the water would be transmitted through the wall of the ship to the water col- umn in the cylinder, even were no pas- sage of communication present. The head, by means of its threaded connec- tion with the cylinder, may be adjusted to vary the dimensions of the chamber within the cylinder, and thus control the pitch of the resonant cavity in order to tune it to any desired source of sound. the cylinder will be set in resonant vi- bration by a given sound transmitted to it through the water and entering either through the ship's. wall or the opening therein. The sound thus intensified op- erates the microphone, which produces in the telephone receiver an audible sound. While the invention has been de- scribed by reference to a specific form of apparatus, it is evident that its con- struction may be greatly varied. In general, the sound receiver may be sub- merged 'at any selected station or placed in a tank attached to the walls of a vessel so'that, by means of the ap- ; paratus, signals may be transmitted from the shore to the vessel, or con- - versely, or between vessels within the limits of practical transmission. AKERS EMERGENCY STEERING GEAR. The Akers Steering Gear Co., 1590 Old Colony building, Chicago, is put- ting its emergency steam steerer upon This emergency gear will be installed upon the new steamers W. M. Mills, Leland a number of the new freighters. S. DeGraef, Wilpen, Ontario Car Ferry .No. 1, and upon the new steamer building for Ed. Mehl of Erie, Pa. Quite a number of serious accidents have happened since the opening of navigation which emphasizes the ne- cessity of an auxiliary gear entirely independent of the regular. steering gear and engine. The Akers steam steering gear is one that can be thrown into operation instantaneously the bridge and operated by the officer in charge should anything happen to the regular apparatus. Accidents are expensive things to vessel owners be- cause the insurance companies do not make good "time -- lost. It is nearly always in the restricted channels that the regular gear gives out owing to the strain put upon it by ramming the wheel hard over at the turns and it is in precisely this situation that an emergency gear keeps the vessel from stranding. The Akers emergency gear is especially commended by Inland Lloyds. The column of water within ---- for a small 'National -" Mantitacture < Or from "TAE MARINE. REVIEW SHERIFFS MANUFACTURING CO. The Sheriffs Milwaukee, Wis., have just com- pleted repairs on the engine of the steamer John Schroeder which con- sisted of a new low pressure piston head and distance piece between cyl- inders. new stern pipe on the steamer Black Rock. -: Tt 38° building = an Bae) by 10-inch. high pressure engine fish tug for Renpferd the hull being built of Manitowoc. It is Brothers, Burger also building a new engine for M. Treu &- Co., the hull being built by Benning of Milwaukee. It is also furnishing a new set of steel blades for the steam- er Christopher Columbus. Among recent orders are the following: A 10- ft. wheel for Green Bay, a 6-ft. wheel for Milford, Pa., a 66-in. wheel for New Orleans, and' a-li- ft 6-1m wheel for Chicago. The company is just ship- ping a double engine, 7-in. by 10-in. cylinder, double drum pile driver for the C. H. Starke Dredge & Dock Co., being the third one of this make in use by the same firm. A new wheel has just been put on the tug Fisher and repairs completed to the machinery - of the steamer Oregon. COLUMBIAN ROPE CoO. In 1891--the Columbian ~:Rope Go.; <ot- Atiburn~ N. /Y.. oreanized a rope and binding twine © in- dustry in competition with the Cordage. Co., which. at. that time practically controlled the rope and binding twine business in the United States. The Columbian Rope Co. has prospered since it was founded. In addition to manufacturing rope from manila and sisal it established two years. ago a department for the commercial twines from jute, American, Russian, and Ital- ian hemp. This part of: the business has grown so rapidly that the com- pany is now engaged in building anew mill, 100 ft. wide and 600 ft. long, oné- half of which is three stories and the other half four stories high. The com- pany today manufacture every' kind and class of rope known to the trade. D. T. WILLIAMS VALVE CO. The D. T. Williams Valve Co., 521: 523 Hunt street, Cincinnati, O., manu- facturers of high grade engineering appliances consisting of brass and iron valves, gage cocks, fittings, oil and grease cups, lubricators, stéam traps and separators, has just issued a cata- log superseding all previous issues. It is really the first general catalog that the company has issued. Since the last catalog was issued the Manufacturing Co.,. The. company has putin 4" by.- ; graphing Sai parties. # 4 company has erected new shops 1 are manufacturing a great variety of engineering specialties. Customers are therefore advised to destroy all pr vious catalogs and to secure one the new ones. The catalog contait as a frontispiece a very fine wash drawing of the company's plant at Cincinnati. The" index is also pub- lished on the front pages and is nic arranged, so that it is immedately p sible to locate any subject desi The price list is very complete. a addition in. the rear pages a "great deal of data of interest to' engineers and others is published. The catalog concludes with a cipher code for be ALMY WATER TUBE 'BOILERS. The Almy Water Tube Boiler Go., Providence, R. I., recently shipped -- two boilers for the steam yacht Belle mere, one for the steamer Gfiswold, of New London, one to the Narra- gansett Bay Oyster Co., Providence, R. I., and one to Walter Stebbins, & sons, of "Baltimore. Two were shipped to Lina Park, Seattle, Wash., and one to H. G. Campbell, of Port- land, Ore. The company recently made a complete installation in the steam yacht Onondaga and are just finishing three for South American One boiler was also recently shipped to Capt. R. T. Potter, Lewes, Del. NICHOLSON SHIP LOG. The Nicholson ship log and speed indicator has been receivéd with favor upon every ship upon which it has been installed. The following ships have recently been equipped with a Nicholson log: The Canadian cruiser Vigilant, the wrecking tug Favorite, the Southern Pacific Co.'s new ships be Momus, 'Antilles and Creole, the Pa- Me cific Coast Co.'s new ships President and Governor, also their steamships City of Pueblo, Queen and Senator, and the New England Navigation Co.'s new ship, -- the Massachusetts. The log of the Massachusetts is published elsewhere in this issue. The Franklin Filter Co., 308 North : Commercial street, St. Louis, Mo., has ae issued a catalog describing the Frank- a lin oil filter under the general title = == of "Efficient Bearings." Bearings .are . easy to operate if the oil is always pure and clean. The efficiency of the bearing depends upon the oil filter. The catalog describes the filter, giv- ing prices for various sizes, and an- nounces that the filter will be sent upon approval subject to thirty days'. trial.