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4 THE MARINE RECORD ANNUAL REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF NAVIGATION. The report of the Commiissioner of Navigation states that the past fiscal year has been the third successive year of notable prosperity and growth in American shipping, exceeding the two previous vears The extent and nature of work under way or projected in shipyards promises an even greater growth for the current fiscal year. American tonnage has now practically attained the former maximum of 1861. The figures of 1901 compared with 1861 show an increase in coasting trade vessels from 2,704,544 tons to 4,582,683 tons (two- -thirds of this increase , being on the Great Lakes), a decrease in foreign trade vessels from 2,496,804 tons to 879,505 tons, and a decrease in whaling and fishing vessels from 338,375 tons to 61,940 tons. j Of our total tonnage 3,623,201 tons are wooden vessels,- and only 1,901,017 tons are iron or steel. In 1900 Great Britain launched 1,440,0co tons of steel-vessels. Porto Rico appears in the returns with’.25 ‘vessels of 5,297 tons, and Hawaii with 64 vessels of 37,140’ tons. In the Philippines 2,340 vessels of 102.581 tons (of which 149 vessels of 43,598 tons are steam vessels) are under Amer- can protection. ippine vessels are not vessels of the United States. Although registered American vessels incréased 62,435’ tons during the year, American vessels carried'only. 8.2 per cent. of our exports and imports, the see eee in our history. 3 a Our fleet of ocean steamers in foreign trade'is too small to be compared ‘with that of foreign nations.’ pared with the fleets of the four large British and German steamship corporations, each of which exceeds the Amer- ican fleet in tonnage, mileage and busitiess. Lne tonnage built and documented in the United Biatke during the past fiscal year comprised 1,581 vessels of 483,- 624 cross tons. An analysis of this construction | was one ed in July. a The steel vessels under construction or under contract during the current’ fiscal year: will much exceed similar tonnage built in any previous year. of 89 such merchant vessels of 355,645 cross tons, to be valued at about $36,000,000. Besides these, 71 naval vessels of 281,148 tons displacement are building at contract prices of $78,000,000. In this work 44 plants witha capital of about $68,000,000, employing about 46, coo men, are en- gaged. ; rests on anticipated legislation by Congress.’ Six for the Atlantic Transport Line are building from the same plans used in building steamers in England for the same com- pany. The American cost of a steamer of the Minnehaha type will be $1,846,800, the British cost $1,119,200. The American cost of the smaller trans-Atlantic cargo 'steam- ers will be $729,000, for which the British nee cee ca from. $534,000 to $486,000. (he difference in waves on American and foreign vessels is considered in detail. In illustration the pay roll (éx- cluding master) of 380 men on the steamship St. Louis is - $11,300; of 427 men on the British Oceanic is'$9,900,.and of 500 men on the German Kaiser Wilhelm der Grossé $7,715. - The German is tne fastest steamshio. the American is tie: smallest. The report contains a detailed statement of tel foreign’ voyages of American vessels last year. ‘showing that the .American flag was seen much oftener on the North At- lantic during Président Jefferson's’ embargo (1808) or during the cruises of the Alabama than at: present. eign shipping in our- Pacific Lhatay has doubled in tires years. Biika eB The purchase of the Leyland Line is: considered as evidence that American capital is willing to invest in ocean steamships, that there is an advantage to American ex- porters in American contro! of ocean ‘steamships, even if not under the’ American flay and that ‘in the coming de- velopment of our ocean transportation’ facilities the union of trunk railroad lines and steamship corporations will be: an important factor. Including the Leyland. purchase, American capital owns fullv’ 670,000 tons of steamers. under foreign flags, which in actual carrying power exceed all American vessels now engaged in foreign trade. The War and Navy Department’ also owns 126,847 gross tons of foreign built tratisports and. colliers. ‘ By various special acts 56 foreign built vessels of 132,187 gross tons have! been admitted to