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THE MARINE RECORD. pr ne rere eee ne ne ae mE kinds of iron and steel Bessemer steel rails of standard weights remained at $24 aton throughout the entire year. In January of the present year the price of rails was reduced $2 per ton, or from $24 to $22, and the latter figure has since ruled. The old price of $24, however, in all probability will be restored at ‘an early day. —_ 26 — RELATIVE to the new “rules of the road” known as the White bill, which went into effect this spring on the lakes, it was thought advisable to have the Canadian government adopt the same rules, so that all lake ton- nage would sail under the same steering laws. The ques- tion was brought before the Dominion legislature this week and the government was asked whether they had decided to pass the law and thus make uniform rules governing ships of both nations. Mr. Costigan, Minisier of Marine, answered that the Canadian government saw no reason for changing the present law and he further pointed out that it would be inexpedient to adopt one set of rules for local waters and another for the Great Lakes. nD 2 a OPENING OF THE CANADIAN ST. MARY’S FALLS CANAL. There is to be quite a demonstration at Ste Marie to- day on the official opening of the Canadian St Mary’s Falls Canal. With*the final completion of the ship canal and lock, which cost about $4,000,000, the Canadians. have now a continuous waterway 2,384 miles long, from the head of Lake Superior to the Atlantic coast. As early as 1798 a canal and lock were built at this point by one of the northwest fur companies, subse- quently transferred to the Hudson Bay Co. ‘The canal was constructed across the St. Mary’s Island, near the site at the present canal. As near as can be ascer- tained this canal was 300 feet long and 45 feet wide. The lock is said to have been of wood, 38 feet long and 9 feet wide, and capable of raising the water nine feet or about half the total fall of the rapids. ‘The remaining height must have been overcome against the current, which was an easy task for the light bateaux of the traders. The lower gates were raised by the aid of a Windlass, and the upper gates folded, and were provided with valves for the admission of water into the lock chamber. This canal was completed in 1808. During the war of 1812 a body of 150 Americans under Major Holmes went over the river, pillaged the adjoining post and destroyed the lock. ‘Timbers of the old canal were unearthed in 1889, when excavations were made for the water power canal, north of the present ship canal. Work on the new ship canal lock has continued for several years, the plans having been altered to suit the largest class of tonnage. ‘The lock is 900 by 60 feet, with a depth of water over the mitre sill of 20 feet 3 inches. There is’also a power canal 1800 feet long, 14 feet deep, and from 100 to 150 feet wide, capable of furnishing 15,000 h. p. at an initial cost of $25 per horse-power. Work on the canal and lock was begun in May, 1889. The site of the canal is through a neck of land jutting out from the mainland. Its length across the land is 3,500 feet, and including the dredged approaches under water it is 18,100 feet long. ‘There are five sets of lock gates, built of wood. Water is admitted to the chamber by fly valves under the gates, through 8x8 feet culverts, extending the length of the chamber, and havy- ing 152 openings at their tops. The gates and valves are operated by electricity, which is generated by water power. Two 45-inch, 150 horse-power turbines, supply the power for operating the generator and dynamos. These turbines are set horizontally and are supplied with water from the upper level by a 6-foot 8-inch steel pipe placed at the back of the lock wall. Just betore en- tering the power house this pipe divides into two five- foot pipes, one for each turbine. The discharge pipes are also of the latter size. The-turbines are located on the first floor of the power house,;which is: a two-story building of stone. Usually only one of .them will be used for running the generator. When by reason of any accident it may become necessary to pump out the lock chamber, the two can be used to operate the two centrifugal pumps which have a capacity of 32,000 gal- lons per minute. The chambercan be pumped dry in six or seven hours. ‘The electric machines consist of two dynamos for electric lighting purposes, and a gen- erator which supplies power to the 22-horse-power mo- tors that operate the gates and the yalves. The genera- tors are of 45 K. W. capacity. In all there are six gate machines, one for each leaf of the upper lock gate, lower lock gate and auxiliary gate. A wo-den motor house covers each of the gate machines and its connecting mo- tor. So far as is known this canal has the only electric power machinery ever used in ee the gates and valves of canal locks. eS e-6 ae: ame LAKE FREIGHTS, While the Escanaba ore rate wavered during the past week and declined.5 cents, and the 75 cent Marquette rate was nore too firm, yet the general outlook is per- haps better than at any time during the season. The reason for this lies in the fact that lively coal shipments must shortly take place, and already the Buffalo rate to Lake Michigan has gone up to 50 cents Chicago, 40 to 45 cents Milwaukee, and it is reported that before the season is over 70 cents will be paid to Chicago, but of course this is only a surmise and looking too far into the future to be of any value. Ohio ports to the head of the lakes is quoted at 30 cents. The Chicago grain trade has been more than slow all week and it has been uphill work for even the line boats to get what they wanted. The latest charters are at 1% cents corn to Buffalo, with little shipping even at that figure, for Toledo 1% cents on wheat has been paid. Some statistics of the ore movement so far this season bear out the assumption that 1895 will show an improve- ment over the previous year in the volume of shipments, and this will tend to hold up freights. The receipts of ore at the principal Lake Erie ports for 1894, as shown by custom house figures, amounted to 4,902,474 tons, dis- tributed nearly as follows: Cleveland, 1,799 ,874 tons; Ash- tabula, 2,022,510 tons; Conneaut, 243,361 tons; Fairport, 684,722 tons; Lorain 152,034 tons. For May, 1895, the ore received at these same ports amounted to 779.939 tons, distributed as follows ; ; Cleveland, 270,217 tons; Ashtabula, 338,840 tons; * Conneaut, 27,338 tons; Fair- port, 126,261 tons; Lorain, 17,279 tons. oro rr — 00 rr THE NICARAGUA CANAL. A