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3 MARINE REVIEW. | CHICAGO LAKE INTERESTS. WESTERN OFFICE, MARINE REVIEW, No. 13 Western Union Building, CHICAGO, Ill., July 14. t The lake front excursion boat war will at once go into the courts, where the contract of the world's fair with the Henry syndicate will be attacked. The case will perhaps be the most interesting ever tried in lake admiralty. Robert Rae will represent the excursion boat owners. He has thrown his pro- | fessional pride into the case and will make a sturdy fight. The world's fair is none the less determined to sustain the contract, and it will have an able array of legal talent. Most people here are somewhat in doubt as to the out- come, as the law involved is largely an unknown land. In the meantime, the lake front excursion boats haye held the fort, and it is evident that the city does not further intend to interfere with them. _ The Society for the Prevention of Smoke has given the tug companies no- tice that afterSeptember 1 all smoking tugs will be prosecuted. That much time is given to put on smoke consuming devices. Perhaps the tugs will all stop smoking Sept. 1, and perhaps all Chicago people will become virtuous at the same date. It is said that wonders will never cease. On the other hand, there is equally good authority for the statement that there is nothing new under the sun. This would bar a Chicago smokeless tug. . The announcement that the Lake Carriers' Association was preparing a protest against the action of the Light House Board in relieving Col. Ludlow and Commander Heyerman was well received here. The first announcement that the Lake Carriers' Association would drop the case was made on the author- ity of one of its officials. This gentleman said that the two officers were clearly in the right regarding the lights in St. Mary's river, but they had been unfortu- nate in having their telegrams misconstrued. If the friends of Col. Ludlow, who are numerous at eyery lake port, have succeeded in finding a way of com- bating the "discipline" which caused the change there will be general satis- faction. The efforts of both officers for the lake marine have entitled them to the full support of vessel owners. Jealously in the service, however, is a hard thing to combat. These two able officers are not its first victims. An Electric Yacht. Special Correspondence to the MARINE KEVIEW. WasuHIncTon, D.C., July 14.--The first successful attempt to propel a boat by electricity, generated by an independent primary battery, was accom- plished on the Potomac river in this city a few days ago. The Electric is an electrical yacht, fitted out by the Hanson Light and Power Company of this city. The hull was built by Grove of New York. The trial trip was attended by anumber of distinguished Washington people. The boat's propelling power consists of a "Riker" battery of 2+ horse power, with thirty cells of the Hanson patent in parallel, the total weight of which is 1,450 pounds. The yacht is 21 feet long and 5 feet beam. In the bow she carries a tank for ex- tra solution to recharge the batteries. The first charge will run for twenty- four hours consecutively, and the tanks hold enough for forty-eight hours more. Canada's Governor General on the Canal Question. Special Correspondence to the MARINE REVIEW. Ktnasron, Ont., July 14.--The house of commons prorogued on Saturday and the governor general in his closing speech, made an important reference to the canal tolls matter. He said: 'A representation has been made by the administration of the United States that the schedule of tolls which has been in force on the Canadian canals for some years past operates to the disadvant- age of the shipping and products of United States citizens on the great lakes. This complaint has been examined and discussed with the authorities of the United States. A proposal has been submitted on behalf of my government, that the United States restore the concessions that were made on the part of that country by the treaty of Washington as an equivalent for concessions on the part of Canada as to the canals, but which were withdrawn by the United States without any cause so far as canada is concerned. This proposal has not yet been replied to, but it is hoped that the fairness of the position taken by my government will be duly appreciated by the government of the United States, so that all further misunderstanding on this question may be avoided." Vessel owners here are of the opinion that the complained of discrimina- tion would be removed at once if the proposal made to the United States gov- ernment be approved of. The reciprocity in wrecking bill has been passed by parliament and only remains to be signed by the governor general in order to become a law. It is therefore in the same position that the American bill of the same nature occu- pies. Under existing circumstances, however, it is impossiblo to say when the law will come into force. Capt. Thomas Collins, a veteran lake and river man, died at Clayton on Friday. ; The large schooner Minnedosa, owned by the Montreal Transportation Company, was loaded at Fort William with 62,000 bushels in one hour and twenty minutes. On her way down she leaked so much that she was placed in dry dock. Two open augur holes were found in her bottom out of which the plugs had disappeared. Proposed Passenger Liners. : Special Correspondence to the MARINE REVIEW. Burrao, N. Y. July 14.