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MARINE REVIEW. The, Greatest Grain Carrier on the Lakes. “The ‘Western Reserve, P. G. Minch’s new steel steamer, has _just received a cargo of.wheat and corn at Chicago that entitles | her to be called the greatest grain carrier on the lakes. ~The _ cargo consists of 52,900 bushels of wheat and 56,250 bushels of — corn. The wheat being equal to 56,678 bushels corn, the cargo is ~ equivalent to 112,928 bushels of corn, or 3,162 tons. ‘The America held the supremacy as a grain carrier at the end of last season, having carried 111,507 bushels of corn from Chicago to Buffalo. The Western Reserve is drawing 14 feet ro inches aft and 15 feet 2 inches forward, making about 15 feet 1 inch on an even keel when she has received her fuel. According to her displacement computations she would carry 3,115 tons on that ~ draft. The Western Reserve was built by the Cleveland Ship Building Company, and is the largest steel vessel built in Cleveland. Her dimensions are 318 feet over all, 300 feet keel, 41 feet beam and 25 feet from top of keel to top of spar deck. Another Light-House Tender for the Lakes. In this issue of the Review is an advertisement from the light-house board, calling attention to bids for the construction of the light-house tender Amaranth. Plans, specifications and other information will be furnished to lake ship builders on application to D. B. Harmony, chairman of the light-house board. The appropriation for this boat is $75,000 and was made _by the last congress. She will be used in the ninth and eleventh districts. A Basis for Arbitration. ‘Mr. Harvey H. Brown, of Cleveland, owner of the steam- ship Castalia, and Messrs. Firth and Evans,of the Erie and West- ern Transportation Company, owners of the propeller Winslow, are all active members of the Lake Carriers’ Association who prefer arbitration to court methods of settling losses, and they have set an example in the present movement toward abandon- ing the federal courts. A collision occurred June 25 in the De- troit river, near Sandwich, between the steamers Winslow and Castalia. A suit was brought, the Winslow claiming $9,000 and the Castalia $4,500 damages. Both parties agreed to arbitrate. Mr. Brown selected Capt. H. A. Hawgood, ot Cleveland, and the Western company selected Capt. William D. Robinson, of Buf- falo. Capt. Marion F. Tinney, of Detroit, was called in by the arbitrators as a third party and the case was heard in one of the parlors of the Russell house, Detroit, Harvey D. Goulder, of Cleveland, appearing as proctor for the Castalia and Charles Kremer, of Chicago: tor the Winslow. The arbitrators united in finding the Winslow solely in fault and the Castalia blame- less. The decision will undoubtedly be accepted by Messrs. Firth and Evans who were very earnest in supporting the arbi- tration movement at the last annual meeting of the Lake Car- riers’ Association. Cregier Manipulates Chicago River. Special Correspondence to the MARINE REVIEW. CuicaGo IIl., April 9.—Mayor Cregier’s pet scheme for straightening the south branch of the Chicago river for the apparent benefit of the Northern Pacific Railway continues to excite the indignation of all per- sons interested in the navigation of the river. Protests have come fronr the lumber, coal and vessel interests. Their opposition is based on the generally accepted theory that to abridge the channel is to decrease the facilities of navigation and to increase the cost thereof. This would be detrimental to the building interests and a hardship to the small consuiner owing to an extra time charge that would naturally follow a contraction of the river. The first preamble to the ordinance now before the council is unusually interesting inasmuch as it seems to breathe a spirit of “tickle me, and I'll tickle you” on the part of the railway company and the mayor. ‘The preamble reads as follows: Whereas, the Chicago and Northern Pacific Railroad Company desires to straighten the channel of the south branch of the Chicago river in front of its property on the east and west banks of said river, between Harrison street and a point 4oo feet south of the south line of Twelfth street. The Chicago Tribune says: The first of four reasons assigned by Mayor Cregier in his message why the ordinance should be enacted is that it will secure “the straightening of the south branch of the river be- tween Harrison and Taylor streets. The discrepancy between the wording of the ordinance preamble and that of the mayor as related to the distance sought to be straightened is apparent. The railroad company says from Harrison