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Launch of the Harvey H. Brown. Special Correspondence to the MARINE REVIEW. DETROIT, Mich., March 15.--The launch of the Harvey H. Brown was attended with the usual success of everything undertaken by the Detroit Dry Dock Company. No special invitations were extended but a general invitation was given to the friends of the company to secure compliment- ary tiskets for a special train over the Michigan Central to Wyandotte and return. The friends proved so numerous that a second train of seven coaches was chartered,so that between 800 and 1,000 persons were given an excursion and the pleasure of seeing a first class launch. Among these were a number of the employes, and laborers that are not usually included in such festivities. Notwithstanding she is a straight-back, the Brown showed a pretty hull, the bow looking "quite English you-know" with stockless anchors drawn up to the hawse-pipes. This boat is something more than a staight-back. We have monitors and whalebacks and turtle- backs, but this boat has a turtle-back on her belly. I refer to the oak sheathing on her bottom, extending to the turn of the bilges and within 15 or 20 feet of the bow and stern, and about 5 inches thick. Along the sides it is protected by an angle iron and at the ends byashoe, The sheathing is bolted on with 1%-inch bolts, having heads counter-sunk with cotton under them and the hole plugged with wood. Inside the shell plate a washer with cotton under it is used under the nut. It is safe to say the Brown will not lose any of this sheathing unless it is generally known. Of course she went into the water nearly even. If all ordinary means fail, the plan adopted in launching boats here provides a reserve ef- fort at every point. The gentleman for whom the boat was named was not present, and neither was Capt. E. M. Peck, but he was represented by E. T. Peck, who is said to be principal owner. Among other prominent marine men in the launching party were Capt. James Millen, I. C. Waldo, Charles Norton, James Findlater, Neil McMillan, Joseph Mayworm, H. D. McMillan, Ken- neth Anderson and many more. The party was in charge of Gilbert N.. McMillan of the company, and included Mr. C.B. Calder, the new superin- tending engineer. The boat is 362 feet over all, 342 feet keel, 42 feet beam and 25 feet depth. Her engines, triple expansion, are 22, 35 and 56 inches by 44 inches stroke. While everything as to hull, size of engines and boilers is the same as in the Selwyn Eddy, there will be a notable departure in the feature of introducing the Howden system of forced draft in connection with the boilers. This will give an opportunity for comparison between two boats practically duplicates. It will demonstrate to lake vessel owners that this system saves coal, gives more steam and therefore more power, and per- mits of the use of lower grade coal than natural draft. Ore Covered by Contract. Aside from the vessels of Pickands, Mather & Co. and other iron ore concerns, capacity to the amount of about 1,100,000 tons has been engaged up to this time on contract business from the head of Lake Superior at 80 cents. Added to this there is 150,000 tons of Escanaba ore, which was taken some time ago by the Inter-Ocean Transportation Company of Mil- waukee at 60 cents, and 150,000 tons of Marquette ore, covered within the past week by J. H. Outhwaite & Co. at 80 cents for theseason. This latter block will be carried by Curtis & Brainard's boats Cherokee and Chippewa and by the steamer Ketchum towing Capt. James Davidaon's schooner Aberdeen and the schooner Becker. These figures are based on very care- ful estimates, and if it was thought advisable the names of all boats under contract could be published. The estimate includes the whalebacks, but none of the boats of the ore companies. If the latter were included, the: amount covered from all ports would be considerably over 2,000,000 tons. The McElroy Flyer. The Frontier [ron Works of Detroit has undertaken an important job in the construction of quadruple expansion engines for the new boat being built by the McElroys of St. Clair for service on the rivers, and the result of their efforts will be looked to with a great deal of interest, especially among the leading engine constructors on the Jakes. As an indication of the very fine lines of the hull, it may be noted that the stern pipe is 38 feet 8 inches long. This pipe is a steel tube in three sections connected by brass thimbles, and is arranged so as to permit of the forward and after sections being readily withdrawn, in order to refit or renew the two bearings which the tube contains, and which are rendered necessary by the great length of the shaft. Besides these, there is the usual stern bearing and another just forward of the stuffing- box. The outboard shaft is 7 inches diameter and 43 feet 9 inches long. Its great length is best shown by comparison. The outboard shaft of the Merida, the longest steamer on fresh water, is 18 feet 2 inches long. The engine bed- plate is a composite structure of steel I beams and cast steel cross webs carry- ing the shaft journals. The I beams are 12 inches deep, weighing 563 pounds per lineal foot. The guide columns are cast steel with cast iron guide faces bolted on. The front columns are wrought iron, two under each