The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Far East Port Conditions--Insurance Rate Ships -- British Ship Market Situation -- HIPPING facilities at Shang- S hai and Hongkong are sub- jects of two preliminary reports just' made to the department of com- merce by Paul Page Whitham, trade 'commissioner. These reports will -subsequently be used in a complete 'report on the ports of China upon which the department's agents are now working. They have been sent to the office of the bureau in' the cus- tom house, New York, for the con- venience of shipping people gener- ally. | - The lack. of American shipping at the Chinese ports is commented on. 'The greatest of the American go- downs at Shanghai was sold to the Nippon Yusen Kaisha about two years ago, and today there is no American terminal in the port. Mr. Witham stated that at present one American company is building a moderate sized wharf and godown system for the use of its own and associated inter- ests. Shanghai has a population of about - 1,000,000 and is in the center of a great industrial and commercial dis- trict. It isa financial center, pos- sessing shipbuilding and repair yards with facilities for taking care of ocean going vessels up to intermediate size. The yards and drydocks are owned by either British or Chinese inter- ests.. Mr. Whitham. declares that it is advisable for American ship lines _ to acquire their own terminal prop- erty and to act quickly ds desirable waterfront is being rapidly disposed of at the present time. Labor at the port is so cheap that there has been no incentive toward mechanical improvements in the han- dling of cargo. Nevertheless it costs about $1, gold, per ton to enter and clear a vessel, which is probably higher than the charges at other Oriental ports. A supplemental re- port discusses the port development project, and advises Americans to take an active interest' in the future of the city. It will bé necessary to deepen the channel approaches and construct new piers and docks. A general port administration will un- doubtedly be established, through which will be co-ordinated the ter- minal facilities. _ At the present time Shanghai is served by the Pacific Mail Steam- 'Steamship Co. should revive their 'ship Co. China Mail Steamship Co., W. R. Gracé & Co., Robert Dollar Co., Frank. Waterhouse & Co., Gar- land Steamship Co., and the Pacific These American -linés are subjected to competition with Chinese, Japanese and British steam- ship' companies. The second report deals. entirely 'with Hongkong. and Canton. Hong- kong is a British port and colony. While it is being served by the same 'American lines that serve Shanghai, the American interests seem to have desetted this port further south. It is' a transshipment port and Mr. Whitham thinks that Americans interests in it. The port is well equipped with re- pairing and docking facilities, being able to accommodate vessels up to 700 feet long. The coaling facili- ties are adequate and fuel oil is sup- plied by the Standard Oil Co. and the Asiatic Petroleum Co. The first named company supplies only its own steamers whereas the latter will fur- nish fuel oil to any ship applying. Hongkong is one of the chief financial centers of the Far East. Canton, only 95 miles distant by wa- ter, is an important industrial center. This is the natural port for all trad- ing with southern China. How to Reduce Insurance Owners of sailing vessels can save money on insurance by exercising some discretion in, placing policies. Some of the more practical owners of this type of craft have already worked this out and have put it into practice. Due to the unsettled condi- tions in various ports of the world, it frequently takes two to five months to obtain and load a cargo. The ves- Sel loses much time in port, but if the insurance policy is a time policy no concession is possible. Supposing the sailing vessel is engaged in trade be- tween the United States and Africa, the annual insurance rate on her would be 11 per cent. This vessel may obtain a policy to cover the trip risk on the round voyage, including loading and unloading at destination, for 6 or 7 per cent. The voyage may consume, from eight to nine months. After the vessel returns home the pol- icy will no longer cover her. But since she may be tied up some time 344 - Bishing Men to Build « . | To Nationalize Port before another charter is signed, the owners: can take, out a 'port risk policy -at a nominal amount and save money _on the year's insurance bill. The port risk. for wooden vessels is 21%4 per cent per annum, short rates being charged for a period less than one year; Assuming that it requires -four months to collect and load a cargo, the short rate charge would be one-half. the annual rate or 1% per cent.. This rate added to the rate for the round trip voyage would make the combined rate of 7% to 8% per cent or a net saving of 234 to 334 per cent _by using this method of insurance. At the present time when first-class sail- ing ships run up in value to the neigh- borhood of $250,000 this saving should not be overlooked by the prudent owner. Fishing Men to Build Ships The Fishing Owners' and Marine Rail- ways' association was recently formed in Seattle as an outcome of the desire of a number of! fishing boat operators to enter the building and repair busi- ness on a co-operative basis. The entire list of stockholders is made up from owners of fishing and _ other small vessels which are operated on Lake Washington, Puget sound and Alaskan waters. L. A. Sandstrom heads the new organization, while O. O. Ohvatum is manager and treasurer. The corporation has secured a five- year lease on the marine ways of the port commission at Salmon bay, and has completed arrangements to take over the plant of the Queen City Boat Building Co. In winter the organiza- tion will repair the Alaskan fleets and in summer will build new vessels and repair Lake Washington and Puget sound craft. Oppose Sale of Ships That British authorities oppose the sale of any vessels to the American trade has become evident since all buyers from the United States have been refused when bids were made on vessels of British shippers. In several instances the American buy- ers had completed negotiations as far as possible and then were refused sale on account of orders issued by the British shipping controller. Since the signing of the armistice,