registry American money accordingly of yea ee De Until Congress has so enacted the Phil-' It is com-‘ The bureau is advised * ‘The building of ten trans-Atlantic steamers ee For-: late years has purcnased 931,000 tons of foreign built steel steamers. wmie since 1891 there have been built in the United States 1,006,000 tons of steel steam vessels of all kinds. ‘kane principal foreign and American. ocean mail. con- tracts are printed in full. and it is shown that at the pres- ent prices of steamships, British ocean mail contracts. are more advantageous for steamship lines than American contracts under the Act of 1801. The report contains the usual statistical tahtes of Amer- ican shipping, and also. tables illustratiny the growth. of British and German shipping. It will not be nrinted for distribution until December. eee eae _—$<$_$_— rer ae ———__ PORTAGE LAKE CANAL TRAFFIC. . t During the month of October there were 545 boats whielr, passed through Portage lake.and their total tonnage was! 378,027. This is one of the heaviest months for freight delivery to Portage Lake points during the year. During tis » the month of September there were 450 boats which toes through the lake with a tonnage of 311,490. There were 104:steam vessels which were bound up, fei tonnaee* 162,971; 131 sail boats, net tonnage ~1 818. Bound down there were 135 steam vessels, net tonnage 88,4035, sail: vessels, 46,835. Summing up the tonnage and class of vessels: passing through the ‘canals during the month of October: the reports shows there were 335 boats bound up with a net tonnage of 242,789; bound down,:210 boats with a net tonnage of 135,238. [he traffic of last month was the heaviest of the year. ’ 4 oo oo STATISTICAL REPORT OF LAKE COMMERCE. ' THROUGH CANALS AT SAULT STE: MARIE, MICHIGAN AND ONTARIO, FOR THE MONTH OF OCTOBER, 1901. ’ RAST BOUND. ca Articl s. U.S. Canal. capegied Total. Copper, net tons.......... 17,387 B,032) lei. 2T, 319, Grain, bushels............ 3,361,351 397,168 | 3,758,519 Building stone, net tons... 10,175 ates 10,175 Flour, barrels............ 1,117,822 159,915 | 1,277,737 Iron ore, net tons.. ..+| 2,520,155 179,087 | 2,699,242 Iron, pig, net tons. ae 3,556 tote 3,550 Lumber, M. ft. B. Me ae, 160,158 253 160,408 Silver ore, net tons........ BO erie as Wheat, bushels........... 7,424,740 | 1,937,907 | 9,362,647 Genl. Mdse., net tons..... 8,267 > 8,753 17,020 Passengers, number....... 553 1,925 2,483 WEST BOUND. Coal, hard, net tons..... ..| 121,059 6,300 127,359 Coal, soft, net tons .......| - 374 794 47,366 | ‘422,160 Flour, barrels..... Sea boy xy ears 50 50 Grain, bushels..,......... ue Se locas 63 63 Manf’d iron, net tons. 23,162 | 7,722 30,884 Salt, barrels......../..... 49,019 200 "49,219 Genl. Mdse., net tons..... 52,137 16,414 68 55 Passengers, number....... 760 1,596 2,356 Freight: eee East bound, net tons...... 3,241,656 276,544 | 3,518,200 West bound, net tons..... 578,506 77 839 656 345 © Total freight, net tons.....| 3,820,162 354 383 | 4,174,545 Vessel passages, numer. . 2,277 583 2,860 Reg’d tonnage, net tons. ..| 3 331,483 291,916 | 3,623,399. Compiled at St. Mary’s Falls Canal, Michigan, under’ di- rection of Lieutenant-Colonel G. J. Lydecker, Corps of, En-, gineers, U..S. A. Joseph Rip'ey, Assistant Engineer and General Superintendent. : Sp pies ans A RECENT Paris telegram says: Speaking in the. Cham- ber of Deputies today on the proposed modification, of the subsidies to French merchant shipping, the Minister of Commerce, M. Millerand, said the existing system of bounties had had exactly the opposite effect to that which it was intended. It had forced French shipowners to buy: steamers abroad, and had artificially -created a fleet. of sailing ships,;some of which managed to pay: as muchas 3r -per:cent., thanks to the large subsidies given by the state. ‘The scale of bounties would have-to be: revised, so as to favor the construction of steamships im France. : The debate was adjourned. ; _ Mauritius. LAKE VS. OCEAN SHIPS San “Francisco, November 4, 190I. Editor Maring Recorp: . Your favor, of October 28th came to hand in due coca and I feel obliged for your favorable opinion of the article reproduced in the columns of your valuable paper, copiéd’ from the Commercial News of San Francisco. The sub- ject of ships and steamers is one that in able hands could. have been made a much longer and