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THE MARINE RECORD. _ come document and was sent in response to the protest _ “recently filed with the board of assessors by Chicago marine men. Secretary Weber, of the board of assessors, suggested in the communication from the latter that the marine men all and go into conference with the assessors next week, at which an equitable basis of taxation of marine property eg be agreed upon. The suggestion will be complied with. Mayor Harrison’s appeal to the tug lines to reduce the whistling nuisance from their boats as much as possible, _ has resultedin the blame for the matter coming to the doors _ of the bridge tenders. In consequence, Assistant City _ Engineer Wilcox, who has charge of the bridges, is making a very strict investigation among the men he has stationed on the bridges. It is said that this has resulted in several disclosures of negligence and that asevere shake-up will come soon. When Mayor Harrison directed his message to the tug owners they replied that they would do everything in their power to abate the noise, and at once notified their captains. The captains said they could not get the bridges to open unless they whistled long, loud and repeatedly. During the day there was no trouble to speak of, except in the region of the Northwestern railroad bridge at Kinzie street, but in the night the city’s employes had to be awakened from peaceful slumbers. All this was reported to _ the mayor, and he had the investigation started. It is said _ the claims of the tug captains are found to be true ina _ number of instances, and fora time the bridges are to be ‘kept under surveillance. It is averred by marine men that the three bridges at Kinzie street are the worst barriers _to navigation in the entire river. The Northwestern Rail- _ road, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad and the city have three bridges in the length of a block, and all are too low to permit the passage of atug. The large number of trains __-passing each day crowds the Northwestern bridge to its ~ capacity if it was always shut. River men, say the railroad company never allows the bridge to open within five minutes of the time atrain is due to arrive or leave, and —— OO oO ele ae ESCANABA. _ Special Correspondence to The Marine Record. cA ~ Repairs to the steamer Thomas Davidson will take about a week or ten days. The ore rate from Escanaba has gone to 65 cents and is being offered freely. The steamer Chauncey Hurlbut, is now running between Escanaba and Elk Rapids, carryihg iron ore and passengers. All the way from five to ten million feet of lumber is being shipped out of Marinette and Menominee every week. The tug Claude, of Green Bay,. was at Marinette last week _and towed a scow load of about half a million feet of lumber - to Green Bay. A large scow load of stone and rip rap‘to be used in the - construction of the new light-house at Long Tail Point, reached there a few days ago. . _. The tug Geo. D. Nau, of Green Bay, has started towing _ pulpwood rafts from Bay De Noquet to Green Bay, where it is towed on scows and taken to mills on Fox River. A new plan for carrying lumber to lower lake ports was _tried last week by the steamer Annie Laurie, with a large tailroad scow on which was 600,000 feet, consigned to Ben- net Bros., of Saginaw. : _ The Hart line, of Green Bay, expect to take possession of the steamer Petoskey sometime between June Ist and 15th, and will run her on the Green Bay-Mackinac route. Capt: H. W. Hart, of the Fannie C. Hart, will have command of the Petoskey. _ The steamer A. J. Lindsay, bound from this port to South Chicago, had a head-on collision with the schooner J. V. Taylor, off Port Washington last Friday night, during a fog. The Lindsay’s upper works were damaged, while the Taylor had a large hole stove in her bows and her bowsprit carried away. The Taylor put into Manitowoc and the Lindsay stopped at Milwaukee for a temporary survey. The ore trade has picked up immensely the last few days and business will soon reach a good lively point and it is hoped to get away as large an amount of ore as possible. The one day’s record for shipments out of this port in the ore trade was broken one day last week when several of the _big carriers got in in a bunch, among them being the big steamer Clarence Black, recently purchased by the Minne- sota Steamship Co., Cleveland. The lumber trade has assumed .a very decided summer ‘quiet, which is something out of the ordinary for this time of the year, but it is due, mainly, to the fact that many darge sales have been made in advance. With over two- thirds of the season’s cut sold and the mill owners not ‘anxious to hurry the remainder off to purchasers, it leaves the important deals small. Notwithstanding this fact a few Duyers continue to visit this section every week. H. M. ler, of Buffalo; F. H. Markham, of Chicago, and N. erriam, of Saginaw, were among those that succeeded in king a few deals in the last week or so. a —— or OOS If the officials of the American Ship Building Co. and F. _W. Wheeler can agree on terms the Bay City plant will be of the shipyard combination. ‘4 