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MARINE REVIEW. ai nar ee rapt -- SSF Fae ee oe z = = = = SSS OS ESS eee = _ The Saginaw Dredging Company, Saginaw, Mich., is build- ing a large dipper dredge with capacity for 150 yards per hour. Work of widening Rice's point channel has been com- menced by Williams, Daugherty & Upham, of Duluth. It will _ require a month to complete the contract. The light-house board has made the following appointments for lightship No. 57, stationed at Gray's reef, Lake Michigan: Keeper, M. S. Corlett; first, assistant, Jacob Smith; second as- sistant, Wilen Wright. Last fall the Chemung lost her rudder and shoe off Erie, and was picked up by the steamer C. S. Parnell. The matter was quietly settled a short time ago. by the owners of the Par- _ nell being paid about $3,000. Reported that Chicago underwriters claim that the steamer Fred Pabst, which grounded at Buffalo and again at Grassy Is- land, Detroit river, on her last trip up with coal, was overloaded, and will refuse to pay any claim made upon them. It will be two weeks or more before the whaleback steamer Pathfinder and consort Sagamore, building at West Superior for Samuel Mather and others of Cleveland is ready for service. Capt. W. B. McGregor will command the Pathfinder. It was said that the whaleback steamer Samuel Mather would break the grain cargo record out of Chicago last week. She took only 116,000 bushels of corn, however, against a record of 125,730 bushels made by the E. C. Pope last season. Philadelphia newspapers have been predicting since the opening of lake navigation a big gain for Erie in the lake grain business, on account of the efforts of Phiiadelphia railways to secure the export business from the lakes by way of Erie. From the opening of navigation to Aug. 1, however, Hrie had re- ceived but 7,516,000 bushels of wheat and corn to Buffalo's 49,- 800,000 bushels, or only 13 per cent. as against 87 per cent. Sales of vessel property: Schooner Tokio, Ferdinand Schles- inger and others of Milwaukee to Whipple & Winman, of De- troit, $50,000, covering also Escanaba ore charter; steamer Tay- lor, Isle Royal Transportation Company of Duluth to Grand Haven parties, $7,500; tug Welcome, Henry Lay & Co. of San- dusky to Williams, Daugherty & Upham of Duluth, $12,000; tug Lorenzo Dimick, Hand & Johnson of Buffalo to Capt. Jay Hursley of Sault Ste. Marie, $8,000. j Retaliation in various forms is suggested as a result of the canal tolls controversy. One of the latest propositions from a Canadian newspaper calls attention to the fact that Canadian vessels are compelled to report at Cheboygan before entering Lake Michigan, which is entirely American territory, and sug- gests that Canada enforce a similar stoppage at Amherstburg, where United States vessels are compelled to pass through the Canadian channel between Bois Blanc island, Detroit river, and the Canadian main land. In sending down the St. Lawrence the three light-ships which Wheeler & Co. of West Bay City have yet to deliver to officers of the light-house service at New York, Mr. Wheeler proposes to use air bags for lightening the draft in canals. Con- siderable expense was attached to shipping anchors, chains, etc. by rail when the first of these boats was sent to the coast sever- al days ago. It is thought that four bags of twenty tons lift- ing capacity each will serve to raise the boats so as to admit of their passage through the canals with all parts of fit-out and lighting appliances aboard. Notice to Mariners. Major E. H. Ruffner, government engineer at Buffalo, has issued a circular giving a description of the Niagara river chan- nel to Tonawanda. 'The circular refers in detail to soundings made at the lower end of Horse Shoe reef, Strawberry island and other points where extensive dredging work has been going on for a long time past. 'The engineer concludes that vessels draw- ing 15 feet, mean lake level, will strike nothing from the lake to the harbor at Tonawanda, Running the St. Mary's River. As had been expected vessels have begun to run the St. Mary's river both ways at night on the new government ranges. There is no doubt of the risk attached to running the river by night, but the number of boats using the ranges will undoubted- ly increase with each week until the close of navigation. Mas- ters who have covered the river so far by night say that the pro- posed ranges at the foot of Sugar island, which are among the. extra lights recommended by Col. Ludlowand Commander Heyer- man, in their plan for forty-four lights, are among the most es- sential aids in the entire system. The steamer Wawatam, Capt. Mooney, was the first boat to go up the river on the ranges, and the Samuel Mitchell, Capt. Wilford, was the first to come down. The Mitchell was drawing 15 feet 4 inches, and Capt.Wilford says he felt safe at all points excepting at the turn around the foot of Sugar island. In General. During the month of June there was moved from the lum-. ber districts of Puget Sound 36,758,550 feet in both foreign and domestic cargoes. 'This is certainly a creditable showing for the new northwestern country, where so many lake men have gone to seek fortunes. : A steel stern frame casting of 9,213 pounds for the United -- States cruiser Marblehead, now under construction at Boston, is said to have more than fulfilled all the requirements of the navy department. It was made by the Midvale Steel Company of Philadelphia. A report just issued by the American Iron and Steel Asso- ciation shows that the increase in the production of Bessemer steel ingots in the first half of 1892 as compared with the second half of 1891 was over 13 per cent., while the increase in the pro- duction of Bessemer steel rails in the same period was Over 10 percent As had been expected, the American Steam Barge Company has increased the water ballast capacity of the whaleback steam- er Wetmore, which has been in service on the Pacific coast since making a trip to England. It was found that the steamer suf- fered great damage forward when running light, on account of the spoon-shaped bow coming in contact with heavy seas. A 500-ton water ballast compartment has been added to the bow. Five masts carrying schooner sails have also been added to the Wetmore, for use mainly in case of accident to her machinery. Trade Notes. Smokestack black that will stick and look well is hard to find. The Walker Chemical Company, Jersey City, N. J., manufactures paint that has these qualities. They also manu- facture an excellent wood preservative. Samuel Hodge & Co., Riverside Iron Works, Detroit, have contracted with the Fisher Electric Company of that city for one 'of their automatic generators. The generator is to be of 60 | horse power capacity and will operate six motors located on electric cranes. 'The machine will be of the well-known auto- matic type, manufactured by the Fisher company and will be equipped with all-the latest improvements. : Crawley & Johnson, of Cincinnati, O., have invented a new automatic steam steering gear, which is claimed to be practically perfect. It is operated by the common wheel in the pilot house. The gear is perfectly noiseless, and located in the engine room. The wheel is turned in the ordinary way, as if steering by hand, and the rudder follows, moved by steam pressure. When the wheel ceases to revolve the rudder instantly stops, and is held in that position, no matter what circumstances may arise. A man steering a boat equipped with the gear would never suspect the presence of a power apparatus, but would find that the wheel revolved as easily as if the tiller ropes were taken off and he was simply moving the wheel on its axis, no matter what -- pressure there might be on the rudder. The manufacturers have a special pattern for tugs, which is very light and takes little space. Wrecks and Heavy Losses. The small steamer Remora, burned to the water's edge at St. Ignace on Wednesday, was valued at $12,000 and insured for $5,000. Although the sinking of the Canadian passenger steamer Princess Louise near Toronto last week will result in almost a total loss of the boat, an effort will undoubtedly be made to float her, Her cabins are partly out of water.