The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

THE MARINE RECORD. Comparative Statement of the Amount and Value of Commerce Through St. Mary’s Falls Canal, 1890 and 1891. Michigan, for the Calender Years ITEMS, = QUANTITY, INCREASE. | DECREASE, TOTAL VALUATION. ele Wee || f Sree | sx 5 PEST, 1890, | 1891, Amount, Per Cent. |} Amount. Per Cent. 'Price Per Unit.) 1890. | 1891, = =| pe | poe ne a pent cor nesiarerca coven _ | S me *Vessels, Number... 10,557 | 10,191 % 366 | 3 Lockages, Number. 4,970 4,981 ebieeshe ‘Tonnage, registered, net tons. 8,454,435 8,400,685 Tonnage, freight, net tons. 9,041,213 8,888,759 Passengers, Number.......... 24,856 26,190 bes, bite oa. shard and soft) net tons, 2,176,925 | 2,5077532 #3 50 7 00. Flour, barrels... 3,239,104 3,780,143 5 00 195.2 8/5 5 Wheat, bushels 16,217,370 | 38,816,570 98 16°30 God BO | oe ano eageeR Grain, (other than wheat) bushels. 2,044,884 1,082,104 98 2'003,496 32.) “1011,461 92 Manufactured Iron, net toue. 93,615 42/560 50 00 45680,750 00 | 2,128°000 00 Pig Tron, net tons 22,712 | 17 00 "386,104 00 | "462,077 00 Salt, barrels. 179,481 | 1 00 179,431 00 | 234,528 00 Copper, net toni 48,729 | 200 00 8,745,300 00 | 838,000 00 Tron Ore, net tons 4,774,768 |}. 330 16,711,688 00 460,745 50 Lumber, M feet, B. M 361,929 1800 | 6,514,722 00 | 6,503,490 00 Silver Ore and Bullion, net ton: 3,482 ’ 153 79 | 7 28 | 260,210 4) Building Stone, net tons......, 47,973 3,893 10 00 | 30.00 | 440,300 00 {Unclassified Freight, net tons. 371,204 417,093 crete wees 60 00 | 23,2777640 00 | 25,025,580 00 ae fi 3 —— — - ne | 2 ys WAR isccsscineinas tatecansre| ace enecersnear sees «| 102,214,948 70 128,178,208 51 Steamers... yee Sails....... 2,405 Unregistered cra 7 Total... RAMs ckmte ce ecen wel OhGd of 1890. Canal was open to Navigation during season « “ tc « « 1891. tIncinded in unelassifie Freight 1891 WiGollesccss - 2,602 tons and Hides 460 tons Valuation based cn Estimates of 18 Valuation for 1885 413,472 Hs «1886 + 69,080,07 i “1887 79,031,757 «ue fags 82,156,019 97 «6 1880 88,732,527 15 «1890 102,214,948 70 “& 4ggF 28,178,208 51 COMMERCE OF ST. MARY’S FALLS CANAL, REPORT OF GENERAL ( Uy POE TO CHIEF ¢ gp Srares Enqinye 34 West Congress Street, Derrort, Mrcu., Deeember 16, 1891. Brig. Gen, Thomas L. Casey, Chief of Engineers, U. 8S. Army, Washington, D. C., 3 Sir: I have the honor to submit the following report upon the commerce passing St. Mary’s Falls canal, during the sea= son of 1891, just closed. At this work, statistics for the season are necessarily those of the calendar year. The canal opened for navigation April 27, 1891, and closed December 7, The season was therefore 225 days long; or 3 days shorter than in 1890. The average number of vessels passing per day for the whole season was 45,3, and for the mouths of June, July, August and $ ptember, the average was 54.6. The size of the vessels continues to increase, as is shown in the following statistics: fn 1887 the average registered tonnage per vessel was 626.3 tons; 1888, 701.5; 1889, 790.5; 1890, 833.8; 1891, 862.1. The total registered tonnage for the season, falls 53,750 tons short of that for 1890, and the freight tonnage was 152,454 tons less. The following discussion of the appended statistics may not be inappropriate. For the whole period since 1881, the iron ore carried through the canal has been 47 per cent of the total freight, and in 1889 and 1890 it was more than 50 per cent; therefore the freight may be divided into two nearly equal parts, one of which was the iron ore, the remainder being the aggregute of all other freights. The per centage of increase since 1881 falls between 12 and 39 each year, the average being 22, During 1890 the freight, other than iron ore, amounted to 4,266,445 tons, and for 1891 to 5,328,548 tons. This shows an increase of 25 per cent in the freight of 1891—other than iron ore—over 1890; or a little more than the average increase for the preceeding ten years. Hence the decrease in iron ore freight alone is sufficient to explain why the business of 1891 did not show the usual increase. There were other causes, however, which materially affected the volume of the season’s business, and they will be referred to later, The falling off in iron ore freight was predicted, with cer- tainty, a year ago. It was due to causes so wide spread and long continued that a discussion here could