enough steam is used in whistling every day to make a tow. , CLEVELAND. Special Correspondence to The Marine Record. Capt. F. D. Herriman, Chicago, visited this port for a couple of days since my last letter. Capt. John Hobson, late of the Vessel Owners’ Towing Co.. died very suddenly of pneumonia, at his home on Tuesday, Memorial, or Decoration day, was very generally observed here on Tuesday and the majority of the offices closed at noon. The steel cargo steamer Henry W. Oliver, built at Lorain, O,, and hailing from this port, is 4,909 tons gross and 3,717 tons net. Commencing Sunday, June 4, daily service (Sunday in- cluded) will be resumed between Cleveland and Toledo. Steamers leave daily at 10 p. m. The date for the launch of the Manila building at the yards of the Chicago Ship Building Co., to the order of the Minnesota Steamship Co., of this port, is placed for June 7. One of the latest deals is for a lake towing company to operate on the coast. Some of the Boutelle tugs have been organized into a company and will undertake coast and harbor towing, with offices at Boston, Mass. : The dredge Hercules, owned by the Cleveland Dredge Co., was destroyed by fire last Thursday, and the tugs Allie May and Charles G. Curtiss were badly damaged. The expedi- tion was ready to proceed to Ashtabula to complete a dredg- ing contract. Mr. Curr, who has been superintending new work in building and hull repairs for the Minnesota Steamship Co. for the past year or two, will, it is reported, enter the em- ploy of the Bessemer Steamship Co. next month in the same or a similar capacity. It is now generally known that Mr. Robert Logan, naval architect and consulting engineer, of this city, has been closely connected all through with the valuation of lake shipbuilding plants. It also appears that Mr. Logan’s ser- vices are still in demand relative to this special work. Capt. John Mitchell has placed an order with the Ameri- can Ship Building Co. for a new steel steamer to be a dupli- cate of No. 79, now building at the yards of the Globe Iron Works Co. to the order of. the Cleveland Steamship Co., of which Capt. Mitchell is president and managing owner. The new boat will be six feet longer than the M. A, Hanna and to be delivered next April. Mr. D. EK. Lynn, Chicago, representing The American Manufacturing Co., New York, an extensive cordage house, visited this port for a couple of days this week in the interest of that firm. Mr. Lynn called on all of the vessel owners and says that his’ business outlook is ‘very fav- orable and that he has booked orders ahead. All the passenger lines have entered fully upon their season’s work with a fairly liberal patronage, considering the season is so young, and the unsettled condition of the weather during the past week. There is everv indication that from this on to the close of. the season they will have all the business that they can properly attend to. It is considered probable that the citizens of Houghton, Mich., will present the new steamer, now building here, and to be named in honor of the founder of that thriving and prosperous town, with a set of new bunting. This would be a laudable and customary manner of expressing their regards both as to the namesake of their town and in mem- ory of the late Dr. Houghton. The Cleveland Ship Building Company entertained a visi- tor from Japan recently, in the person of M. Kojami, a marine expert. The gentleman is on a tour around the world inspecting shipyards with a view of constructing a large one at home. He said that the United States had the best yards he had yet seen.” Mr. Kojamiisa talented gen- tleman and an expert in marine construction. The tug trust, which is said to include all lake ports, may eventuate, but no one here is talking and especially not Capt. Collier, of the Vessel Owners’ Towing Co., who was said to have arranged the options on other fleets. On the other hand, report has it that the two Buffalo tug lines placed such a gilt-edged valuation on their property and business as to knock the whole combine ‘‘galley west,’’ and they are holding to their original figures yet. Capt. Richardson has been indemnified by the under- writers and has taken bark the steamer J. H. Outhwaite and her schooner consort Barr, after being classed as previous to their stranding. It is considered poor policy in the long run for underwriters to do their own salvage, wrecking, re- pairing, classing, etc. It has been found best to accept a loss and settle matters up on that basis as speedily as pos- sible, of course always with an eye to the main chance. The Cleveland Leader is becoming a little more intell- igible in its port list of entries and clearances. There is no longer seen the queer wording of propellers, steambarges and steamers, but everything propelled by a screw with steam is reported asa steamer. Now, if the scribe that does the marine, will only admit that freight is the money, or consideration earned and paid for carrying cargo, he will have made the second stride in advance of the usual lake daily newspaper parlance. John Miller, Sr., one of the best known working sail- makers at this port, died on Sunday, at the