street to a “point 4oo feet south of the south line of Twelfth street.” Mr. Cregier says from Harrison to Taylor street, and he says this after asserting in the opening paragraph of his message that he has had “several conferences with the officials of the Northern Pacific Railway Company.” The “pecuniary advantage to the city at large” is compre- hended within the proposition of the railroad company to erect certain bridges at a cost of $350,000. His honor fails, however, to mention the “pecuniary advantage” to the railroad company, which consists in the ac- quisition of nearly sixty feet of land for the entire distance, and which at a low estimate is valued at over $2,0co,000. This would leave a profit to the railroad company of over $1,650,000, which is generally accepted as a good investment on the part of the company. The number of clearances for Chicago freighting steamers engaged in the lumber trade have been quite large since April1. Tuesday night, the Soper, Boyce and Thompson, handled by Holmes & Davison, cleared for Muskegon. On Thursday a fleet of five vessels steamed out of the Chicago harbor for Manistee. They were the Apprentice Boy, Julia B. Merrill, Levi and Grant, all the steamers engaged in the same traffic and the small trades are preparing to follow when the Straits are open and the water is open in Green bay. The rates on lumber, round trips to Mus- kegan, are $1.25 per thousand, to Manistee $1.50 per thousand. F.& P.M. No. 5, was the first arrival of a season. She anchored off ToIst docks, Monday. The light-house slip at Michigan street is to be widened to and lengthened 300 feet. About $12,000 will be expended in the The extension and widening of the slip was recently determir Peter O’Connor, a forwarding agent, and the Northern Michigan portation Company, and when completed the slip will be used | joint owners. The work of erecting large new warehouses on n the s already under nay: Manistee Matters. ey Special Correspondence to the MARINE REVIEW. MANISTEE, Mich., April 9.—The steam craft of this neighborhood begins navigation for another season with improvements in most cases. The Manistee Iron Works has about finished the work of compounding ' the engines of the Pewaukee and Fannie Hart and the tugs Grewnich and John Smith have been rebuilt. Now that the tug Charles Williams has been sold to the government, the Canfield Towing and Wrecking Com- pany has the only complete wrecking outfit on the east shore of Lake Michigan. The propeller Covell has been purchased by Manistee parties and will run between Manistee and Milwaukee, carrying both freight and passen- gers. It is reported that the North Michigan Line will also run here this season if suitable arrangements can be made for dock room. The Engineers and Owners. The lake engineers who refuse to go aboard their boats at any reduction from last year in wages or help admit that the merit of their organization depends upon the present fight against the Cleveland Vessel Owners’ As- sociation and the same is true of the owners, who show united opposi- tion. The struggle is a very earnest one and there is no certainty as yet regarding its ending. Several engineers who were brought here from Buffalo during the week were induced to go back but more are here from Detroit and other places, and the local organization realizes that a great deal depends upon the amount of outside help that can be secured, and their efforts are directed toward coping with this feature of the situation. Many of them have made big sacrifices in refusing offers for a longer sea- son of work and other inducements. The officers of the association, on the other hand, claim that applications from outsiders are numerous and there is no need of putting engineers to work as yet. The Bradley fleet and others will be fitted out, they say, by a few men who are at work, and they announce a full line of engineers for the Menominee boats as follows: Norman, J. H. Anthony; Saxon, George W. Mason; German, John G, Win- ter; Briton, E Dempsey; Grecian, W. F. Schwacofer; Roman, Dennis Sullivan. Official Numbers and Tonnage. Official numbers were assigned the following lake vessels by the Bureau of Navigation, W. W. Bates, commissioner, during the week end- ing April 4: Steam—Briton, Cleveland, tonnage, gross 2,348.43, net 1,875.23, No. 3,493; Grecian, Cleveland, tonnage, gross 2,348.43, net 1,875.23, No 86,136; Joseph L. Colby, Buffalo, No. 76,933; Unrigged—Mackinac, Grand Haven, tonnage 238.14, No. 51,214; St. Ignace, Grand Haven, ton- nage 238.14, No. 57,924; No. 109, 110 and 111, Buffalo, Nos. 53,265, 53,266 and 53,267 respectively.