more interesting article,, — I have no pretensions as a newspaper writer, but I do write occasional articles on subjects with which I am; familiar, such as shipping business in genéral, sugar plan-’ tations:on.the Hawaiian Islands, and kindred subjectsi: Having been connected with the sea and ships in all parts of the. world for more than ‘o years, and a master for 25 years, | may claim to have some knowledge on such sub-_ jects. The City of Cleveland is not unknown. to us in San Francisco, and in fact the firm with which I am connected have placed, large orders for sugar mill machinery, some: of which is: at present en route. The Kilby Manufacturing, Co. is the. firm with which we have been doing. business.:' We have had an occasional lake-built steamer here in the coastwise trade, and three have started-in the coal trade and in the Hawaiian Island trade between Seattle, Wash., and Honolulu. The first lake-. built steamers to arrive on the Pacific Coast were failures, until they had been almost entirely rebuilt and refastened, and by that time had cost as much as a new steamer of, twice their size, and so there is considerable prejudice. against lake-built steamers still existing, and confirmed by. the experience and behavior of those on the Pacific. Coast. ‘Your short trips of two or three days! on the lakes are not long enough nor can the, sea be rough enough to test, the structural strength of your steamers. The twisting,and sauirming that.an ocean-going vessel is subjected to for. weeks and in some cases months, have invariably been the, cause of the lake-built steamers developing signs of struc-, tural weakness. ‘There is no doubt that steamships as: stron as:any in the world can be built on the lakes. But it is certain that a steamer originally built for the lake» trade will never give satisfaction out on the ocean. If steamship builders on the Great Lakes intend to build for, the ocean trade, they must give the subject of longitudinal . and structural strength some consideration. To illustrate the case and to revert to the days of wieiaden shipbuilding along in the middle sixties, I will state the experience of a lake-built wooden vessel named the Joseph. Grant, a darge three-masted schooner for those days, about . 450 tons.. Mr. (afterward) Sir R. W. Cameron, of New York, bought her for his Australian trade, renamed her. Ontario, loaded her with lumber and sent her on her voy- ave to Australia, but she never arrived there. After pass- ing the Cape of wood Hope, about 70 days out, the vessel. experienced a series of heavy gales and rough seas, but. nothing worse than usual in that region.. It was more,. however, than she could stand and she ‘commenced to: break up. She first became -waterlogred. "Then the crews bound her,round with her chain cables, setting them tight: by ‘a twisting, arrangement. - After several days the vessel finally broke in two and the two parts separated. The cap-. tain and crew lived for 14 days on the part they were on when finally taken off by a passing vessel and landed at thes I, was 8 years in the employ of Sir R..We- Cameron and knew the. circumstances and persons; was also on-board: of the vessel Joseph Grant in New York be-, fore her name was changed to Ontario. Shipbuilders on’ the lakes seemed to have no conception of the fearful ands immense strains that a vessel sailing the ocean is subjected. to, and to have neglected or failed to take the same into” consideration when or if they have been building for the ocean trade. I must apologize for: inflictine this rambling letter on you unsolicited, a simple acknowledgment of-your. kindly and courteous letter would probably have been all. aye expected, and my rough criticism of the workmanship’ of your lake shipbuilders may be looked on as uncalled for: and unprovoked, but just or unjust they will’ know sooner 4 or later that their steamers have so far, not in any+in-, stance, given satisfaction, and if through the columns of | your paper you can give them some friendly advice, to” build their ships stronger, you will be doing them a real” kindness. Yours respectfully; Wa. G. GoopMAN,.; — jj Port Superintendent for Alexander & Baldwin. ; oo Her mother—I saw him kiss you! I am terribly shocked. I did not for a moment ee he would dare take such a liberty. Herself—Nor did I, ma. In fact, I ‘bet him a pair of gloves he daren't. :