age of 63 years. His funeral took place on Wednesday afternoon, the remains being buried at Woodland. Mr. Miller served his appren- ticeship and worked at this port for about 42 years. He was well liked by all with whom he came into contact, and his shopmates attended his funeral. For some years before he was called away he worked in the sail loft of Upson, Walton & Co., ship chandlers. He was an earnest, faithful and true workman and friend to his associates. The large steel steamer now building at the Globe ship- yard will be launched early this month and named in honor of the noted copper country geologist, Douglass Houghton. The dimensions of the Houghton will nearly correspond with those of the steamer Samuel F. B. Morse, and her dimensions are 476 feet over all, with beam and depth in proportion according to lake practice. The beam and depth measurements of the Houghton are to be the same as the Morse, viz., 50 feet and 29 feet molded, but the over all and keel length is one foot shorter or 475 feet and ~ 455 feet respectively. Ashtabula does not intend to lose any commerce this season, for the want of dredging. The city, the Lake Shore and Pennsylvania R. R. Cos. clubbed together to defray the. expense of hiring two dredges from Hingston & Woods, of Buffalo, work was started from the head of the river to the 20-foot line, or to the harbor limits, and the district engineer is doing the rest. It now appears that Cleveland could well afford to copy a leaf out of the municipal rules of such minor ports as Ashtabula, Fairport, Conneaut, Lorain, etc., groundings are a common occurrence at the mouth of the Cuyahoga, and big cargoes are getting scared’ to tackle the port. Consequently ask to be consigned elsewhere. A well-posted vessel master in speaking about the Helye- tia episode at Valleyfield said: “‘I don’t know that Capt. Marks followed the usual and orthodox style of collecting his wages, when he seized the craft without due process of law, but he collected it just the same, and that I suppose is all he wanted.”’ It was the opinion of another vesselman that Capt. Marks done just right, for, he said that if she © ever left his hands, the claim might have been outstanding in the United States Courts for years, and then his wages would have been eaten up in lawyers’ fees. Whichever way the case is put it shows a lack of judgment and business methods throughout, as the owners were perfectly solvent, and knew how, when, and at what rate per month they had. engaged Capt. Marks to take charge of the schooner Helve- — aa The affair is now settled, yet it furnishes a unique pre- cedent. aa IMPROVING ST. LAWRENCE RIVER. Capt. Graham D. Fitch, Corps of Engineers, U. S. A.., stationed at Oswego, N. Y., has received the following bids for excavating rock in the St. Lawrence river: George A. Rogers, of Plattsburg, $9.49 per cubic yard; William J. Daly, of Ogdensburg, $7 per cubic yard. Mr. Daly will in all probability get the contract, as his price is $2.49 lower than Rogers’ and he has done much work for the Government, becoming most familiar with the manner of working. : The above contract of work includes the removal of ap- proximately 2,270 cubic yards of rock. Capt. Fitch also received notification from the Chief En- gineer, Corps of Engineers, U.S. A., to the effect that the project submitted for the improvement of Ogdensburg har- bor had been approved. The project for the improvement of the latter harbor, if it becomes available, is to dredge 87,- ooo cubic yards of mud and clay and 750 cubic yards of hardpan. The work will be carried out by contract. oO Se NOTICE TO MARINERS. DOMINION OF CANADA—ONTARIO. PLATFORM Buoy SOUTH OF DucK ISLANDS, LAKE Huron.—A platform buoy surmounted by a pyramidal slat- work painted white, and a white flag has been moored in 5 fathoms water off the south end of the southern shoal (Jennie Graham shoal) extending southerly from Duck Islands, Lake Huron. The buoy is 3 cables S. by W. of the shoalest spot with 8 feet water onit, is situated S. by E. 96 E. 2,8, miles from Duck island light house and S. W. % S. 1,% miles from the most southerly point of Outer Duck Island. Vessels approaching it from the westward should not bring it to bear south of S. K.; if from the eastward nothing south of W. S. W. F. GOURDEAU. Deputy Minister of Marine and Fisheries. May 20th, 1899. N. B.—The fog signal for Calumet Pierhead as printed in this issue of the RECORD has since been altered to read an alternate silent interval of 4o sec. instead of 10 sec. —— oo oe or David J. Nelligan, of Buffalo, has bought the schooner Edward Kelley from her owners, Joseph H. Smith and Chas. A. Slayton, of Tecumseh, Mich. The Kelley was built in Port Huron in 1874, has a net tonnage of 737 tons, is rated at A2% and has insurance value of $13,000. The consider- ation is not given. The steamer John B. Ketchum unloaded a cargo of 1,300 tons of soft coal for the Arnold mine at Eagle Harbor this week. This is a one-third larger cargo than was ever before landed at Eagle Harbor and demonstrates the ability of vessels to land there safely with much larger cargoes than have ever before been deemed possible. a