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i THE MARINE RECORD. KKK KaKSK by iy BUFFALO. Special Correspondence to The Marine Record. Dunn and Madden have opened upa ship chandler store at Tonawanda, N. Y. Capt. Jas. Madden is a retired vessel master and owner and Mr. Dunn is interested in harbor tugs at that place. If the Weather Bureau man could have foreseen the recent thaw and consequent ice jam, about $200,000 worth of prop- erty might have been saved; half of this amount is said to represent the damage to shipping. The Secretary of the Treasury is favorable to an appro- priation for building a marine hospital at this port. The sum required is estimated at $125,000 for a sixty cot hospital, so constructed that wings could be added when an enlarge- ment of the institution was found necessary. Robison Bros., lumber shippers of Tonawanda, bought the steamer C. H. Green and schooner Genoa Monday. The purchase price was not given out. The action of this firm in securing its own vessels, it is said, is warranted by the immense trade secured for next season. The Great Lakes Towing Co. bought over the Hartman tug line of Tonawanda this week, but there are two indepen- dent tugs. Capt Michael Dunn says that these tugs will be used for transferring canal boats and will not be engaged in river towing; in any case, he is friendly toward the tug trust than otherwise and will not pose as the opposition line. It is announced that the State will add several millions more small fish to the waters of the lower Niagara river this spring. They will be brought from the Caledonia hatchery and will be placed at appropriate stations. Last year more than 5,000,000 fish were placed in the river by the State or Federal authorities. The Fishery Commissioners apparently desire that the supply of fish in the river and Lake Ontario should not be exhausted. The iron workers at the yards of the Union Dry Dock Co have been out on strike all week, and though several confabs have been had ‘with Mr. Gaskin, superintendent of the yard, no agreement has been arrived at. There are several griev- ances in the men’s complaint, one of which is a lax system of time keeping. With the new work on hand, two vessels in dock, besides the heavy damage done to vessels by the recent freshet in the river, every day that the works are shut down means double time now. Major F. W. Symons of the United States Corpsof En- gineers was in the city to-day. Captain Graham D. Fitch transferred to Major Symons temporarily the work of river and harbor improvements and fortifications in the Oswego ‘district as he is going abroad. He will resume charge April 26. Friends of Major W. S. Stanton, who was in Oswego a few years ago, will be interested to learn that he has re- cently been promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel of Engineers. The position is a most responsible one, but Major Stanton is fully capable of assuming it.—Oswego Daily Times. Buffalo Creek is again opened for through navigation. ‘The steel steamer Carnegie was finally released from her awk- ward position above Michigan street bridge and was towed to the Kellogg Elevator dock. With the Carnegie out of the way and all the damaged vessels now in a position to be ex- amined by surveyors, the work of settling upon the cost of repairs can soon be adjusted. Most of the owners of the damaged vessels are protected against loss by the boats being covered with full-year insurance policies. Further attempts have been made to work the Michigan street bridge but there - is every indication that considerable repair work will have to be done before the bridge is again ready for traffic. Resolutions protesting against the passage of any bill by Congress calling for the damming of the Niagara River with the purpose of raising the levels of the Great Lakes, were passed by the Tonawanda Lumbermen’s Association, the’ Board of Aldermen and Board of Trade on Monday. The resolutions, as passed by all these bodies, denounce in em- phatic terms both the Corliss bill and the Mather power bridge proposition, which is now before the State Legisla- ture. The resolutions call upon the several local representa- tives in Congress and the State Legislature to fight these bills to the last. Copies of the resolutions were sent to Congressman Wadsworth and to Senator Ellsworth and As- semblyman Darrison. The features of the several meetings was the bitter denunciation of the scheme to place an obstacle ip Niagara river channel, as it was the general feeling that ry so doing the commercial interests of the Twin Cities would be ruined. Mayor Hastings, of Niagara Falls, was empowered to proceed to Washington and oppose the meas- ure by all possible means. That was a great fake story sent from Cleveland recently ~ about the Northern Steamship Co. wanting to let go of their tonnage, when it is well known that the company has been chartering outside boats. President J. J. Hill, when build- ing his cargo fleet over ten years ago, would have given the order for boats 500 feet in length, only he was switched off the track, but your readers may depend that there will be no shunting him from his purpose when he places the next con- tract for lake cargo boats, nor will wooden decks, or spars, etc., be shoved on to him