--During the absence of General Manager Gor- don it is impossible to learn any of the details of the two proposed passenger liners. There area number of stories going the rounds in connection with the news of the contract, but none have been authorized by the company. They are interesting, however, in showing that the passenger business of the lakes is capable of great development. One story is that the two liners will be run in a manner similar to limited express trains between Buffalo and Duluth, stopping at Detroit, rounding to at Mackinaw and then stopping at the Sault, connections being made at these points with auxiliary sbeamens, which will pick up passengers and freight at Lake Erie, Lake Michigan and Lake Super- ior south shore points. 'The two boats must make 18 miles an hour running regularly. To do this the hulls will be modeled dimen than anything on the lakes, and the engines will be larger than any now In lake practice. To fur- nish steam for such engines eight, or at least six, large boilers will be used. The contract price has been mentioned as $400,000 each, but it is claimed that $1,000,000 has been appropriated for the steamers and completion of their run- ning arrangements. Capt Murch, who represented the Northern line in the building of its freight boats in Cleveland, left the Avon and it is understood that he will look after the construction of the new steamers. Some time ago a young man dressed in white flannel coated with yellow clay rushed into Maytham's tug office about 3 o'clock in the morning, and between gasps stated that his yacht was ashore up the lake a couple of miles. It was a very thick night, but Capt. Maytham asked him how he happened to get on with a yacht. "Tts all on account of that book, the coast pilot; it says that you can see that red light 12 miles, and you cant see it two sir." Several lake men joined in the roar that followed, but nobody had the heart to tell him that a light that can be seen twelve miles on a clear night can't be seen one mile on a thick night. David Bell will launch the steel fire boat City of Buffalo within a few days. It is neatly modeled and ought to make a serviceable fire boat. The dimensions of the boat are 75 feet keel and 203 feet beam, and she has a _ pair of engines 17 by 17 inches, getting steam from an 11-foot Scotch boiler, built by Farrar & Trefts. The capacity of fire pumps is 4,000 gallons per minute. The yard number of the boat is 41. Planning for a Nautical School on the Lakes. The following letter from EK. C. O'Brien, commissioner of navigation, explains itself : Eprror Marine Reyinw:--I would like your views as to the practica- bility of the establishment of a nautical school on the great lakes, for the edu- cation and training of American boys for a sea-faring life, and more particu- larly as regards a continuance of an adequate supply of efficient officers and seamen, for the already, and rapidly increasing merchant vessels on these mid-continent seas. It is suggested that the government should assist in the matter, by placing a school-ship at some proper point, and detailing competent instructors from the different services of the United States. American boys could then be given a special training to meet the peculiar conditions of navigation on the lakes, that it would be difficult to secure by any other means; and the country would have in a short time, "a self-supporting militia of seamen or naval re- serve for the great lakes, a force of inestimable value to any nation that aspires to naval or commercial greatness." If the project is favorably considered some legislation would be required by congress to accomplish the desired ob- ject. I will thank you to give the matter.an early consideration. EK. C. O'Brizn, Treasury Department, Bureau of Navigation, Commissioner. Washington, D.C., July 7, 1892. Notices to Mariners. The July bulletin from the light-house board, with reference to recent changes in aids to navigation, calls attention to notices already given out on the lakes, among them the change in posi- tion of the skeleton iron tower at the west pier, entrance to Huron harbor, Lake Erie, and several changes in the buoyage of Beaver island channel and Poverty island passage, Lake Michigan. Masters would do well to secure copies of these bul- letins every month from the light-house board, Washington, or from the light-house inspectors at Buffalo and Chicago. Commander Woodward, inspector of the Eleventh light- house district, gives notice that the Outer island (Lake Superior) fog signal is disabled and will not be in operation until repaired, which will be done as soon as possible. LL Additional assignments of official numbers as follows were made by the commissioner of navigation during the week: Steam--Codorus, Erie, 2,165.67 ONS gross 802.08 ne 2 Opp, 2 ee 0 08 net, No. 126,866; J. D. MeFadden, Duluth, 15.20 tons gross, 7.60 net, No. 77,041. Sail-Rambler, Cleveland, 9.73 tons gross, 9.25 QR4A.- Caray * ; P net, No, 110,984; Maggie, Chicago, 8.74 tons gross, 8.05 net, No, 92, 401,