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14 MARINE REVIEW. [April 10 FRENCH SHIPPING BOUNTY. Both the French senate and the chamber of deputies have now passed the bill to subsidize the French merchant marine. The tonnage admitted to the benefit of the law, over and above that of the sailing vessels already on the register before its promulgation, is 500,000 tons gross for steamers and 100,000 tons gross for sailing vessels. But the maximum total of sailing tonnage, laid down after Jan. 1, 1902, admitted to the benefit of the new law, is limited to 45,000 tons gross. French vessels will be reputed to have lost their nationality if they are docked or repaired abroad at a cost exceeding 15 francs per ton of the total gross measurement. The total amount payable as "compensation" and "navigation bounty under the law is limited to 150,000,000 francs, of which not more than 15,000,000 francs shall be payable to sailing ships. The total amount payable as con- struction bounty is limited to 50,000,000 francs, and the amount of new tonnage to claim this bounty in any one year is limited to 50,000 tons for steamers and 15,000 tons for sailing vessels. The following are the prin- cipal features of the new law: A "compensation" is payable to iron and steel steamers built abroad measuring more than 100 tons gross, put on the register during the period covered by the law, and belonging to Frenchmen, at per day of active employment in the oversea or international coasting trades and per ton of the total gross measurement, on the following scale: 5 centimes (fr. 0.05) per ton up to 2,000 tons. 4 centimes (fr. 0.04 ) for every additional ton up to 3,000 tons. 3 centimes (fr. 0:03) for every additional ton up to 4,000 tons. 2 centimes (fr. 0.02) for every additional ton. The number of days in any one year for which the "compensation" can be claimed is limited to 300. Steamers of over 7,000 tons will only take the same allowance as 7,000-ton boats. A "navigation bounty" is payable for every vessel employed in the oversea trade and built in France, measuring more than 100 tons gross, for the period of twelve years, dating from the registration of the ship, and navigating under the French flag, at per 1,000 miles run, and per ton of the total gross measurement, on the following scale: For steamers.--l fr. 70 centimes (fr. 1.70) for the first year, with annual decreases, dating from their registration, of 4 centimes during the first four years, of 8 centimes during the second period of four years, and of 16 centimes during the third period of four years. For steamers measuring more than 38,000 tons gross, however, the tariff of the bounty will be reduced by one centime per 100 tons or fraction of 100 tons above 3,000 tons, but the tariff for the first year must not, nevertheless, descend below 1 fr. 50 c. up to 7,000 tons. The bounty for steamers of over 7,000 tons will be that to which steamers of 7,000 tons would be entitled. : For Sailing Vessels.--1 fr. 70 centimes (fr. 1.70) for the first year, with annual decreases, dating from their registration, of 2 centimes during the first period of four years, of 4 centimes during the second period of four years, and of 8 centimes during the third period of four years. For sailers measuring more than 600 tons gross, however, the tariff of the bounty will be reduced by 10 centimes per 100 tons or fraction of 100 tons above 600 tons up to 1,000 tons. The bounty for sailers of over 1,000 tons will be that to which a ship of 1,000 tons would be entitled. A "construction bounty" is payable to French builders of both steam- ers and sailers, ostensibly with the object of compensating them for the customs duties levied on foreign materials, on the following scale. But the amount of tonnage taking this bounty in any one year is limited to 50,000 registered tons for steamers and 15,000 for sailers: For itom or steel vessels 2... 606.00... e ene 65 fcs. per ton gross. For wooden ditto of 150 tons and over.... 40 fcs. per ton gross. For wooden ditto of less than 150 tons.... 30 fcs. per ton gross. Fort engines aad boilers .. 666... 6405 avies 15 fces. per 100 kilos. Five per cent. of the amount payable for "compensation" or "bounty" will be deducted for the benefit of French seamen, and 6 per cent. for the seamen's pension fund. Vessels in the international coasting trade will only receive two-thirds of the "bounty" and "compensation" money. Owners of French-built steamers may, for each voyage, at their option, claim either the "compensation" or the "navigation bounty," but they -cannot claim both. For steamers not having realized a speed of 12 knots at their trial when half-laden a reduction of 5 per cent. in the navigation bounty or compensation will be made, and if the speed so realized is less than 11 knots the reduction will be 10 per cent. Steamers not having realized a minimum speed of 10 knots at their trial when half-laden, and -vessels acquired from abroad and mortgaged at the time or within six months afterwards for more than half their value, or which become French property after they are seven years old, are excluded from any benefit under the law. PROPOSED RUSSIAN BOUNTY FOR SHIP BUILDING. _ Animportant announcement is made by the Mouvement Maritime. It is to the effect that in the course of the labors of the Kharkoff congress, just held at the initiative of the Russian minister of marine for the purpose of considering what measures ought to be taken to widen the markets for Russian metallurgical products, resolutions were passed in favor of grant- ing bounties for ship building. These resolutions were submitted to the government with the result that, under the direct auspices of the Grand : Duke Alexander, a bill has been drawn up, of which the following are the principal features: (1) The government to advance to the ship owner by way of loan, 50 per cent. of the price of a vessel built in Russia, the loan to be paid off in twenty years without interest; (2) government to insure the vessel for three-fourths of her value at the rate of 2 per cent per annum, and the saving under this head for the period of twenty years would, so to say, suffice to pay off the loan; (3) government to pay half the price of the coal consumed by the ship owner, on a scale to be agreed upon, on condition that Russian coal is used; (4) the law to apply, for a period of twenty years, to all vessels built in Russia, with Russian ma- terials, within ten years after the promulgation of the law; (5) the Russian minister of finance reserves to himself the right, ten years after the passing of this law, to confer the privileges of the Russian flag only upon vessels _ constructed exclusively in Russia. It is stated that the provisions of this 2 bill, or some of them, have aroused an energetic opposition on the part of ship owners who have been accustomed to supply themselves from abroad; nevertheless it is thought quite likely that the measure will be adopted by the council of the empire. POLITICS DEFEATED NEW YORK STATE CANAL BILL. Buffalo, April 9.