cylinder. The cranks are of steel with counterbalances cast on. The crank pins are 7} inches by 7 inches and have a 33-inch hole through them. The weight of MARINE REVIEW. | ae moving parts is reduced to the minimum consistent with strength,but all wear- ing parts have extraordinarily large wearing surfaces. The six main journals and four crank pin boxes are all lined with the best white metal. The thrust bearing has eight collars, also faced with white metal. The valve gear, as we have before stated, is of the Joy pattern on the first three cylinders; the low- pressure valve is driven by asingle idle eccentric. All pistons are of steel, coniform, and each is fitted with a single ring of the type which the Frontier Iron Works introduced with such great success in piston valves, and which are now to be given more extended application. The three piston valves are 8 inches, 12 inches and 16 inches diameter, respectively, and the latter is double ported. Metallic packing is to be fitted all around. The condenser is a Dean: (Indianapolis) No. 7. Another Big Freight Steamer. Another big steel freight steamer will be added to the Minch fieet 0 Cleveland before the close of the coming season of navigation. A contract ~ has been let with the Cleveland Ship Building Company for a boat similar. to the steamer Alva, built by the same company last winter for M. A Bradley and others. The fact that a boat like the Alva can now be built. for probably $50,000 less than the price at which that boat and others of her class were built a year ago has had much to do with this contract. Then, too, the officers of the ship building company are interested in other steamers of the Minch fleet, and will, it is understood, be part owners of this boat. Gangways and hoisting engines for handling package freight will be placed in the new boat and she will have nine hatches. The principal dimensions will be 324 feet keel, 42 feet beam and 26 feet 3. inches moulded depth. The engines, triple expansion, will have cylinders 20, 33 and 54 inches by 4o inches stroke. Boilers will be of the Scotch - type, 12 feet 4 inches diameter and 13 feet long, the steam pressure to be -- 160 pounds to the square inch. The construction will be in accordance. with rules of the Bureau Veritas. In General. Capt. Robert Johnson, sixty-two years of age, died at Hamilton, Ont., Tuesday. Capt. Thomas D. Gibson and Engineer Lee Corns will again be in charge of the Toledo steamer Panther. Capt. Charles Goodsite will command the schooner Massassoit. . in bie An increase of about 10,000 tons a week in the make of pig iron was noted on the first of the month, and a few large furnaces in the Ohio and Pittsburg districts have since gone into blast, but the change is not greatly for the better. One of the electric launches used on the lagoons of the World's Columbian Exposition was shipped to Venice in September last and was recently placed in service on the canals of that city. More of the yachts will be built, it is. said, to take the place of the gondolas. In 1892 Mr. Cramp, testifying before a government commission which was dealing with the question of using steel plates for ship building, stated that he was paying 3.25 cents per pound for iron ship plate. He noted that he was then giving 7} cents for the best boiler plate. Such figures seem strange at this time. ate Belleville boilers to be fitted into two new British cruisers will be forty- . eight in number, and will weigh 500 tons less than the ordinary Scotch boilers and give the same power. The total weight is put down at 950 tons, and the power to be developed 25,000 indicated horse power, thus giving about 26 in- dicated horse power per ton of boiler. an Some of the New York papers have given up considerable space to another -- of Edison's schemes in the shipping line. He is now at work with a plan to . grease the sides of ships so that they will slip through the water more readily... He says the friction of salt water and its constituents is much more than is gen- - erally believed and if he can only do what he is trying to do the Campania can make the voyage between New York and Liverpool in four days. A boom in bilge keels seems to have set in in nayal construction affairs -- since the rolling propensities of the Resolution were demonstrated. The keel of the Terrible is now laid in the yard of Messrs. J. & G. Thompson, Clyde- bank, and it has been determined that both in her case and in that of the com- panion ship Powerful, being laid down at Barrow, deep bilge keels are to form a feature of their hulls below water. It has also been decided to.fit deep bilge keels to the battle ships Majestic and Magnificent, building at Portsmouth and | Chatham respectively, as the width of atleast two docks at Portsmouth is sufficient at the entrance to admit ships of the Royal Sovereign class, eyen when fitted with bilge keels of considerable spread.--Fairplay, London. AN ALPHABETICAL LIST OF 1,200 VESSELS--THE BUSINESS FLEET OF THE LAKES--WITH THE PORTS AT WHICH THEY WERE TIED UP FOR THE WINTER, WAS PUBLISHEED AS A SUPPLEMENT TO THE REVIEW AFTER THE CLOSE OF NAVIGATION LAST FALL. THis LIST MAY ~ PROVE SERVICEABLE TO BROKERS, SHIP CHANDLERS AND OTHERS IN -- PREPARING FOR THE OPENING OF ANOTHER SEASON. For 10 CENTS | IN STAMPS WE WILL FORWARD A COPY OF THIS LIST TO ANY ADDRESS,