hardly be made complete and satisfactory. The freight of wheat und wheat products was: abnormally large. Exelading iron ore and wheat in 1890, the remaining tonnage was 3,725,866 tons. The corresponding freight for 1891 was 4,540,660 tons, Hence the increase in freight, ex- clusive of iron ore, was per cent, which indicates quite a falling off from the average rate of 22 per cent for the last ten years, and shows that if the wheat crop of the northwest had not been unusually good this season, there would have been a slight decrease in the volume of freight other than iron ore. The foregoing relates solely to tonnage. If we consider the value of the season’s freight, we find a very large increase over any other. ‘a i The average yearly increase in the value of the freight transported since 1881 was about 15 per cent, but for the sea- son of 1891, it was about 25 per cent. The cause of this great increase in valuation is plainly due to the very larze wheat crop. Since we are not likely to be immediately favored with ‘another such crop, a decrease in valuation may be reasonably _ predicted for next year. / A _ But the failure to maintain the record of annual increase in _ freight tonnage is due, in a great degree, to three causes other wu the decrease in iron ore tonnage. wailable depth was 15,14 feet, in 1890 it was 15,06 in 1891 it was 14.42 feet. The average for 1891 was .64 feet, or .6 inches lower than in 1890, which, at a estimate of 20 tons to an inch of draft, corresponds of (say) 150 tons for each registered vessel. That Peck, at ‘‘the elbow,” in St. Mary’s River, by which navi- is, if the available depth of water in the canal during 1891 had been equal to that of 1890, (the next lowest recorded) the same “| 9,744 vessels which carried 8,888,759 tons in 1891, would have carried 1,461,359 tous more than they did, or an aggregate of 10,850,359 tons; or, say 10,000,000. This is no violent esti- mate, but is, | think quite within the truth. The next cause was the intentional delay of the vessel- men in putting their vessels in commission in the spring. This amounted to quite two weeks in the case of many of tie largest carriers, No attempt is made to estimate the effect of the delay, but it must have been considerable. The third cause was due to the sinking of the steamer Susan gation was totally suspended from 1:10 p. m. October 11, to 3 Pp. m., October 15, a period of full 5 days. 275 vessels were delayed an aggregate of 827 days 5 hours, or an average of about 3 days each, duriug which time they would have carried through the canal about 150,000 tons of freight if they had been free to move. This fairly off-sets the delay during the pre- ceding season due to the broken emptying valve. In view of the foregoing, it would be a conservative esti- mate to say that but for the conditions stated, the freight through the canal would have amounted to 10,500,000 tons during the season of 1891. Tn estimating the value of the commerce passing through the canal, it is deemed advisable to adhere to the same prices per unit first adopted, in 1885, It is believed that these con- stitute a fair average and afford a better basis for comparing the business from year to year than if they were amended to conform to the prices actually prevailing. Very respectfully, Your obedient servant, O. M. Pon, Colonel, Corps of Engineers, Bvt. Brig. Gen. U.S. A. $+ + ON MARKING VESSELS’ NAMES, We again call the attention of our readers to the Act of Con- gress approved last February, requiring the name of every American vessel to be marked upon each bow during the pres- ent year, and that every inspected vessel must have a ‘Joad mark THE FOLLOWING IS THE LAW. Be it enacted, etc. That section 4178, of the Revised Stat- utes be, and the same is hereby, amended to read entire as follows, “Spc. 4178. The name of every documented vessel of the United States shall be marked upon each bow and upon the stern, and the home port shall also be marked upon the stern. These names shall be painted, or carved and gilded, in Roman letters in a light color on a dark ground, or ina dark color ona light ground, and to be distinctly visible. ‘Che smallest letter used shall not be less in size than four inches, If any vessels of the United States shall be found without these names being so marked, the owner or owners shall be liable to a penalty of ten dollars for each name