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248 MARINE REVIEW June, 1922 FIG. 2—DEPARTURE FROM PITTSBURGH WHARF OF RECENT TOW: OF EIGHT BARGES LOADED WITH STEEL PRODUCTS for the Jones & Laughlin Steel Co., three 150-foot steel barges also loaded with steel, and two flat barges of coal. It was towed by the TRANSPORTER, owned by.the Water Transport Co., Inc., organized under the laws of Dela- ware but with ‘headquarters in_ the Wabash building, Pittsburgh. This company just completed its fourth tow and began collecting tonnage for its fifth to leave Pittsburgh early in May. It will include two barges of structural steel. from the McClintic-Marshall Co., Pittsburgh, for delivery at Portsmouth, O., two barges for the National Supply Co, to Memphis, Tenn., and a barge from the Wheeling Steel Corp., also for Mem- phis delivery. The Water Transport Co. likewise owns two smaller steamers, the Convoy which usually carries coal be- tween Moundsville and Parkersburg, W. Va. and the’ Orp ReEwtaBLe. utilized in the transportation of gasoline from Sistersville, W. Va., to Pittsburgh for the Atlantic Refining Co. Those inter- ested in the Warer Transport Co. have been engaged for the past seven years in this work but only the last two. as the Water Transport Co. On this first trip, the TRANSPORTER dropped one barge at. Huntington, two at Louisville, and three at Evansville. An additional barge, the KLONDIKE, built by the Marietta Mfg. Co., for the Aluminum Ore Co., was taken in tow at Huntington and delivered to the ore company at Cairo, Ill. Included in this shipment was a barge containing between 500 and 600 tons of nails which were unloaded at the dock of the Aluminum Ore Co. for the Sim- mons Hardware Co., St. Louis. Owns Fleet of Barges In addition to the three steamers, ‘the Water Transport Co. owns a fleet of 20 barges, 12 steel and eight wooden. Eight of the steel barges are 36 x 200 feet and of 1500-ton capacity; four are 25 feet shorter and of 1000-ton capacity and all are built with water FROM PITTSBURGH MILLS Valley Is Important OME idea of the importance of the Mississippi river valley from a bulk freight producing standpoint may be gleaned from the following statistics: The Mississippi river valley in- cludes all of 22 states and part of seven others. Its area is 1,725,000 square miles or 64 per cent of the totai area of the United States. In it approximately 65,000,000 people or 55 per cent of the pop- ulation of the United States live. Seventy per cent of the nation’s agricultural products, including live stock, come from it. Forty-four per cent of the coun- try’s manufactured goods are pro- duced in it. Seventy-five per cent of the lumber and forest products of the United States are found in it. Sixty per cent of its mines and 70 per cent of its petroleum are located in it.. tight compartments and collision bullk- heads. Many are equipped with steel hatches to protect freight. The wooden barges have capacity as follows: Six are 400-ton, and one is 500-ton and one is 200-ton. Additions to this equipment are contemplated and_ en- gineers now are engaged in designing a number of improved barges. The barges as well as the steamers are chartered at a per diem rate by the steel producers. Improvements to barge and steamer equipment now contemplated, presage the shipment of steel at an early date direct from Pittsburgh to points on the Gulf of Mexico, as well as into Central America without re-loading, and finally through the Panama canal to Pacific coast ports. So far the Water Transport Co. has not ex- tended its activity beyond Memphis since deliveries from Pittsburgh to that and intermediate points have kept its present equipment active. Officers of the “Water. Transport: Co. Ine. are: Charles T. Campbell, president and general manager; H. B. Mish, vice president, who also is president of the General Contracting Co., Pitts- burgh; J. H. Gilmore, treasurer, who also is vice president of the General Contracting Co., and H. S. Stuckeman, secretary and assistant treasurer. Large Tonnages Shipped The second tow handled by the Water Transport Co. left Pittsburgh Dec. 5 and also’ was participated in by the Jones & Laughlin Steel Co. to the extent of about 4000 tons. Two barges each likewise were towed for the American Steel & Wire Co., the Pittsburgh Steel Co., and the National Tube Co. Two of these barges were delivered in St. Louis nine days after leaving Pittsburgh, beating the initial shipment to St. Louis by one day. The TRANSPoRTER this time convoyed the tow to Louisville, St. Louis, and Memphis, then back to St. Louis, and returned to Memphis before returning to Pittsburgh. An even larger tonnage was shipped in the Transport company’s third tow. This left Pittsburgh Feb. 13, reached Memphis Feb. 25 and the empty barges were returned to Pittsburgh on March 13. This shipment comprised 10,300 tons, made up of four barges each for the Pittsburgh Steel Co,. and the American Steel & Wire Co., and two for the Wheeling Steel Corp., two barges being dropped off at Louisville, the remainder going to Memphis. Considerable improvement in time is noted in the record made in connec- tion with the Transport company’s latest shipment since only seven days were required to reach Memphis, as against approximately two weeks for . ; ‘ ’ : a 4