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THE MARINE RECORD. Maritime Law U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York. Prersonat Ixsurres—Derective Rope—KNowLepGE oF Mare or Vesser—Acquimscence or SAmior. Brown, J. While libelant, a seaman, was employed scraping the mainmast of the Julia Fowler, on a triangle sur- rounding the mast, the rope holding the triangle broke, pre~ cipitating libelant to the deck, and causing injuries, to recover for which this suit was brought. The evidence showed that the rope was old and spliced, and that the attention of the mate, who rigged the triangle’ and was in charge of the work, was called to its character before the accident. It also appeared that all the men considered the rope of doubtful sufficiency but that they continued work without objection, without de- manding a new rope, which was no evidence to show it would not have been furnished them. Held, that this was an ac- quiescence in the wrongful act of the mate, charging libelant also with negligence, One-half of his damages were fixed at $400. Feb. 2, 1882. Circuit Court of Appeals, Second Circuit. Jan. 18, 1892. 1. Gortision—Tucs Anp Tows—VussrL at ANCHOR— CHANGE oF CouRSE. A tug, with a ship in tow on a hawser, gave a rank sheer in an attempt to pass from one side to the other of a dredge, and cleared in midstream, when so near the latter thet, al- though the ship instantly put the helm hard over to folloa the tug, she came in collision with the dredge. Held, that the tug was liable. 2, Aprrars—Party nor APPEALING CANNOT BE HEARD, Where libelant has not appealed, he cannot contend in this court that certain items of his loss were improperly disallowed in the court below. 41 Fed. Rep. 57, affirmed. Circuit Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit. April 12, 1892. 1, Coriistoy—Sream anp Sarr—Licurs, A steamer moving at midnight in the open sea, on a course 8. W. 3 W., and, approaching a schooner moving on a course N.E. by E., passes the point of intersection of course just before the schooner reaches it, and, seeing the schooner’s green light, put her helm hard a-port, thereby producing a collision with the schooner, held, that the steamer was in fault. 2. Same—InrernarionaL Ruues. Section 4234, Rey. St. U. S., requiring sail—yessels to show torch-lights on the approach of steamers at night, does no- apply, since the adoption of the international rules of naviga- tion of 1885, to vessels uvon the high seas or coast-waters. 3. Same—PARALLEL AND OBLIQUE CouRSEs. A maneuver which would have been a proper one as to ves- sels approaching each other on parallel courses may be a fatal one if the vessels are moving on courses obliquely intersecting. Before Fuller, Chief Justice, and Hughes, District Judge. The eminent jurists in their syllabus of the case takes occasion to state that it is insisted, on behalf of the Le- panto, that her failure to discover the relative situations of the two vessels was largely owing to the fault of those on the schooner in not showing a flash-light, as required by section 4234 of the Revised Statutes. It is answered, on the schooner’s behalf, that in point of fact she was prepared to exhibit a flash-light, and did actually ignite it, but put itout immediately after doing soon seeing the green light of the steamer, which gaye assurance that that vessel was about to cross her course and go clear. It is needless to deal here with this issue of fact. The international rules of navigation, enacted into laws by the act of congress of March 3, 1885, do not require flash- lights to be used by vessels upon the high seas and coast- waters of the United States. Article 2 of those rules de- clares that no other lights than those mentioned in the articles of the act relating to lights shall be carried, and none of those articles mention flash-lights; and section 2 of the act repeals all laws and parts of laws inconsist- ent with those articles. Moreover, the act of 1884, es- tablishing international rules for sea-going and coasting vessels, omits section 4234 of the Revised Statutes. It follows, therefore, that if the schooner Bronson did not display a flash-light on the approach of the Lepanto, she was not in fault on that score. ‘The decree of the circuit court is affirmed, with interest, and costs of the appeal to be paid by appellant. + > + ge A NEW ILLUMINANT FOR LIGHT-HOUSES, The Lighthouse Board has information relating t) a mag- nesium flash light devised by Prof. Schirm, of Berlin, Ger- many. Itis produced by blowing a small quantity of magne- sium powder with a current of air which has previously passed through pumice stone saturated with benzine into a benzine gas flame. With the use of ten centigrame of mag~ nesium powder, it is stated that a flash of 400,000 candle pow- ercan be seen on a clear sunshiny day ata distance of six miles. This flash light, in addition to its being very much more powerful than any known electric light, it is stated, is far better adapted to lighthouse purposes on account of its rays lying in the red and yellow portions of the spectrum in- stead of in the blue portions as in the case with the electric light. The Lighthouse Board. after an examination of the report sent to it through the courtesy of Capt. Bingham, Corps of Engineers, military attache at