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periority. , With the resources at their disposal it, must be admitted that,,the present board of admiralty 'have, dis- played great energy in carrying through various measures for maintaining our naval construction in the forefront of the navies of the world, and the wis- dom of a forward policy in the con- structive and engineen'ng departments at Whitehall has been fully vindicated. The successful introduction of far- reaching changes in mechanical forms of propulsion is indicative of the high standard of technical knowledge and practical experience attained at our great aval centers. In Our private ship and engine building éstablishments and armor. plate works that' standard is nowise lower; the mechanical plant in both government yards and private works has of late years been brought very generally up to date; our supplies of, skilled workmen are still large enough to meet all possible demands, and their ranks are being continually reinforced through the increased facil- tties now available for technical educa- tion. Such factors as.,these are .na- tional assets upon which we may base the estimate of our resources in the domain of. naval' construction. Pro- vided only that the necessary funds are voted by parliament, we need have no fear for the quality of the ships and material that contribute so largely to the maintenance of our supremacy afloat. Before proceeding to the business of the meeting, I wish to take this oppor- tunity of alluding to a matter of more Special interest to myself. It has now been my privilege to address you from this chair for upwards of seven years, and, much as I have valued the honor of presiding over the interesting meet- ings it has been my good fortune to attend, I feel that the time has come when a change in the occupancy of the presidential chair might well be made. The calls upon my time seem to increase rather than diminish as the years roll by, and make it difficult for me, living at a distance from London, to attend the meetings of the council as frequently as I should like to do. Moreover, there is no doubt that 'the vitality of an institu- tion such as ours is best kept up by Cccas'onal infusion of "new blood" at the head of its affairs. It is with feel- ings of real regret that I came to this conclusion, which I have, as_ stated in the annual report, already communi- cated to the council. I find it hard to Put it into words my feelings on quit- ting the office which I have esteemed it my highest privilege to have held for the last seven years, but I can truly of . office? with. "TAE MaRINE REVIEW say that I look) back upon my period unmixed pleasure, I have had from my colleagues 'on the council the advantage of their unvary- ing support, - kindness, ! staff able and willing assistance at all times. I can bear testimony to the harmony and goodwill. 'that have char- acterized our meetings, and I can re- call) Fam happy to say, no untoward incident during' the 'period of my con- nection with this institution. Lamm 'Well aware of my 'own limita- tions, but as far as-lay in my power 1 have endeavored to further the objects for which this institution was founded. I may, perhaps;. be permitted, in tak- ing. leave, ofthe office of president, to. observe with 'satisfaction that: the institution, judged by its well-attended meetings, by. the. valuable papers~and- "Transac- discussions: recorded in the. tions," and its ever-growing member- ship, continues to fulfill its useful func- tion and to attract members from all those parts of the world where ship building and marine engineering claim attention. That it will continue'to do so under able guidance of a council so fully representative of the industries with which it is associated, I have no doubt whatever. My interest in its future will remain unabated, and it is with feelings of entire confidence in their realization that I will conclude these remarks by offering my heartiest good wishes for the success and pros- perity of the Institution of Naval Ar- chitects. ATLANTIC COAST GOSSIP. Office of the Marine REVIEW, Room 1005, No. 90 West St., New. York City. the By = making passage from Queenstown to New York in 4 days 23 hours and 59 minutes, the Cunard liner Mauretania established a new record over the long route on her last voyage westbound. The record pre- viously held by the Lusitania was ex- actly five days. During the voyage the Mauretania maintained an average speed of 24.08 knots. ae gross tonnage of the fleet of the - Compagnie Generale Transatlan- tique, which on Dec. 31, 1904, was 171,127. tons, had increased to over 225,305 tons in December, 190/.. the average age. of the vessels also, had fallen from 18 years 8 months to 8 years 8 months in the same period. The five-masted sailing ship Preus- sen has been an object of no little. at- tention since her arrival at New York. It is estimated. that 3,000. ---- vis- and considera-: tion, and from the. secretary and his. e 59 ited her on Easter Sunday alone, the. majority of whom were of. the same nationality as ihe vessel, which was open that day for inspection. ae Canadian Pacific steamer Mount. Temple, which had been stranded on the ledges at Ironbound Island since Nov. 30,. was floated last week and proceeded to Halifax under her own steam. It is estimated that the saly- ers will receive about $200,000. A committee representing the New York Maritime Exchange waited upon the president April 16 to urge a par- don for Capt. W. S.iVan Schaick of the General Slocum, Capt... + Van Schaick is undergoing a 10-year sen- tence for .negligence in connection with the Slocum disaster. The com- mittee was referred to the attorney general for a report upon the. case. a witelese message from the Kron- prinzessin Cecilie, conveying the in- formation that the steamer had lost one of her propeller blades off Nan- tucket lightship, was received at the offices of the North German Lloyd line last week. Owing to proceeding under reduced speed her arrival at Plymouth was looked for about- one day later than schedule. The trial of the new Oklahoma, the largest bulk oil carrier ever built in this country, proved a success, the vessel developing over 12 noe with fuel oil. The new Allan Line steamship Hes- perian was found perfectly .satisfac- tory in her trials on the Clyde on April 16. She has been built for the service between Glasgow and Mon- treal.. The Hesperian averaged 1614 knots. : The. British steamship Aral passed a barge adrift in mid-ocean, the barge being in good condition and quite dry, on her voyage from Shields to Phila- delphia. An iceberg, about 300 ft. long and 40 ft. wide, was also passed by the Aral. . The new 1,000-ft. steamship for the White Star Line, the construction _ of which is to be started later in 'the year, will be named the Olympic. iL is possible that two vessels of this. . size will be built for the Southampton- New York service by Harland & Wolff, and probable that their speed will be 20 knots. _ Atlanta, the new steamship The