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ye ———— ESTABLISHED 1878. VOL. XXIII, No. 1. CLEVELAND-=---MARCH 15, 1900---CHICAGO. $2.00 Per Year. 5c. Single Copy LAKE CARRIERS’ ASSOCIATION. To consider and take action uponall general questions relating to the navigation and carrying business of the Great Lakes, maintain necessary shipping offices and in general to protect the common interests of Lake Car- riers, and improve the character of the service rendered to the public. PRESIDENT. W. C. FARRINGTON, Buffalo. ‘ 1ST VICE-PRESIDENT. Capt J. G. KEITH, Chicago. SECRETARY. CHARLES H,. KEEP, Buffalo. TREASURER. GEORGE P, McKay, Cleveland. COUNSEL. HARVEY D. GouULDER, Cleveland. EXECUTIVE AND FINANCE COMMITTEE. JAMES CORRIGAN, Chairman, Cleveland. COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATION. Gipson Ll. DouGras, Chairman, Buffalo. COMMITTEE ON AIDS TO NAVIGATION. GEORGE P. McKay, Chairman, Cleveland. COMMERCE OF THE GREAT LAKES. A suggestion of the extent of the commerce of the great inland sea extending from Buffalo to Chicago and Duluth, known asthe ‘‘Great Lakes’? is supplied by some figures which have been issued by the Treasury Bureau of Statis- tics, showing the details of the commerce passing through the Sault Ste. Marie canal, which connects Lake Superior with Lakes Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. This necessarily registers only the traffic between the single lake, Superior, with Duluth, as its great concentrating and distributing point, and the chain, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario with Chicago, Detroit, Toledo, Cleveland and Buffalo, the great points of concentration and distributior. The commerce passing through the canal thus registers accurately the movement between the single lake penetrat- ing the wheat and iron producing regions and the chain tributary to the corn, provision and coal producing and iron manufacturing regions. It is the great gateway through which wheat, oats, flour, iron ore, copper and lumber of Montana, the Dakotas, Minnesota and Northern Wisconsin move to the consuming and manufacturing sections, while through the same gateway moves in the reverse direction the coal manufactures and miscellaneous merchandise from Lake Erie and Eastern points. All of the traffic moving between Lake Superior and the chain of Lakes from Chicago to Buffalo must pass through either the American or Canadian canals which lie side by side. Of the total business through the two canals in 1899, 88 per cent. was carried by the American canal, while of the passen- ger business 68 per cent. passed through the same canal. It is only by a comparison of figures of 1899 with those of ear- lier years that the importance of this commerce can be real- ized, especially as regards its rapid growth. The actual number of passages through the canal, counting each vessel as it passed through it, was 20,055, during 1899, against 9,- 579 in 1899, having thus more than doubled during a period of ten years. The total freight business passing through the canal in 1899 was 25,255,810 tons against 7,516,022 tons in 1899 showing that the freight tonnage has increased much more rapidly than the number of vessels, thus indicating in some degree the rapid increase in the size and capacity of freight-carying vessels of the Great Lakes. The develop- ment of grain production of the extreme Northwest during - the decade is indicated by the fact that the wheat carried through the canal in 1899 was 58,297,335 bushels, while 1889 16,231,854 bushels were carried, while grain other than wheat in 1899 amounted to 30,900,935 bushels, while in 1889 it was but 2,133,245 bushels.—Scientific American. ye ANOTHER WATERWAY TO THE COAST. If Canada does not secure the bulk of the carrying trade between the head of the lakes and tide-water, it will not be for lack of systems. A few weeks ago Hon. I. M. Tartean- nounced his intention’of converting North Bay into a lake port. Now a company of United States and Canadian capitalists have been organized to build a railway from the mouth of French river to Quebec. The new line which is to be called the Quebec & Lake Huron Railway Co., will start from the mouth of French river, on the Georgian Bay, and run straight eastward to Quebec, crossing the Ottawa at Mattawa, the Lievre river at Rapide de l’Orignal, and the St. Maurice at Grandes Piles. The distance from Georgian Bay to Quebec will be 440 miles, or 135 miles less than from Parry Sound to Quebec via the Parry Sound and Great Northern railways, which is actually the shortest route be- tween the Great Lakes and Quebec. As regards the trade from Lake Superior and Lake Michigan, there will be a sav- ing of 115 miles of navigation on Lake Huron, as French river is so much higher up the Georgian Bay. The water and rail transportation will, therefore, be 250 miles shorter by the proposed Quebec.