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8 | ' MARINE REVIEW. Electric Buoy System--Chicago Marine. WESTERN OFFICE, MARINE REVIEW, { No. 701 Phoenix Building, Cu1caGo, Ill., June 22. The electric buoys were not lighted last Saturday, the work not being com- pleted as soon as was expected. The work progressed very smoothly, however, one break only being made. .Some steamer caught the cable in her wheel, near the Jackson park pier, and cut it intwo. It was thought that the steamer was the Columbus, as she had a bucket broken off her wheel about that time. The break was quickly repaired, and the line will probably be lighted up this week. Great credit is due to Commander Brice and the Bishop Gutta Percha Company for the excellent manner in which the work has been done, Capt. George Manning, an old lake master, whose home was in Detroit, died here. Capt. George Tebo, always active in the good work of the Ship- masters Association, soon heard that the dead captain had been a member of the order, and took charge of the body, giving personal attention to prepara- tions for removal of the remains to Detroit and the interment there. The work of this association is deserving of the highest praise. Although not an old ovganization it has among benevolent socities few equals. Composed only of good men, it is not only an honor to be on its roster, but once a member, no matter what port he may be in, sick or well, if a captain makes himself known to the lodge there, he is sure of friendship and care. Lumber carrying is more stagnant if anything than a week ago. It is generally understood that most building deals are off. The dullness in build- ing ¢an best be shown by the fact that there are 6,000 carpenters and 2,000 bricklayers out of employment here, a fact that Chicago papers do not seem at all anxious to dwell upon. Encouraging Young Engineers-- Naval Items. Special Correspondence to the MARINE R#VIEW. Wasuincton, D. C., June 22,--The revenue cutter service is desirous of filling the yacancies that exist in it with yousg men who are thoroughly educated in mechanical engineering, or men of good general education with practical experience in engineering. If such young men will apply they can be designated to take the examination, from which appointments will be made in the order in which the candidates pass. On the 26th inst. a board of en- gineer officers will meet in the treasury department for the examination of candidates for appointment as second assistant engineers in this service, and the secretary of the treasury hus directed a number of candidates from schools of technology to appear before the board. The attorney general has dashed the hopes of the construction corps of the navy by ruling that the department can not build the new gunboats of composite type. The question was submitted to him by Secretary Herbert whether he could lawfully contract for the construction of one or more of the light:draught gunboats auther'zed by the act of March 3, 1893, on what is called the composite plan, the hull frames being of steel covered by wood planking and sheathed with copper, with a view to fitting the boats for tropical waters. The act contemplates the construction of gunboats of steel. Notwithstanding the failure of the contrac ors who lost $70,000 in attempt- ing to sink a caisson for a light-house at Diamond shoals, Cape Hatteras, N.C., the light-house board, by its recent action in authorizing the expenditure of $0,000 for submarine boring, shows a determination to still further pursue the search for a solid bottom, An appropriation of $300,000 for a light at this point is available. Buffalo Port Matters. Special Correspondence to the MARINE Revinw. Burrato, N. Y., June 22.---As the' drowning of the four surfmen at Cleveland in the storm of May 17 hasagain been brought up and some adverse comment made by unfriendly writers, it is but fair to the service to give Supt. Chapman's statement of the circumstances as he understands-them and as they are given in the wreck report furnished him by Keeper Distel, who barely es- caped with his life. Supt. Chapman dislikes any connection with anything ._ like controversy, but states positively that he can find no fault with either boat or crew: A combination of circumstances all worked against them. As they were going downthe riverinthe Dobbin's boat,they sawa mighty wave com- ing. There was not time to avoid itand the keeper felt that he must meet it before it broke, so he ordered the men to pull hard and steered straight for it. But for the breaking of an oar this feat would have been accomplished. But this accident threw the umlucky surfman against the next man and probably de- moralized a third and thus almost stopped the rowing on one side. This gave the boat sheer enough to catch the waye at its worst, and the superintendent says no boat ever built would withstand it. She rolled over, but showed her good qualities by righting again. Being light she floated high on the water, but the men went down deep into the water and came up so far from the boat that they could not reach it. A counter current also added to the difficulty and the driftwood in the river actually appears to have added to the danger. Under such circumstances the superintendent can see nothing