favorable report from the Government commission which went to Nicaragua a month ago to examine the route of the proposed Maritime Canal is confidently ex- pected on their return to the United States next month. Private letters received from members s'ate that the commissioners have already traversed the route from Greytown to Brito, and that they are convinced from a cursory examination that the plan of the canalisa feasi- ble one. The commission is now preparing to make a second and more careful survey of the route. The Con- gressional friends of the canal are awaiting with much interest the report of the commission. If it shall be fa- vorable, as now seems probable, it will grea'ly aid the passage of a bill looking to the building of the canal by the United States Government. Anunfavorable report, on the other hand, would render practically impossible the passage of such a measure. _ rn + a A NOVEL BICYCLE BOAT. An ingenious method of traveling over smooth or pro- tected waters has just been perfected at Racine, Wis. The apparatus, which has been invented by Mr. John Dean of that city, is briefly, a bicycle mounted on two light rubber cylinders or tubes. From recent public tests it has been found to work easy, steer well and im- possible tocapsize. It appears that two types of these boats will be manufactured for small lake and river use. The portable boats consist of two floats, which are made of light canvas, rubber covered. Each float has two inner tubes, similar to those used in an ordinary bi- cycle tire. Each tube when inflated is 7 inches in di- ameter and 10 feet long and are blown up without the use of a pump, making an air chamber 7 inches in diam- eter and 40 feet long which is sufficient to carry a num- ber of persons. Hach float has a truss made of steel tubing, running the full length, which makes it very strong and light and also serves to take the wear of the rubber casings when the boat is run on the beach. The floats are set four feet apart from center to center, making a boat 10 feet long and 5 feet wide. It is con- nected by steel tubing, one at each end, one for the front wheel to rest on and the main frame into which the rear wheel of the bicycle rests. Thisframe has two upright pieces with an adjustment to suit any sized wheel. ‘The bicycle is supported from the center of the wheel or steps, for the only change that is made in an rdinary bicycle is to put on an extra step, whichis very light. ‘The rear wheel of the bicycle rests on a friction pulley to which is connected a small bevel gear, which works the propeller. There isa rod withan attachment connected to the top of the bicycle frame, so that the rider has full control of the propeller and can raise or lower it to suit the depth of water. The boat when complete draws but 2% to 3 inches of water. The long- est piece in the boat is 3 feet 3 inches and all parts fold upintoa very small package weighing about twenty- five pounds. For fishing or hunting the bicycle pro- peller boat is perfect for it gives the rider the use of both hands. It can attain a speed of from four to five miles per hour with ease with the portable boat anda very much greater speed with the stationary boat which will be made of all steel. All of the running gear is fitted with ball bearings. ts eo ce "“LONGSHOREMEN’S NATIONAL CONVENTION. The national convention of the ‘Longshoremen’s As- sociation of the United States will be held at Milwaukee, beginning July 9. The sessions will be held at Lumber Vessel Unloader’s hall, 170 Reed street, and will con- tinue five days. It is expected that not fewer than 60 delegates will attend. The association is affilliated with the American Fed- eration of Labor and has its strongest foothold on the lakes, but steps are being taken to strengthen the or- ganization on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, and on the gulf. There are now. 41 local organizations. The national association was instituted at Detroit, August 26, 1892, by representatives from the lake cities. The present national officers are: General president, Daniel Keefe, No. 3029 Lowe avenue, Chicago; firs vice-president, Charles Kelley, Washburn, Wis.; second vice-president, Frank J. Weber, No. 966 Tenth street, Milwaukee; third vice-president, James Carson, No. 1421 Pine Grove avenue, Port Huron; general secretary treasurer, Henry C. Barter, No. 24 St. Aubin avenue, Detroit. ‘ The principal aims and purposes of the association are to improve the moral, intellectual and social condi- tion of its members, to encourage useful industry, and to render mutual assistance. ’ i CANADIAN NOTES. At Barrie the steamer Orillia is being lengthened 35 feet. The steamer Carmona, of the Brown Line, which will run between Windsor and the Sault, is having her guards removed soshe can come up through the Welland Canal. Vesselmen will remember her as the Manitoba, of the Beatty Line, running between Sarnia and Duluth. In November, 1883, she went ashore near Southampton in a terrific northeast gale. She spent the entire winter in the icethere, and was afterwards re-built at Detroit and taken to the St. Lawrence River. A resolution has been introduced into the Canadian parliament calling the attention of that body to the con- struction of the Chicago drainage canal to the Missis- sippi, and asking if the government proposes to protect the interests of the Canadian lake marine inthe matter. FLOTSAM, JETSAM AND LAGAN. George Curtis, engineer on the steamer Norman when she was lost, has been given a place on the City of Toledo. The municipality of Toledo, after securing 9 Federal government approval of plans for a bridge, reduced the height ftom 38 to 18 feet. Government engineers have directed the city not to proceed with the bridge on the new plan. The Big Four railroad has contracted with Carkin & Stickney to dredge the slips around their Sandusky docks. ‘The work will begin at once. Capt. B. F. Williams, formerly of the American Eagle, is now sailiug the City of Nicollet. The steamer Frank EK. Kirby has been fitted witha powerful searchlight by Hiram Marks of Detroit. George Allen, late second engineer on the Norman, has been appointed to a similar position on the Sitka. Capt. Alex McDougall, manager of the American Steel Barge Co., says that the company has during the 4% years of its existence turned out more tonnage than any other shipyard in America. The company has built 32 boats, including one tug and Standard Co. oil vessels. Twenty-eight were whalebacks with a carrying capacity of 75,000 tons through the Sault at an average depth of water.