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eat cers taretaaaataan tr ei fo rane) aN, 18 | MARINE REVIEW. JJuly 18, THE RISDON IRON WORKS OF SAN FRANCISCO. Plans were made some time ago for extensive improvements at the Risdon Iron Works, San Francisco, and for the construction of new vessels on quite a large scale, but it would seem that the plant has for PUTTING NEW BOILERS ABOARD THE ALAMEDA AT THE RISDON IRON WORKS, SAN FRANCISCO. i several months been kept so busy on a great variety of ship repairs that the contemplated enlargement could not be made to advantage. A photo- graph on this page shows the Sonoma, Australia and Alameda of the Oceanic Steamship Co.'s fleet, and the sailing ship Willie Rickmers at the Risdon works for repairs. The wharf shown in the photograph is not Steamship Co.'s Mariposa will be overhauled and refitted in great part. The Willie Rickmers is having twelve new steel yards, six wooden ones, and new top masts put in, as well as other repairs to decks, houses and bowsprit. In fact it is estimated that since Feb. 1 the Risdon Iron Works has made repairs to transports and other vessels which are equal to the building of two new vessels. : When the plant of the Risdon Iron Works is complete it will be modern in every respect and well adapted to every kind of ship and engine building. The midship section is printed on the next page of a steam trawler which the company is building and which is about 25 per cent. completed. Dimensions of the trawler are: Length, 138 ft.; beam, 24 ft.; depth, 14 ft. 6 in. The company employs at present abeut 600 men. It is at the Risdon works that Robert Curr, formerly of the great lakes, is now located. GENERAL RESUMPTION OF WORK AT NEWPORT NEWS. [Special correspondence to the Marine Review.] Newport News, Va., July 17.--The striking machinists returned to work at the ship yard of the Newport News company Monday morning, after being out just six weeks, and operations were resumed in all of the departments in consequence. When the machinists struck June 4 fora shorter day and increased wages, over 7,000 men were employed in the yard. The strike necessarily interfered with work in other departments and from day to day men in other trades were laid off, until finally the number reached 4,000. The 3,000 left consisted of the foremen, clerks, draftsmen and the most.skilled men in each department, in addition to the repair force, which was kept at work on the monster North German Lloyd liner Main, which is being rebuilt in dry dock No. 1. Work had to be discontinued on the battleship Missouri, the monitor Arkansas and some of the merchant vessels building. The yard is not working its full force yet and will not for a week or two, as many of the men laid off, as well as some of the strikers, left the city temporarily and all of them have not returned. They are coming back every day, however, and by Aug. 1 it is probable that the pay roll will show 7,000 men again at work. On account of the time lost by the strike, work in every department will be pushed and the company will endeavor to make up for lost time on its contracts. It will not be surprising if the force numbers 8,000 or 9,000 men at the close of the year, as it was being gradually increased when the strike interfered. The battleship Illinois will be ready to go in commission about the second week in August. Only the finishing touches, such as polishing and cleaning, remain to be done. Capt. G. A. Converse, who will com- mand the ship, has been serving on the torpedo boat board recently, but he will arrive shortly to be on hand when the flag is raised. Admiral Dewey visited the ship yard last Saturday and after inspecting the Illinois from stem to stern and from fighting-top to keel, almost, declared her to be the finest war ship ever built in the world, being particularly pleased with the attention which was paid to detail in her construction. The Morgan line steamship El Dia will soon be ready for her builder's trial. It will not be many weeks now before the monster Pacific Mail levia- than Korea will be ready to start on her long journey to the Pacific for service between San Francisco and Hong Kong. Her sister-ship, the Siberia, is nearly ready to launch. Other merchant ships on the ways are El Libre and El Siglo, for the Morgan line, which are not far from launching. On all of these ships work has been resumed, as it has on the Missouri, which is the only warship on the ways. There is more activity aboard the Arkansas, too, and she will be the next warship to leave the yard. Within the next few months keels will be laid for four more war- ships--the battleship Virginia, the armored cruisers Maryland and West oe a weit THE SONOMA, AUSTRALIA AND ALAMEDA OF THE OCEANIC STEAMSHIP CO.'S FLEET AT THE RISDON IRON WORKS, SAN FRANCISCO, FOR REPAIRS. yet complete. It will extend to the ship yard and will be capable of mooring twelve vessels without inconvenience. The steamship Alameda of the Oceanic Steamship Co.'s fleet is having a thorough overhauling. New engines and boilers will be put in to give her a speed of 16 knots. The wooden decks and cabins have also been torn out and all the steel examined and renewed where necessary. The upper strake has been doubled and new 15-in. air ports put in, making the vessel first class in every particular. As soon as the Alameda leaves the yard the Oceanic Virginia, and the protected cruiser Charleston. There are two vacant ways now and keels will go down on these very soon. It is probable that another steel electric cantilever crane for ship building will be erected before the close of the year. The tug S. C, Schenck, now located at Marquette, Mich., has been fitted out with wrecking pump and hawsers and is now ready to go to vessels in distress in the vicinity of Keweenaw point on short notice.