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ESTABLISHED 1878. Z 4 VOL. XXIV, No. 37. CLEVELAND -- SEPTEMBER 12, 1901 -- CHICAGO. $2.00 Per Year. 5c. Single Copy LAKE CARRIERS’ ASSOCIATION. To consider and take action upon all 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- tiers, and to improve the character of the service rendered to the public. PRESIDENT. A. B. WoLvIN, Duluth. 1ST VICE-PRESIDENT. Capt. J. G. KE1TH, Chicago. “SECRETARY. CHARLES H. KEEP, Buffalo, TREASURER. GEORGE P. McKay, Cleveland. COUNSEL. HARVEY D. GoULDER, Cleveland. EXECUTIVE AND FINANCE COMMITTEE. JAMES CORRIGAN, Chairman, Cleveland. COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATION. Gipson L,. Doucras, Chairman, Buffalo, COMMITTEE ON AIDS TO NAVIGATION. . GEORGE P. McKay, Chairman, Cleveland, THE WORLD’S NAVIES. Capt. Charles D. Sigsbee, U. S. N., at present Chief of the Office of Naval Intelligence, has made public that bureau’s annual publication entitled “‘Notes on Naval Progress,” which sets forth the advance that has been made in naval work among the foreign navies. A noteworthy statement is that the new German battle fleet will be practically complete when the vessels laid down in 1905 are completed, instead of in 1916, as formerly pro- posed. Vessels laid down after 1905 will be either for foreign service or for the non-active fleet. The subject of wireless telegraphy, as bearing on naval progress, is treated at length, and it is stated that great progress has been made with this new means of communica- tion abroad during the past year, particularly in increasing the distances over which messages can be sent end in pro- viding means to guard against confusion where messages cross one another. It is shown that the{British, French, German, Japanese, Russian, Italian, Spanish and Swedish navies have adopted wireless telegraphy to a greater or less extent. To give an idea of the fighting strength of the seven prin- cipal navies of the world, a table is submitted, showing the following total tonnage of ships built, building and to be built: England, 1,766,855; France, 781,065; Russia, 552,546; United States, 507,494; Germany, 458,482; Italy, 322,707; Japan, 251,493. Naval appropriations for the present fiscal year are stated as follows: England, $149,755,620, an increase of over $10,- 000,000 as compared with last year; France, $63,244,658; Russia, $50,005,297, an increase of over $5,0c0,00 ); Germany, $46,822,732; Italy, $23,703,595; Japan, $18,577,633 and Spain, $3,860,000, to be devoted almost exclusively to shipbuilding. —— rn a SHIP CANALS OF RUSSIA. The proposed ship canal between St. Petersburg and the White Sea, engineering plans of which have been approved by the Minister of Communication, is to be commenced in- June of this year. In brief, the plans are as follows: The naval port of Cronstadt (the entrance to St. Petersburg) is to be connected with the new naval harbor Sorotskaja, on the White Sea, by a canal of sufficient breadth and depth to admit the passage of Russia’s largest cruisers. The extreme depth will be 31 feet, while the water surface will have a breadth of 200 feet. The length of the canal will be 963 kilometers, and it will pursue the following course: From the River Neva to Lake Ladoga; across the lake to Svir river, and the entire length of this stream to Lake Onega; due north through a new canal to Sego Lake; again by canal to Vigozero Lake; and thence to the Gulf of Onega and White Sea. This new water-way will not only have advantages from an industrial point of view, creating cheap transportation for timber and grain from the provinces of Archengel and Olonetz, and causing the establishment of saw and grain mills along its course, but is of most importance in its stra- tegic value—placing the Baltic and White Sea divisions in direct communication on their own soil. With the merchant marine of Russia, her contemplated canals, her finished Trans-Siberian railroad, and her. total independence of any foreign steamer, cable, telegraph, or rail, from the Baltic Sea to the North Pacific Ocean, one has a view of possibilities equally as great in peace as in war. a IMPROVEMENTS AND WATER POWER IN ONTARIO. Commercial Agent Hamilton writes from Morrisburg: The work of straightening the canal at this point is prac- tically finished. The contractors were compelled to cut off the bend at the village of Miaratown. Next to the Lachine and Cedar rapids, the Long Sault, 10 miles west of Cornwall, is the most dangerous on the St. Lawrence. It is intended to build a canal 200 feet in length, 50 feet wide at the bottom, and 21 feet deep, to utiliz2 the water power. There will be three turbines (twins) of 1,000 horse-power each. The power produced, it is said, will be second to none in the Dominion. — rr <r 8 EFFECT OF SHIPPING BOUNTIES. A British consular report on the trade of Fiume (Austria), states that shipping shows an increase of 114,000 tons under the Austro-Hungarian flag, and 30,000 tons under the Italian flag. British shipping increased 40,c00 tons, which is due to the shippment of horses for South Africa, The ship- ing trade with British India is by degrees passing into. the hands of Austria Hungary, owing to bounties and the repay- ment of the Suez canal