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DEY eT ee Eee IR AS eg eee GRRE oe ate ae on Fe aR LN on Fy October, 1915 former Great Lakes steamers BiInGHAM- TON, JOHN G. McCuLLoucH, Oweco and GrorGE F. BrowNeLt, which have been sold to the Marine Transport Service Co., will be: operated between Atlantic and Pacific coast ports via the canal. This company has appointed the Dodge Steamship Co., its agents in Portland and Astoria. Timothy E. Byrnes, former vice president of the New York, New Haven & Hartford railroad, is organizing a steamship line to ply between Boston and Pacific coast ports via the Panama canal. Mr. Byrnes hopes to raise a working capital of from $10,000,000 to $12,000,000 and to build 11 steamers for weekly sailing service. Need Ships for Wheat Scarcity of ocean tonnage and con- sequent tying up of the Canadian export movement constitutes one of the most serious problems now facing. the Canadian authorities, and the dif- ficulties which have arisen will be taken up with the British government. The problem is becoming more im- portant daily, owing to the impending harvest in Canada and the necessity for moving the immense crop which is expected. The general export busi- ness of the country has been seriously hampered since the outbreak of the war, on account of the shortage of ocean tonage on the Atlantic as well as on the Pacific. Practically the whole of the Domin- ion is vitally interested in the move- ment of the new crop this autumn. The total wheat yield in Canada last year was 158,000,000 bushels, while this year the estimated crop is over 200,- 000,000 bushels. This will require a great ship tonnage for export. The elevators of the country have a total capacity of 168,000,000 bushels, which will no doubt take care of the crop so far as storage is concerned. But there is only a capacity of 29,250,000 bushels in the elevators in the eastern inspection division (including Mont- real, with a capacity of 7,400,000 bush- els), as the large Intercolonial rail- way elevator at. St.John, N. B. was burned last year, so that unless better facilities for export are soon forth- coming, the crop from the west will have to be moved very gradually. In view of this, it is considered probable that there will be serious congestion of wheat at the ocean terminals by the end of September, and in this case the rail movement to the east will be held up. This may bring about an overflow of wheat on the western markets and a consequent big drop in price. This will occur unless the Can- adian government succeeds in its pres- ent efforts to have some of the ships now on war service released, and ev- ery available tramp steamer pressed into service. The increased insurance rates on account of war risk are comparatively light, compared with the increase in freight rates. If the latter go. still higher, joint action, it is said, will be taken by the British imperial and Canadian governments to requisition all available freighters for handling food exports from Canada at a fixed freight rate, the government assuming all risks. New Chinese Line Five million dollars, it was stated has been subscribed by a coterie of Chinese merchants in San Fran- cisco. and the Orient. to finance the steamship line which it was an- nounced recently would be established to ply between San Francisco and China in competition with Japanese lines. Half a million. dollars of the fund has been set aside for instant call, said the announce- ment, which was made on authority of John L. McNab of San Francisco, attor- ney for the Chinese. Mr. McNab said a committee .ap- pointed to do the preliminary work in organizing the new company is quietly securing options on ships. Most of the Lake Trade throughout the early summer somewhat leisurely, is now fairly booming. Men are in demand at all ports and are usually shipped as soon as they apply at the shipping offices, af- fording a decided contrast to the earlier months when they were forced to wait for days and even weeks for an oppor- tunity to ship, owing to a lack of busi- ness. The turn came swiftly and lead- ing shippers have sold all the ore that they care to promise to deliver. Other shippers decline to work over time to fill orders. . The shippers have again found it difficult to cover their tonnage requirements in the ore trade and all thought of an early close is now aban- doned. The indications are that the business will be going at full tilt throughout November, notwithstanding the fact that the seamen’s bill becomes operative Nov. 4. The August movement of ore was certainly surprising and is a pretty good Toes trade after dragging along ‘index of what may be expected during the balance of the season. If the proportion keeps up, as it undoubtedly will, the total season’s movement will be over 45,000,000 tons. The August movement of 8,081,117 tons was within 123,299 tons of the record movement of THE MARINE REVIEW 369. work, he said, has been accomplished within the last week by the Chinese merchants, the majority of whom are members of the Chinese Six companies. The Chinese, McNab said, plan to start with vessels adapted to the peculiar conditions of their Oriental trade—that is, having limited vabin facilities and great steerage and freight capacity. Later they hope to have several first class vessels equipped to handle the best tourist travel in the world. The original announcement of negotia- tions looking toward the organization of a Chinese-American steamship company was by Dr. V. K. Wellington Koo, China’s first minister to Mexico, upon his arrival at San Francisco on the steamer Persia. Dr. Koo withheld the names of the American bankers jn- terested in the project, but said that practically all the great banks of China were back of it. Dr. Koo intimated that the steamers of the new line would fly the Chinese flag. The service would have been started sooner, he said, had it not been for the difficulty in purchasing vessels. The Chinese minister said of the new. venture: “It is the first fruit of the visit of our industrial commissioners to’ this coun- try several months ago.” <J SSS cr WS SSS gry KS ales July, 1913, when 8,204,416 tons were moved. The double holiday occurring Sept. 5 and 6 halted the movement somewhat, so that September may show a slight falling off, but dispatch is so phenomenal, vessels doing practically no waiting for cargoes, that the decrease will not be much. In fact, the lake fleet is so mobile that it can meet with ridiculous ease any sudden demand upon its resources so that the August move- ment could readily be exceeded if oc- casion called for it. Meanwhile. grain shippers are taking time by the forelock and are chartering ahead as far as the wariness of the vessel owner will permit them. Four cents has already been offered for clos-— ing trips, which is a very satisfactory figure, but vessel owners may be able to obtain more. Chartering for the last half of September is being negotiated on the basis of 2% cents, a rate which was reached in November last year. These figures run into money fast and the prospects are that vessel owners will easily recoup the losses of the season of 1914. Coal is moving quite freely with a firm demand ruling for small boats. Large cargoes, however, are scarce.