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Ask Bids on New Work for U.S. Engineers The United States engineer office, Vicksburg, Miss., on April 19, issued a notice that plans and specifications will be ready shortly for asking bids on the construction of one twin-screw diesel-drive river towboat, complete in all details. The length molded. of this vessel is to be 176 feet; the breadth of hull molded will be 38 feet, and the depth molded will be 8 feet 6 inches. The hull is to be of steel construction. The United States engineer office, Customhouse, St. Louis, will receive bids until 2 p.m., May 1, for the con- struction of three towboats. Delivery is to be made afloat to the United States engineer depot, St. Louis. These towboats are to be of steel hull construction 54 feet in length, 13 feet 6 inches in beam, and 5 feet 7 inches in depth. The hull is to be transversely framed throughout and stiffened longitudinally. Bottom, side and deck plating, with certain excep- tions, is to be of 34-inch steel. The engine, which is to be direct connected to the propeller, is to be either two or four cycle, solid injection, heavy duty marine, full or semidiesel type, with not less than five cylinders. It shall be an air starting, direct reversing en- gine, developing not less than. 150 brake horsepower at 325 to 425 revo- lutions per minute. The United States engineer office, Customhouse, St. Louis, will also take bids on May 1 for the construction of five 24-foot metal hull motor boats to be delivered afloat at St. Louis. Reboilering Mine Planter Early in April the quartermaster’s office of the United States war de- partment at Governor’s Island, New York, received the following bids for installing new boilers and general repairs and conversion of the United States army mine planter GENERAL HY, O. ©. Op: From the Old Dominion Marine Railway, Norfolk, Va., $78,983 and 83 days; Todd Shipyards Corp., New York, $79,777 and 77 days; Fed- eral Shipbuilding & Dry Dock CO;, Kearny, N. J., $111,392 and 85 days; Maryland Dry Dock Co., Bal- timore, Md., $113,302 and 85 days; United Dry Docks Inc., New York, $120,475, and 80 days; and Ira S. Bushey & Sons, Brooklyn, N. Y., $131,528 and 85 days. The Sun Shipbuilding & Dry Dock Co., Chester, Pa., was awarded a con- tract by the Dawnic Steamship Co., New York, for repairs to the steam- ship Prerer Kerr at a bid of $11,165 and a time of 7 days. The Tietjen & Lang Dry Dock Co., Hoboken, N. J., a subsidiary of Todd Shipyards Corp., has completed repairs to the Savannah line steamship CITy oF MonTGcoMERY which had_ suffered damage by fire to the extent of ap- proximately $50,000. Largest All-Welded Barges Built on Pacific Coast The construction of four steel barges on the Pacific Coast has attracted widespread attention in that district among ship and boat builders. The reason is that they are the largest all- welded floating equipment built in that part of the country. Each barge is 134 feet overall length, 36 feet overall width, with a depth of 7 feet 6 inches. The draft when loaded to capacity is 6 feet and the carrying capacity is 650 net tons. Each barge weighs approxi- mately 110 tons. Steel for these units was supplied by the Pacifie Coast Steel Corp. and con- sisted of about 300 tons of sheared plates, 100 tons of bars and bar sized angles, 15 tons of universal mill plates, and 55 tons of standard structural shapes. The barges were built by the Commercial Iron Works, Portland, Oreg., for the Western Transportation Co., a subsidiary of the Crown Wil- lamette Paper Co. They are to be used on the Columbia and Willamette rivers for transporting log fuel and paper chips between the paper company’s various plants. One of four barges of welded steel construction built on the Pacific Coast for the Western Transportation Co. 28 MARINE REVIEwW—May, 1934 Northwest Shipyards Busy on Smaller Vessels Contracts for five wood vessels for the United States biological survey have been awarded to Puget sound yards by the department of agricul- ture, at a total cost approximating $150,000. The largest job was taken by the Winslow Marine Rail- way & Shipbuilding Co., Winslow, Wash., at whose yard the 114-foot motorship Brown BEAR will be built on a bid of $65,899. This vessel will be the mother ship for the survey’s Alaska fleet. Heavy Douglas fir will be used with a sheathing of iron bark, The vessel will have two full decks and a cargo capacity of 100 tons. The main power plant will consist of two 200-horsepower 6- cylinder 4-cycle, direct reversing die- sel engines. There will be accommo- dations for a crew of six and five staterooms for officers and bureau officials, Contract for the engines for the Brown Bear was awarded some time ago to the Washington Iron Works, Seattle, which will also furnish a single 90 horsepower diesel engine for the motorship GRIZZLY BEAR, 58 feet in length, which will be built by Schert- zer Boat & Machine Works, Seattle. Three 50-foot launches are being con- structed by the Long Boat Works, Olympia, Wash, These units will be semi-tunnel type, shallow draft and equipped with high speed, 150 horsepower each Red Wing engines. Two 45-foot wood cruisers, equip- ped with 35 horsepower Fairbanks- Morse diesel engines have been launched at the yards of the Fre- mont Boat Market, Seattle. For the Northwest Herring Co., the Western Boatbuilding Co., Ta- coma, Wash., has launched the 73- foot wood fishing vessel JEANETTE, in which a 135-horsepower Wash- ington diesel engine has been in- stalled. This craft is designed for the peculiar requirements of herring fishing, At the plant of the Lake Union Dry Dock & Machine Works, Seattle, the keels have been laid for two of the three steel coast guard cutters, the total contract being in excess of $700,000. ' These vessels will have Winton diesel engines. Officials of the Berg Shipbuilding Co., Seattle, are awaiting word from Washington with reference to the contract for the lighthouse tender HouttyHocK on which the local plant was low bidder but in excess of the appropriation, The smaller Puget sound ports have requested the government to build a $125,000 hydraulic pipeline dredge for service in local waters. The United States engineers held a hearing at Seattle in April to sur- vey the needs of the district.