--The state newspapers are very silent over the canal situation, most of them, so far as noted, hardly going further than to report that the bill, after going through one house of the legislature, was not taken up in the other, a different bill on the same subject having failed there. In most cases there appears to be a special reason for this silence, The friends of the measure are genuinely sorry that it failed, but they are all aware that it is party politics alone that is responsible for the killing of the bill in the assembly. Everybody knows that Gov. Odell could have sent it through with a word had he chosen to do so, as the legislature was entirely under his control. Absolutely no measures went contrary to his wishes during the session. So he is alone responsible for the situation, Of course his political friends are keeping still just now, whether they favor the canal or not, and as to the opposition it seems to be accepted that there is a sort of still hunt on that is likely to develop into something racy before the fall campaign is well under way. For Gov. Odell is to come up for re-election this fall and the opposition is "laying" for him with a big canal plank to hit him with. He was anxious not to have a canal appropriation to vote on in a governor election, as it would complicate matters a good deal and would be sure to hurt him in the rural districts from which most of his support must come. ae : So the canal had to wait. But the opposition is accused of a stil] worse sort of conduct. The leaders of it are said to be pleased with the outcome. They wanted to see the bill killed while at the same time they and their followers voted for it. While they did not succeed to the letter in this, there is to be all possible use made of the fact that they favored the bill and that the other party killed it. Then an added plea is to be set up that their party has always been the canal party of the state and is ready to continue in that policy, while the other party never did anything for it. This is the way friends of the canal see the situation. They rather look for the Odell party to fall into line this fall and put a good strong canal plank into their platform, for if they do not the opposition will be quite likely to make it a leading issue and nominate an entire state ticket on it. As there are no local or national issues to come up this fall--New York electing state and local officers in alternate years--the canal may easily be the sole issue. Coming back to the genuine friends of the canal, who are urging its claims on purely business lines, there is anything but despondence over the defeat at Albany. They say that there is far more canal sentiment throughout the state than there ever was before. They are sorry that the fight must be made again, for it costs money, but they are going to make it all the same. They have found that the demand of the iron industry for the canal is one that cannot be met by any sort of argument, and New York is soon to be dominated direct by iron manufactures, as indicated by the great plant approaching completion in Buffalo and the big jump into prosperity of the iron districts of Ohio and Pennsylvania which is to be emulated soon at home. So nobody cares to deny this industry any aids that it can furnish. Hence the growth of canal sentiment, especially in canal counties, which see auxiliary furnaces lining the canal in the not dis- tant future all the way to New York. _ Gov. Odell and his party have for some time held control of the state, in spite of the fact that the opposition claim the most votes and to have lost through lack of a rallying point, hence its leaning towards a canal campaign. While the real friends of the canal would prefer to see it re-» stored on business lines, they are not going to reject support to it, let it come whence it may. There will be a very careful watch put on each other by the great parties, each with the other eye on the canal, and a still more careful watch kept on both by good canal men, with both eyes on the canal the same time. JOHN CHAMBERLIN. FALLING OFF IN SHIP BUILDING ABROAD. The ship building industry abroad has evidently fallen off consider- ably as the following brief comment in Fairplay of London will show: _ "Although few ship building orders are reported ship builders are re- ceiving a large number of inquiries for new tonnage. The Toyo Kisen Kaisha will, it is expected, shortly place orders for two large Pacific liners, probably on the northeast coast; the P. & O. Co. is, it is rumored, about to contract with Belfast builders for the construction of two large steamers; and the General Steam Navigation 'Co., the Royal Mail Steam Packet Co., Messrs. Elder, Dempster i& Co., and others will, it is believed, be shortly placing orders for new tonnage. Orders recently given out have been at prices which show a marked fall on those current a year or so ago, a vessel of about 6,000 tons deadweight capacity having been placed at about £6 2s. per ton as compared with about £8 twelve or eighteen months ago. A tender recently sent in for a steamer of between 9,000 and 10,000 tons deadweight, for the Atlantic cargo trade, was about 25 per cent. lower than the price paid for a similar vessel built eighteen months ago. It is believed that the placing of the admiralty contracts will have the effect of somewhat hardening the market." ae REVENUE CUTTER BILL PASSED. The house of representatives has passed the senate bill to promote the efficiency of the revenue cutter service. The bill gives the commissioned officers of the revenue cutter service relative rank as follows: Captain: with majors in the army and lieutenant commanders in the navy; firs lieutenants, with captains in the army and lieutenants in the navy; second- lieutenants, with first-lieutenants in the army and lieutenants, junior grade. in the navy; third-lieutenants, with second-lieutenants in the army and ensigns in the navy. It gives the officers of the service longevity pa equivalent to the corresponding rank in the army and provides for th retirement with three-fourths pay for disability, or upon reaching the limit of sixty-four years. os John Haug, consulting engineer and naval architect, is now loc the Bourse building, Philadelphia. --