blameworthy in the conduct of either boat or crew. People who condemn the work of surf- men in sucha terrible position ought to be given achance to show their powers in some way other than in ink slinging, Secretary Keep of the Lake Carriers' Association is of the opinion that e the raft question will be settled without direct appeal to the board of engineers. At the Detroit meeting both parties were cautious and declined to prescus their ideas as to the proper width of rafts, but this reticence is not likely to last. The matter ought to be fixed up by correspondence, and probably will be. Secretary Keep is tired of waiting for somebody to move in the wrecking reciprocity matter and is preparing to send a letter of inquiry to the state de- partment, with the endorsement probably of Congressman Lockwood of this city. This ought to set the wheels in motion, that is if the matter has merely been overlooked and has no real hitch in it. Another "World Beater." Special Correspondence to the MARINE RKEVIEW. Kineston, Onrt., June 22.--Captain William Power, who has for almost half a century been engaged in modelling and building ships, and who says he . ante-dated some of the patents of Capt. McDougall, is now on his life work, a design of an ocean passenger steamship to have great speed. Her load-line length will be 800 feet, with proportionate beam, and to be propelled by four screw wheels, three at the stern and one at the fore foot. By this arrangement of motive power and a working pressure of 200 pounds of steam to the paves inch, the forward wheel making 30 per cent. more revolutions than the wheels at the after end of the ship, he figures that his boat will make much higher speed than any ship has yet attained. The Montreal Transportation Company's new steel steamer Bannockburn, built at the Cleveland dock yard of Sir Raylton Dixon & Co., Middlesborough, was given an official trial a few days ago and will soon be ready for service on this side. The trial was satisfactory in every particular. This boat, which is 254 feet long and must be cut in two for passage through the St. Lawrence canals, has already been described in the Revirw. The engines were fitted by the North Eastern Marine Engineering Company Limited, Wallsend on Tyne, and the cylinders are 21, 34 and 56 inches by 39 inches stroke, with two large steel boilers working at a pressure of 160 pounds per square inch. The con- struction of the vessel has been under the superintendence of Captain A. Mc- Maugh of St. Catherines, Ont., and Messrs. Bruce Harman and Alex. Cleg- horn of Glasgow. The St. Lawrence river is 32 inches higher now than it was last year at | this time. Record of Speed and Big Cargoes. [ Masters or owners of freight boats are invited to report improvements on this list.] Iron ore: Maritana, Minnesota Steamship Company of Cleveland, 4,260 'gross or 4,771 net tons, Kscanaba to South Chicago; 8. 8. Curry, Hawgood & Avery Transit Company of Cleveland, 3,852 gross or 4,314 net tons, Escanaba to Fairport. Grain: Selwyn Eddy, Eddy Transportation Company of Bay City, 139,- 820 bushels of wheat, Detroit to Buffalo; E. C. Pope, Eddy Transportation Company of Bay City, 125,730 bushels of corn, Chicago to Buffalo ; Onoko, Minch estate, Cleveland, 187,657 bushels of oats, Chicagv to Buffalo. Coal: E. C. Pope, Eddy Bros. of Bay City, 8,950 net tons anthracite, Buffalo to Chicago. Speed: Owego, Union Line of Buffalo, Buffalo to Chicago, 889 miles, 54 hours and 16 minutes, 16.4 miles an hour. Inventions of a Marine Nature. Specially reported from the patent office, Washington, D. C., for the MARINE REVIEW. 499,296--Ice breaking and clearing apparatus, Johannes A. Kruitsbrink of Arnhem, Netherlands; filed Noy. 10, 1891; serial number, 411,532. 499,319--Apparatus for calming the waves cf the sea, by Benvenuto B. D' Alessandro of Paris, France ; filed Nov. 7, 1891; serial number, 411,228. 499 ,321--System for propelling canal boats by electricity, by Samuel W. Gear of Buffalo, N. Y.; filed Jan. 26, 1893; serial number, 459,889. 499,495--Apparatus for determining a ships distance from an object, by Edwin Baker of Cardiff, England ; filed Dec. 27, 1892; serial number, 456,412. 499,569--Ship steering gear, by William A. Oglethorpe of Liverpool, Eng- land; filed July 13, 1892 ; serial number, 439,920. Official Numbers and Tonnage. The bureau of navigation, E..C. O'Brien commissioner, assigned official numbers and tonnage to the following lake vessels du ring the week ending June 10: Steam--Snainte Marie, Detroit,Mich., 1,357.04 tons gross, 678.52 net, No, 116,574 ; City of Holland, Grand Haven, Mich., 626.26 tons gross, 512.06 net, No, 126,967; Morgan, Marquette, Mich., 28.91 tons gross, 14.96 net, No. 92,517. Sail--Ed. McWilliams, Detroit, Mich., 748.91 tons gross, 706.72 net, No. 136,363; DollieM.,Marquette, Mich., 38.00 tons gross, 34.07 net, No. 157,373} Dixie,Grand Haven, Mich., 8.60 tons gross,8.49 net, No. 157,372. Unrigged-- Ella Louisa, Oswego, N.Y., 152.09 tons gross, 144.49 net, No. 86,853. Try THis Tratn.--Train No. 8, the Buffalo accommodation, is a great favorite with patrons of the Nickel Plate road. It leav« s the Broadway depot 6:45 a.m , Madison avenue 6:50 a. m., Kuclid avenue 7 a.m. Arrives Buffalo 1:50 p.m. Try this train when going east, ?