& Lake Huron railroad than by the Parry Sound and Great Northern. The promoters expect to be able to forward to Quebec, for shipment by the St. Lawrence, either in grain or flour, between 30,000,000 and 50,000,000 bushels of wheat per year, and a great part of the 2,000,000 feet. of lumber cut every year in the country traversed by their line. _———]$. — rr OSes SUEZ CANAL TRAFFIC IN 1898. The following statement from the French vice consul at Suez shows the commierce passing through the Suez canal in 1898, by countries, as follows: Number of Total Gross Flag. Vessels. Tonnage. BEISh Mee ici ry ate wore 2,295 8,691,092 German jesse ere cous deat. 356 1,353,161 § BOLD: ie R nee oan 221 891,641 s DEC ee esi we oe gstenetars 193 526,478 | Alistro- Hungary 202i eo cadane 85 300,251 é APALeSel wit etn aan aust 46 261,601 REVS StAT isch parle ones eohiee 48 248,381} SDAUISH: Mi ciwi whan s «ra conarean sions 49: 232,358, TGA tics sso cauac, auate (ovina Sees 74 208,418 INOUE WER AI ae Cireit wu et svalaye 47 109,7 8 PP MIGEAS TTS toss Ae oy RE NS caters 54 83,540 Wawigh? <r e d anes 8 es | Wey ptiani csi tyes ade eles 10 15,705 Chinese ie Pes Aa om 4 6,180, ATHETICAT Ss Sn tee Liege sows 4 cy oi [Oe aA a RR te Ha eee ie a nar a 2 1,941 IVGUINA DADs! Souler see oe ae oe I 2,703 :4 SWedishis crs. wwe sors nen ket aes 2 1,020 3 POLLUGESE: Nicos iia s ooignieler ane 3 605 ATS ONEINE patio coe sate ose si I 450 MOta ls jel k Le peep ai ngecree 3,503 12,962,622 It is thus seen that 65.5 per cent. of the total number of vessels and over 67 per cent. of the tonnage was under the British flag, while the German flag covered a little over ro per cent. of both ships and tonnage. French vessels repre- sented over 6.5 per cent. and Dutch vessels over 5 per cent. of the total number of ships, and the former over 6 per cent. and the latter over 4 per cent. of the tonnage. The remain- ing 13 per cent. of both the number of ships and the total tonnage was divided among 16 different nationalties. ———————— on on oe The lights at Sherwood Point on Green Island and at Menominee are still kept burning, although it is an entirely useless waste of material and energy, there having been no movement among water craft on this bay for nearly two weeks.—The Advocate, Sturgeon Bay, Wis. DIVERTING LAKE WATERS. Toronto World: The maintenance of the level of the Great Lakes is a question that is being forced on the attention of the people of both the United States and Canada. There is now before the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs a proposed resolution providing for the appointment of an international commission to examine into and report the diversion of the waters of the Great Lakes. Already one scheme is in operation, viz., the Chicago drainage canal, which is depleting Lake Michigan of its water at the rate of 600,000 cubic feet per minute. Canada is jointly interested with the cities on Lakes Erie and Ontarioin maintaining the level of the Great Lakes. The Dominion, we understand has already filed a protest with the Washington authorities, objecting to the diversions of such a large quantity of water from its natural channel. But the Chicago drainage canal is only the first of several other proposed projects involving the diversion of the waters of the Great Lakes. The New York Sun admits that the Erie canal cannot be enlarged, as proposed, without drawing its water supply from the Great Lakes. Other canal schemes depending upon the Great Lakes for their water are the construction of a waterway from ~ Cleveland to the Ohio river; a canal connecting Lakes Superior and Michigan; a ship canal around Niagara Falls, connecting Lakes Erie and Ontario. These are all United States projects. To them must be added the Canadian pro- posal for the construction of a big canal from Georgian Bay by way of the Ottawa river to Montreal... If these pro- jects were all carried out, or even one-half of them, very little of the water of the Great Lakes would find its way to the sea by the present natural channel. Our new 14-foot waterway would be put out of business with so greata di- version of water permitted as is contemplated by the various schemes. This question of the levels of the Great Lakes is. one that may very seriously affect the shipping and commer- cial interests of this country. The government should not only agree to the appointment of a joint international com- mittee, but it should take active stepsto demand such a committee, or it should appoint one of its own to ascertain the effect that these various projects will have upon Canadian interests. While there is a tendency to divert the waters of the St. Lawrence system inthe ways indicated, there is a scheme on foot to preserve and regulate the flow of these waters for the improvement of navigation. The. Deep Waterways Commission has reported as practically and desirable the project for maintaining the level of Lake Erie near its high water stage during the season of navigation by construct- ing a dam across Niagara river below Buffalo harbor, The water lost by evaporation in summer, says The National Geographic Magazine, could be partially replaced by accu- mulating the surplus water during the closed season and re- leasing it when most necessary in the open season. The best location for adam, is, according to the board, at the foot of lake, just below Buffalo harbor. A canal with a lock is provided on the American side around the end of the dam and the rapids at the head of the river. The cost of reg- ulating works is estimated at $796,923 and of the lock and canal at $2,325,967. The changes would raise the low water stage about three feet in Lake Erie, two feet in Lake St. Clair and one foot in Lake Huron. roo THE St. Louis Steel Barge Co. will be incorporated with $110,000 capital stock, it is reported, to build and operate a steel barge line between St. Louis and New Orleans. H. S. Potter is to be president, and Alex. McDougall, of Duluth, inventor of the whaleback barges, vice-president. It is said that two steel barges and a tow boat will be constructed at once. The company will erect their own plant at St. Louis, —Iron and Steel, Chicago. aa MEO ae ee