dues to the Austrian-Lloyd steamers, The return of the canal dues is not limited to vessels of the Austrian-Lloyd fleet only, but is extended to vessels under the charter of the company. British shipping is obviously undera great disadvantage. The tonnage of British ships from the East Indies-has decreased 62 per cent., being carried in British ships, and 38 per cent. in Austro- Hungarian ships, the relative figures in 1899 being 64 and 36 percent. The exports to British India are carried entirely in British vessels, British shipping represents 20 per cent. of the ocean-going steam tonnage, and 30 per cent. in the value of cargoes,whereas Austro-Hungarian shipping shares 77 per cent. of the tonnage and 64 per cent. in the value. of cargoes. Comparing the values of trade, the United King- dom ranks first with 25 per cent.; Austro-Hungary with 1814 per cent., Italy with 14% per cent., France with 11% per cent., Turkey with 6 percent., and the United States with 534 percent. The direct trade with the United Kingdom and colonies under the British flag comprised cargoes entered 4593,000; cargoes cleared, £825,000, the respective figures in 1899 being £633,000 and £237,000. CANAL THE maximum draught at present allowed for vessels in the Suez Canal is 25 feet 7 inches, and 302 out of 3,441 vessels drawing more than 24 feet 7 inches passed through in 1900. It is hoped that before long the depth of the canal may be increased so as to allow of a draught for vessels up to 26 feet 3 inches. Similiarly also, the breadth of ships is becoming greater, and 212 vessels of a beam of 50 feet and upwards have used the canal in 1900. TO ENHANCE LAKE TRAFFIC. James J. Hill, who is the head and front of the Great Northern, Northern Pacific and Burlington group of rail- roads, has comprehensive plans on foot for developing the traffic of those companies in connection with the Oriental trade, which he is about to enter on a huge scale. He will, he says, be able to carry ocean freight in his big liners at half the cost required with the average vessels, and, though he talks modestly about the new venture, his friends say he has assured them that he will revolutionize the Pacific ocean transportation methods. Mr. Hill figured out that the surplus of the principal crops raised in the western half of the United States—particularly west of the Rocky Mountains—must find a market in the Orient instead of being hauled eastward to compete with the exports from the Atlantic ports. When this can be done on a large scale, not only will the agricultural classes receive more for their products, but the shipments of the railroads will be considerably increased. Furthermore, the profits of the transportation companies will show a still larger increase, because they will get a greater volume of westbound tonnage, which thus far is comparatively light in the Western States. The transcontinental railways have plenty of freight to bring east, but the showing on westbound traffic has not been so good, although it costs just as much to haul empty cars west as loaded ones. Now, according to Mr. Hill, the building up of Oriental traffic, particularly from the railway standpoint, will add largely to the net returns of these companies without. greatly increasing their operating expenses, for they will be carrying back full cars, where many of them at present have torunempty. But in addition to this he expects large re- turns from the steamboat lines, and an enhancement of the lake traffic. Mr. Hill gave some details of how he will handle the Ori- ental trade with his ocean leviathans of 28,000 tons capacity, which, he said, would carry the cargo of the White Star freighter Celtic, at present the largest ship afloat, and lift a bulk almost equal to that of the latter ship inaddition. Mr. Hill’s new ships for the Pacific trade, which are now building at New London, will cost $2,500,000 each. ‘‘There is an enormous trade awaiting development in China and other Asiatic countries,’’? said Mr. Hill, “but in order to capture it we have to deliver goods to them more cheaply than anybody has doneinthe past. Toget our share of the business we must market things more cheaply than merchants of other nations, and to build up the trade in in- terior points of Asia we must, of course, reach a level of prices much lower than has ever been before attained. There are myriads of Orientals who live on 1o or 15 cents a day—some for less—and we must give them cheap food and clothing. eee BEDLOE's ISLAND, New York Bay, whereon is planted the Statue of Liberty is under the jurisdiction of three sets of officials; the War Department, the Light House Board of the Treasury Department and the New York Citizens’ commit- tee.. Major Taylor conceived the idea that the War De- partment could attend to the duty of looking after the one electric arc lightin the torch ata less expense than the Light House Board. Asa result, Col D. P. Heap, of the En- gineer Corps, and Capt. William M. Taylor, of the Navy Department, both of whom are members of the Light House Board, visited the island recently, and after investigating the situation recommended to the Treasury Department that the lighthouse reservation and plant at Bedloe’s Island be turned over to the War Department.