either. The president of the Northern Steamship Co., as well as Mr. Farrington, the vice president, with headquarters at this port, are not only fully abreast, but well ahead of the times, and they can handle transportation interests, including lake tonnage, to the very best advantage, so that if there was money in their fleet for other parties there is more in it for themselves, or rather the Northern Steamship Co. The Cleveland man that slated such an asinine report was a jay of the gayest plumage and nothing else. ‘ There does not seem to have been much action taken of any note, at the annual meeting of the grand lodge of the Shipmasters’ Association, although there was plenty of life and atime enjoyable. Officers were elected, etc., but it was rather expected that the several local lodges would have had a batch of data on prevailing lake customs and fashions. The two-whistle signal was brought up and the decision clashes with the ruling of the head of the service at Wash- ington. The following preamble and resolution offered by Capt. Pierce, Port Huron: ‘Whereas, in the development of the trade and industry of the United States, and the fos- tering of its foreign trade, both in products of the soil and workshop, there is no factor of greater importance than cheap transportation between the great producing and man- ufacturing territory along the Great Lakes and the Atlantic seaboard; and Whereas, It is of the utmost importance to the Uuited States that the line of transportation between the lakes and the seaboard should be through American terri- tory; and Whereas, The State of New York is considering the expenditure of about $60,000 ooo for building a first- class, modern canalfrom Lake Erie to the Hudson river, able to float boats carrying four times the capacity of the present canal boats, and to transport freight at rates suffi- ciently low to meet all competition for a generation to come, now, therefore be it Resolved, That the Shipmasters’ Asso- ciation, in annual convention assembled, the members of which are masters of vessels plying between the Great Lakes, and therefore familiar with the conditions of lake transpor- tation and the magnitude and growth of the lake traffic, does hereby congratulate the State of New York that it has at last awakened to the importance of an American route, from the lakes to the seaboard, adequate to meet all compe- tition, and heartily favors the plan for rebuilding the Erie canal, which has been recommended by the State Canal Com- mission, and hereby expresses the hope that the same will be carried into effect at the earliest possible date. Resolved, that copies of this resolution be forwarded to the Governor of the State of New York and to the Hon. Henry W. Hill, chairman of the Canal Committee of the New York State As- sembly.’? The convention honored Capt. Alexander J. Mc- Kay, of Detroit, by electing him grand president of the as- sociation. Capt. McKay is master of the steamer City of Detroit. Capt. Charles Hubbard, of Chicago, was elected first vice president. He is master of the light-house tender Dahlia, Capt. J. A. Ward, of Marine City, was chosen second vice president. Capt. E. G. Ashley, of Toledo, was elected secretary. Capt. W. A. Collier, of Cleveland, was unanimously indorsed for the office, but he explained to the convention that his arduous duties prevented /him from accepting the place. He was then unanimously elected grand treasurer, which office will not take up so much of his time. Capt. Ralph E. Byrnes, of Cleveland, master of the steamer Doug- las Houghton, was elected chaplain. Capt. Geo. W. Pierce, of Port Huron, was chosen marshal and Capt. EK. C. May- tham, of Buffalo, was chosen warden. Capt. J. McKinley, of Toledo, was elected sentinel. ——— OOo CHICAGO. Special Correspondence to The Marine Record. Capt. John Hubbard has been appointed master of the fire boat Illinois. Capt. John Nicholson will be master of the steamer Pnile- tus Sawyer the coming season. The many friends of Capt. John Higgie will be pleased to know that he is recovering from ‘a severe attack of pneu- monia. Capt. John S. McNeil, of Bay City, Mich., Harry Richard- son, of East Aurora, N. Y., and William H. Evans, of St. Joseph, Mich., are in Chicago this week. Capt. James Godman, Thos. Higgins, Thos. Ledden and David M. Cochrane, have recently become members of Chi- cago Branch 3, of the Shipmasters’ Association. The schooner Hattie Hutt has been sold by Capt. Ole Han- son, of Manitowoc, to Capt. James Ericsson of Miwaukee, recently, master of the schooner Charles Luling. Frank H. Osborn, insurance agent, goes to New York this week and will sail for London, Saturday, on the steamship Etruria, on a business trip. He expects to be back in about a month, The Chicago Ship Building Co. commenced Saturday build- ing another large steel barge for the Minnesota Steamship Co. She will be of the same dimensions as the Madeira re- cently launched for the same owners. Capt. John Roberts for several years harbor master at this port, has resigned his office, he was one of the best harbor masters Chicago ever had, always courteous and attentive to his duties. He has been succeeded by Capt. Joseph Lam- oreaux. _ will be submitted to the contractors for their propositions. _ed at the trial which