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10 THE MARINE RECORD. H.C. BURRELL, Marine Reporter. We can Supply len and Officers to Passing Vessels FW. WHEELER & COMPANY, BUILDERS OF ALL KINDS OF BOAT ON THE RIVER AT ALL HOURS NIGHT OR DAY. Iron, Steel, ana Signal: One long * Wooden Ships FOR LAKE OR OCEAN SERVICE. two short. Our boats are white. We’ll treat you white and deal with you ON THE SQUARE. OFFICE: FOOT WOODWARD AVENUE, DETROIT, MICH. West Bay City, Mich. H. T. WICKES, V. P. Cc. W. STIVER, Sec’y. F. W. WHEELER, Pres. J. S. PORTER, Treas. PRON TIA Iron Works. MARINE ENGINES.. DETROIT, MICH. William Wilford’s = = MATCHLESS — ee WATER-PROOF CANVAS. The best in the market for hatch covers, is stronger, lighter, and more durable than any water-proof goods yet produced. It is made of a twisted thread of pure flax, which renders it very strong. It will not crack like cotton goods, which isa great advan- tage. EDWARD A. BUNKER, Room 617, 27 AND 29 WILLIAM St., NEw York. “Honest John” Ta \ \ \ Bm Nh ii HYDRAULIC RAINBOW CORE PACKING. Patented and Manufactured Exclusively by @7” FOR Water and Hydraulics. NOTHING IN THE WORLD LIKE IT. PEERLESS RUBBER [INFG. CO. i6 Warren Street, NEW YORK. 16=24 Woodward Ave., DETROIT, MICH. 193-195 Bank St., CLEVELAND, O. CHICAGO, ILL. SNIDE CHARTERING. Relative to the recent Rockefeller chartering the De- troit Free Press has the following to say: ‘Word has reached this city that the charter of a dozen vessels to carry 60c-Rockefeller-Carnegie ore from Duluth to Lake Erie ports had been declared off temporarily, cwing to a misunderstanding. Just the nature of this ‘misunder- standing’ the owners in this city do not know, nor have they a theory. The boats taken were the Carnegie, Rees, Yuma, Sitka, Bangor, E. C. Pope, Selwyn Eddy and La- gonda. All of these boats are owned by members of the Lake Carriers’ Association. : “The published rate was 60c, but it is the opinion of some owners here that they were given a higher figure and the real rate kept under the hat so as to keep the rate down. It also comes from those well posted that the terms of the charter compelled the carriers to fuel with the ship- pers, or rather with certain fuel dealers, with whom the big combine had an agreement. In order to induce the carriers to consent to this arrangement it is just possi- ble that they were given something better than 6oc, but as the going rate is but 50c it is difficult to see why the 60c rate would not be enough, especially as the charter funs out August 1, or long before the fall improvement is supposed to set in. “There seems to be no mistake about the fueling clause. The ore was to have been unloaded at Conneaut, Ashta- bula, Fairport and Erie. At the two first-named ports Rockefeller has no fueling arrangements, and to obtain their fuel the vessels would have to go to Cleveland. The hardship of this requirement would be seen if a north- easter were on. It would be impossible for the vessel to enter the narrow piers; she would have to run for another port or stand off and on. The price was the same, $2 per ton, as charged by other dealers, but the quality is another question. That would have to be determined only by use. Then there is the very great delay which results in run- ning miles out of a regular course in order to get fuel, which,-were it not for the clause. might: have been shot into one part of the steamer while ore was being taken out of another. “This will show the desperate straits to which owners are pushed in their endeavors to secure a little business for themselves. Rockefeller holds the whip hand, and he knows it well. He simply compelled the owners of a large class of steamers to come to his terms. “It was rumored on Monday that the people who were to furnish the fuel were Pickands, Mather & Co., but this is authoritatively denied. The combine attempted to ne- gotiate such a deal with that firm, which is located prin- cipally at Ashtabula. but failed. The Ashtabula company could not afford to enter into any such arrangement to mulct the vessel owners, with all of whom they have close and constant business dealings. “The arrangement was made with certain dealers at Cleveland, Erie and Fairport; and its purpose was said to be simply to give the combine a rake-off, or a little more money to add to their big pile., Although this would not bear so heavily on the owners in the matter of prices as did the Buffalo hold-up, yet it was a species of extor- tion that the owners should not have submitted to. It took from them their independence, just for a little paltry chance to make a minute margin of money at one of the lowest contract rates ever offered out of Duluth. Now that the charter has fallen through it remains to be seen how the owners will treat these dealers in the future. It can be seen how they can use the boycott as effectively as they did in Buffalo, and they will have the opportunity, if carrying business offers, to get even with them. “This giving in to the combine to that extent is looked upon here as an element of great weakness on the part of the owners. The chances are that it will give renewed life to the Buffalo hard coal shippers, and induce them to offer cargoes at slightly increased rates on condition that the owner of the vessel fuel with them. refuse such blandishments? “In the meantime the shippers say they hope to. be able to renew these charters later. That is all the consola- Will the owners tion the owners can get out of it. that the shippers found they had made a mistake, in pay- ing 60c, or Ioc better than the going rate, and then con- cluded to slide out of the contract, there would seem to be a chance for lawsuits, as there certainly would be had the owners gone back on the charters.” ee BEESON’S MARINE DIRECTORY. The Marine Directory for 1897 has just reached us from the publishing house in Chicago and in glancing through its pages we are pleased to note that several new features are contained in this the tenth annual edition over that of last year. Notably among which is a valuable list giv- ing the dimensions of boilers and diameter of the cylin- ders of a large number of the best lake built steamers; also an inclusive table of the largest cargoes carried from time to time on the lakes. The marked success of the Beeson Marine Directory cannot be considered phenomenal, as it only goes to show, that, in the proper hands, there was and is ample room for such a publication to flourish “like the green bay tree,” and it appears that in the hands of its present energetic and generally well-liked proprietor, as if there could be no stop to its successes from year to year. Yet, from any other standpoint this publication has increased in circulation, subscriptions and advertising patronage at a marvelous rate so that today it has become almost a necessity to those engaged in marine and commercial lines of business where formerly it was considered an ad- dition, adjunct, handy to have around, but still some- what of a luxury as opposed to a work that all interests felt the value of. With a feeling of justifiable pride, the author calls atten- tion in his preface to the strong competition he had met with in former years and lived down and he trusts that future well-directed efforts on his part will maintain the leading position he now holds in the publication of a marine directory purporting to deal intimately and di- rectly with lake interests alone. 202=210 S. Water St., © If it is so, as hinted, B