omitted. Provided, however, That the names on each bow may be marked within the year eight- een hundred and ninety-one.”” Suc, 2. The draught of every registered vessel shall be mark- ed upon thestem and stern post, ia English feet or decimeters, in either Arabic or Roman numerals, The bottom of each numeral shall indicate the draught to that line. The owner, agent or master of every inspected sea-going steam or sail vessel shall indicate the draught of water at which he shall deem his vessel safe to be loaded for the trade she is engaged in, which limit as indicated shell be stated in the yes sel’s certificate of inspection, and it shall be unlawful for such vessel to be loaded deeper than stated in said certificate. Lawyers form sixty per cent. of the members of the pres- ent Congress. What they don’t kuow about shipping matters would fill a book, But they will legislate for shipping inter- ests with confidence born of ignorance and the complacency of their class'-—The New York Maritime Register. STEAM STEERING ENG The volume of work now being carried on at the extensive plant of Williamson Bros., Philadelphia, fully bear out the high claims which are made for their special machinery for steam steering and hvisting engines. Knowing that the Wil- liamson steam steerer was the standard for United States ton- nage ‘I'm MArtne Rucorp endeavored to Jearn the amount and class of work now being carried on by the above named manufacturers, and the following list is an index of the orders which are being constantly turned out. For Lake steamers ordering steam steering engines, the Cleveland Ship Building Co. require 2. Detroit Dry Dock Co. 2. F. W. Wheeler & Co. 2, With several other orders to hear from, but not yet placed. For Ocean and Government steamers. The Columbian Iron Works order engines, for the U. 8. N. steamers Detroit and Montgomery; New York Navy Yard for the U. 8. S. Cinein- nati, Newport News Ship Building Co. 2, engines for the new Morgan Line steamers; William Cramp & Sons, engines for the U.S. cruisers New York and No. 12, now under construe- tion; Samuel L. Moore & Sons, for U. 8. practice vessel; Nor- folk Navy Yard, for the U. 8, steamers Texas and Raleigh, and the Quintard Iron Works, for the U. 8. S. Maine. For Sound, bay and ferry steamers, the following orders are now being filled: Harlan & Hollingsworth, 2 steam steerers for Stonington Line boats and 2 for the New Haven Line boats; Maryland Steel Co., one steam steering engine, com- plete, for the Baltimore & Norfolk Line steamer. Vennsyl- vania R. R. Co., 2 engines for the Jersey City Ferry and 2 for the Hoboken Ferry; John Dialogue, Camden, N. J., a steam steering engine for a powerful new tug boat; J. W. Paxon & Co., Philadelphia, 1 steam steerer for a large barge; L. Wright, Jr., Newark, N. J., 1 engine for yacht. The foregoing comprises all classes of tonnage from a yacht to United States cruisers and it is noteworthy that the ferry service on the Hudson between New York and New Jersey demand the Williamson steam steerer. If ever there was need for positive, permanent und reliable steering action it is to be found in the crowded ferry service at New York and this alone speaks volumes in favor of the Williamson machinery, [t is also evident-{that the United States Government in securing and adopting the Williamson steam steerers brand them as being the standard of the country and the most perfect mechanism yet devised. “ In addition to the list of steam steering engines, we learn that no less than 53 hoisting engines of various sizes with a capacity of from 1 to 6 tons, is now under construction at the works and all to fill recent orders so that the Philadelphia firm are kept moving at a lively gail to turn out the high classed © work entrusted to them. rr ee A GOOD ENDORSEMENT, Messus. Forres: Stuver Bronze Packiye Co., No 115 — Liberty Street, New York City: 3 GeNnTLEMEN—I have had yonr Silver Bronze Packing for — the past two years on several of cur tugboats. It is giving good satisfacticn and exceeds any other pucking wehave ever used. In one place it was the only packing that would keep — the box tight without heat, I am placing it on all of our en- — gines as fast as possible. | Yours very truly, = Tsaac L. Fisuer, : Agent Perth Amboy Towing Lines. — The boats on this line do yery heavy towing, ru and night, changing crews and neyer laying up. ~