122 111,602 1896 108,782 39,582 102,544 16,771 227,097 ~ 1897 116,937 21,942 | 103,504 115792 232,233 1898 54,084 23,944 112,879 13,495 180,458 1899 80,366 68,761 196,120 23,552 300,038 STATEMENT SHOWING THE CLASS, NUMBER AND TONNAGE OF IRON AND STEEL VESSELS OWNED IN THE UNITED STATES ON JUNE 30, 1899. *Sail. | Steam. Total. Districts i : Gross 7 G 5 No fanriaee: No. iaiinige. No. ee Atlantic and gulf coasts....., 44 45,591 || 668 | 639,795 712} 685,886 Pacific COASt.......ceceeeceeeeres 8 6,294 67 | 99,702 75| 105,996 Northern lakes................. 68 | 121,802 || 228 | 451,146 296} 572,947 Western rivers...........-sscee0] covers [eeceeeereeeees 50 11,313 50 Sis Grandaiorl hee eee 120 | 173,687 || 1013/1,201,955 || 1133] 1,375,642 * Includes barges. The shipfitters shop at the Boston navy yard was destroyed by fire, several days ago, and machinery contained therein was damaged to the extent of $25,000 to $50,000.