Berlin, was so fayora- bly impressed with the light tha: it was decided to order an apparatus, to be used in experiments at the general depot at at Staten Island, N.Y. It is expected that this apparatus Will arrive in the course of the next two months. AN INQUIRY INTO WRECKS AND CASUALTIES. The following communication, which has been addressed to all members of,the Lake Carriers Association, Boards of Nay- igation und Transportation of the United States, is self ex- planatory: Bureau or NAVIGATION, Wasutinaton, D. C., June 24, 1892. To The Marine Record. Due regard for the protection of life and property seems to require that an inyestigation should be made by the govern- ment as to the causes of marine disasters, collisions, accidents, ete., in the cases of all vessels of the United States, for the information and benefit offmariners, and especially with a view to prevent a repetition of similar mishaps. No official body besides the Federal Courts, is particularly charged with such inquiries, except to a certain extent in regard to steam yessels, and to cases in which reports are made for the use of the life saving service. At present it does not appear that mariners gener ally, outside of the private persons especially concerned, haye auy certain means of learning all the facts which may have led to collisions, or strandings, or other disasters to vessels. If a proper official body con- stituting a board, at the expense of the government, could have power to investigate the various accidents; to send for witnesses and papers; to administer oaths; and to make a thorough investigation, the facts in regard to all cases might be brought out and notice given to mariners generally, so as to be of material use to them, and so that a knowledge of the causes of a disaster would not, as is now the case, be confined to the eye-witnesses, underwriters, masters, and owners, directly interested. Your views relative to the matter are requested. Respectfully yours, Treasury DEPARTMENT, } E, C, O’Brizn, Commissioner of Navigation, + oo OBSERVERS OF LAKE CURRENTS AND METEOROLOGY. Wasuineron, D. C.—A number of bottle papers used in ascertaining the set and drift of lake currents has drifted ashore during the month of June and after being picked up were duly forwarded to the office of the Weather Bureau. The names of the captains engaged in the work of distribu- tion as shown by these recovered bottles are as follows: Capt. C. Mason, China, Capt. M. Lightbody, City of Alpena, Capt. Robert Murray, Vanderbilt; Mr. Geo. R. Downs, U. 8. S. Michigan; Capt. D. A. McLachlan, City of Cleveland; Capt. G, Grasen, Gordon Campbell; Captain Robert Smith, Japan; Capt. George Robertson, schooner M. A. Lydon; Capt. James Kennedy, Badger State; Capt. A. E. Huff, Philadelphia; Capt. A. Keith, schooner E, Fisher; Capt. M. W. Gotham, Briton, Capt. P. Fleming, tug Seymour; Capt. H. J, Slytield, City of Mackinac; F. D. Osborn, India. In several cases two or more bottle papers are from the same vessel making a list of forty-five ‘“‘messages from the sea” in- dicating the drift of the waters. Datty Oxseryations.—Among the daily meteorological reports sent in for the month of May are those of Capt. George Scott, Light-House steamer Marigold, Capt. R. Young, Cuba; Capt. H. Leisk, P. J. Ralph; Capt. N. B, Nelson, Geo. T. Hope; Mr. George R, Downs, U. 8. 8. Michigan; Capt. Danial Buie, Wallula; Charles Kimball, lightkeeper, White Fish Point, Capt. Wm. Young, Philip Minch; Capt. John Cochrane, Marian; Capt. J. B, Hall, Corona; Capt. John M. Gee, City of Racine; Capt. John Baxter, lighthouse tender Haze; Capt. C. W. Lockwood, schooner B, L. Pennington; Capt. A. B. Drake, Brazil; Capt. John Leonard, Mecosta; Capt. William W. Collins, Wm. Edwards, $+ U.S. NAVY REGULATION CIRCULAR NO, 106, Nayy Derarrment, WAsuinatoy, D, C., June 16, 1892. From the following new order, it may be seen that the U. S, Navy is being controlled by men of practical training. 1, Commanding officers will be ready at all times to forward immediately, when called, for the statements of work in all de- partments needed upon the vessels under their command or their equipage. 2. Whenever a ship which has been cruising outside the waters of the United States returns toa United States port, her commanding officer will, at the earliest possible moment, without waiting for special instructions to that effect, trans- mit to the Assistant Secretary a report of work required upon the vessel. 3. The items of work under each Bureau will be stated in four classes: First, immediate repairs necessary for cruising efficiency, for the prevention of deterioration, or sanitary con- siderations; second, further repairs which it is desirable to have made whenever the service of the vessel can be spured for a sufficient length of time: third, necessary alterations and, fourth, alterations desirable, but not necessary, In each case the reason for asking for the work will be stated, 4. The report will not be delayed until arrival at a navy- rare, but each Commanding Officer will transmit it as soon as he is aware that his vessel will shortly return to the United States. _ 5, Whenever reports of needed repnirs are sent from ships in the Pacific to the Department or to any Bureau, with or without drawings and specifications of the work to be done, a