resulted ina verdict in favor of the Capt. James S. Dunham and wife left here for New Yo Tuesday, they will embark on the steamship Columbia, the Hamburg American line, Thursday morning and sail Naples. It is their intention to spend some time in I and pay Rome a visit, after which they will go to Londo: and from there to the Paris exposition before returnin home. ae The Chicago & Muskegon Transportation Co. was incor- porated here this week, the incorporators bein Miles E. Barry, H. P. Breer and L. F. Chapman. Negotiations are pending for the purchase of four passenger and freight boats by the new company, to be readv for business by the open- ing of navigation. The boats will run between Chicago an: Muskegon. ' . The steamer Fayette has been sold to a company of which — Capt. James Sanford, of Muskegon, Mich., is manager. The — vessel is now at Muskegon being rebuilt and will be given new keelsons, 3,000 feet of new deck plank, new boiler house and cabins, six new deck beams, a new steeple com- pound engine with cylinders 18 and 36 inches in diameter and 28 inches stroke. The vessel will probably be re-named the Matthew Wilson. 3 We have not been taking a very active part in the lake level discussion or the various theories‘advanced to main- tain same. Said a prominent vessel agent here this week “Personally, and from a standpoint which means the greatest — good to the greatest number, I can but say that the MARINE RECORD has accomplished a wonderful work in its six” months’ campaign on this subject, and it has been ably sup- " ported by the published opinions of the best talent in the = country. The subject has been brought prominently before Congress, and all cognate marine interests are now awakened to the folly of lowering lake levels by drawing off the supply. But there, we can’t say too much, as our own canal is yet an unknown factor in the question of robbing the level of Lake ~ Michigan. In any case, the RECORD, almost unaided from other sources, is to be given the credit for bringing the question to where it is at the present time.”’ : oo CLEVELAND. Special Correspondence to the Marine Record : Capt. Fred Houghton will take charge of the steamer J. J. Hill to be launched at Lorain a week from Saturday. ee Capt. William Gerlach, manager of the Minch fleet, has : gone to Florida on a vacation. He will return about the middle of March. ‘ Mr. D. E. Lynn, representing the National Lead Co., New — York, spent the week in this city, visiting vessel owners and 7 masters, his business acquaintances and marine friends, in the interests of his firm. Mr. Lynn is well and favorably known at all lake ports. The stockholders of the Cuyahoga Transit Co., the Smith Transit Co.. and the Eureka Transit Co. held their annual meetings on Wednesday, at Mentor. All the officers were © re-elected. The vessels operated by these companies are handled in the office of Hawgood & Moore. The furnaces want iron ore and every effort is being made to facilitate dock shipments at Lake Erie ports. It is expect- ed that the docks and storage piles at Ashtabula® will’ be © clean swept by the middle of April, providing, of course, that — no very hard weather sets in so as to delay trains. Joe Mr. Norman B. Conger, local forecast official and marine agent Weather Bureau, Detroit, passed through the city en route to Washington on Tuesday. The duty of reporting ic conditions at lake ports will be placed. in the hands of Mr Conger from now on to the opening of free navigation on th several lakes. The large repairs on the steamer Alex McDougall will — wind up the heayiest part of the winter’s dry dock work at Lorain. Of course there will always be ‘‘lame ducks’’ to © patch up, but the season’s contracts are about filled and the ~ dry docks will now be ready for anything that comes along. | It is often found advantageous for vessels to change ports so as to get the facilities offered in Cleveland and Lorain, and in this event some of the recently damaged craft may be brought here from Buffalo. ee In response to petitions from the Shipmasters’ Association of Cleveland, Detroit and Port Huron and the Lake Carriers’ _ Association, Congressman Burton has introduced two reso- lutions in the House providing for the re-location of certain lights in the northern part of Lake Michigan, near the Straits. Under the resolutions the light-ship at Simmons — reef is to be transferred to Lansing reef and the gas buoy at the latter place is to take the place of the light-ship. The light-ship on Gray’s reef is to be moved further south. The specifications for the work on the harbors of Fairport and Lorain have been returned from Washington, whither ~ Colonel Jared A. Smith, Corps of Engineers, U.S. A., sent them for approval. The improvements outlined in the ~ plans are fora breakwater at both places and some new — pier work that has long been needed, especially at Lorain. — As soon as the specifications have been made to conform ~ to the suggestions of the department at Washington, they The case of the Lake Superior Iron Co. against the steamer I. P. Waldo was tried about a year ago by Judge ~ Ricks in the United States District Court. The suit was brought to recover damages for a collision between the — steamers Choctaw and I. P. Waldo, and was fiercely contest- —