duplicate of the report with all drawings and specifintions will be forwarded by the same mail to the Navy-yard, Mare Island. B, F, Tracy, Secretary of the Navy. ON THE ORIGIN AND PRODUCTION WIRE ROPE, The manufacture of those metallic filaments or s known ag wire, is one of considerable antiquity, and h: raced by good authorities as far back as the period of Egypt. Gold wire is mentioned in connection wii date as distant as 1700 8. c. A specimen of wire made by Nineyvites some 800 years B."c, is exhibited at the Kensir in their early writings. Metal heads, with imitation h: wire, recovered from the ruins of Herculaneum are in Portici Museum. From such remote eras up to the for ¢ century, wire in its general acceptation was produced by h mering out strips of metal, and not by the process of “dray ing” as practiced at the present time. In the middle this industry was extensively pursued, and the artificers thugs engaged were termed, in the trade, “wire-smiths,” but in the — earliest days of the manufacture, gold, silyer, and bronze a) pear to have been the only metals so treated. It is, however, fairly substantiated by technical records that the present method of ‘‘drawing wire’’ was practiced in the Lenne district of Germany during the fourteenth century, a treaties upon, “wire rope its manufacture and uses’’ by J. Bucknell Smith — states that in the histories of Augsburg and Nuremberg, dated — 1351 and 1369 respectively, the term ‘‘drahtzieher” (wire. drawer,) mentioned in connection with this industry, so that it is reasonable to infer that the ‘‘drawplate’’ was known and used at this period; possibly the first wire-drawing mill was that erected at Nuremberg by a man named Radolt shortly. 4 after the time above mentioned, or when the art of hand draw- ing wire had reached some degree of excellence. At least, so the writings of Conrad Celtes, of 1490, lead us to understand. About the year 1500 the credit of ‘‘wire-drawing” was ascribed‘in France to one Richard Archal, and even now some” classes of wire produced in this country are known as “fil d’Archal.’”’ According to Beckmann’s “History of Tnven- tions,” published in London, 1817, as little was definitely known about the claims of Archal us those attributed to Rudolf of Nuremberg. It was not, however, until about 1565 that machine drawn wire was produced in Great Britain, In Germany, as early as 1750, Mr, Felten, of thesince eminent firm of Felten and Guilleaume, laid the foundation of their present extensive factories near Cologne. In America, per- hape no firm is more deservedly well known thaa that of Messrs. Roebling & Sons, of Trenton, who commenced busi-- ness in 1849. Messrs. Washburn and Moen, however, com- menced wire-drawing in the States some eighteen years pre- viously, whilst the Trenton Iron Company must also be reckoned amongst the earliest founders of the wire industry in the states. At the present time Belgium furnishes a considerable quantity of wire products to export markets. Outside the United States, the world’s supply of plain and worked wire — of various kinds is practically derived from Great Britain, Ger.any, and Belgium, and not even Australia, with all her consumption, has as yet deemed it desirable to establish wire mills of her own. The first submarine telegraph cable was laid in 1850 from Doyer to Calais, a distance of twenty-five miles, and so in- valuable were its demonstrations of utility, that after the con- struction of numerous others of increasing importance, a cable was laid between Ireland and America in 1858, a distance of over 2,000 miles: it was through this cable that England seny the first telegraphic message to President Buchanan. Since the practical inauguration of electric traction for street railways, over 1500 miles of overhead copper conductors haye been erected in some of the principal cities of the United States within the last three years, ‘Those readers who have had an opportunity of seeing the stupendous and elegant suspension bridges across the Niagara River, and that from New York to Brooklyn, are familiar with beautiful and colossal examples of the uses of wire for structural purposes. The last great achievement of engineer- ‘ ing skill with which the name of Roebling will always remain — inseparable, presents a clear or main river span of 1600 feet, _ at an elevation of 135 feet above high water mark, the huge suspension cables being composed of 6400 separate wires, — Again, the railway across this structure isa typical illustration, — amongst many in the United States, of the use of wire rop' for traction purposes. tS Somewhat recently Sir William Thomsen has employed eat wire of high breaking strains in connection with his ingenio and extensively used deep sea sounding apparatus, - en Tue old whaler Progress, which is to be exhibited World’s Fair has arrived at Ogdensburg. The Progress New Bedford, the home of the old time and famous Am whalers, on June 8th., in tow of the tug Right Arm. reached Quebec after a fair passage, the only heavy being encountered in the Bay of Funday, She will tox to Chicago, and while on the way will be fitted up old time whaling apparatus which is at present in her She will be used as a museum ship at the World’ projectors of the enterprise haying already secu: supply of whaling and Arotie relics, *