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May, 1910 er, in readiness for the third vessel to hook on to the other end. When everything was in this position a heavy tornado tblew for over 'wo hours, and there was great danger ot the vessels breaking away from the purchases. Fortunately, however, noth- ing parted, and the next day the third ship arrived. Progress of the Work. This ship, the Empire, had a very powerful windlass, and with little further difficulty the lower deck was hove up clear of the water, but the Sultan still remained firmly wedged on the snag. A small salvage pump was then put down the after hold, but as no effect was made in reducing the water, men were send down into the engine room with sand bags and oakum to stop up any leaks they could find. While they were doing this, a flexible steam pipe was led from one of the ships to the Sultan's- bilge pump and connected to it. With this and the salvage pump going the level of the water in the after hold and engine room was quickly reduced, and the manhole door on the bulk- head between these two compartments was then bolted up. The after hold was next pumped dry, and the holes in the engine room plugged sufficiently to keep out any large quantity of water. With these compartments empty the Sultan was quite buoyant aft, but not yet, clear of the: snag although she showed signs of mov- ing, and sbortly after the current, acting |! on 'the ships and_ lighters, dragged her off. The little flotilla then drifted and steamed to an ad- jacent sand bank until the inner ship grounded, after which the purchases were eased up and the Sultan allowed to rest on the bottom. Two of the assisting ships were then sent away, and the lighters brought alongside the Sultan, one on each side, and filled with water until they sank as low as was compatible with 'safety. Three large standing spars were next placed right across the Sultan and lighters, and securely lashed to the slings that had been used for lifting her. When this was done the lighters, were pumped dry, and as they rose lifted the Sultan until she floated between them. Nothing could be done to the three forward compartments as_ the damage was too extensive. Numerous Difficulties Encountered. A written description cannot per- haps convey to the reader the uumer- ous difficulties that this small salvage operation presented to those engaged TAE MaRINE REVIEW on it. It must be remembered that the only steamers that could render assistance were lightly-built . stern- wheelers, and that there were no divers available, also that the current ran at a rate of about four miles per hour, and that the water was of much the same consistency as is the Thames at London Bridge, making the work for the natives, who went under water without diving-dress, both dif- ficult and dangerous. The work was superintended by a European officer, who had under him a white master and engineer, but all the labor was native, and more or less unskilled, although a few men were indefatigable in placing the slings under the Sultan's bottom and diving in the engine room to stop up holes, and really gave very valuable assistance. The operations were also made more arduous through the Sultan being hung up on. the snag, which was an enormous tree of exceedingly hard wood, to cut through which would have been impossible with the appli- ances at hand, and to blow up equally so; the latter on account of the dam- age that the hull might have received and. the almost impossible task of placing explosives without the help of »professional divers. Accident Worse Than Usual. Neither were the stern-wheelers, with the exception of the Empire, fit- ted with powerful windlasses, and the vessels themselves having so _ little free board it was difficult to arrange the spars, to which the purchases were secured, high enough to obtain suf- ficient drift for a long heave, so that there was necessarily a large amount of fleeting. The lighters, too, were very cranky, and more than once nar- rowly éscaped capsizing when a heavy strain was thrown on them. This accident was far worse than is usual, for it seldom happens, when a ship strikes a snag, that more than one compartment is damaged, in which case the ship can be taken into shal- low water, grounded, and the leak temporarily stopped. Even when the Sultan was floated the anxieties of the salvage party were by no means ended, for she was over 200 rniles from Burutu, the nearest place where it was possible to effect repairs. She was, however, safely but laboriously brought there under her own steam, the lighters keeping her afloat during the voyage down river, and it was a relief to all concerned when she was at length grounded by the river bank at her destination. 197 CANADA AND SHIPPING SUBSIDIES. - The Canadian government would ap- pear to consider necessary the payment of shipping subsidies as a means of ex- panding the field of operations for the commerce of the country. The follow- ing statistics, showing the amounts paid for mail subsidies and steamship sub- ventions during the year 1908-9, may be of interest to readers of THE MARINE REVIEW. ; The whole amount paid for this pur- pose during the year amounted to $1,- 684,680. The following statement shows. the subsidies paid to the steamship lines, in excess of $10,000, plying between Canadian ports and the several coun- tries: United Kingdom, $565,000; Aus- tralia, $190,000; New Zealand, $46,000;. South Africa, $145,000; France, $150,- 000; Mexico, $90,000; China and Japan, $120,000; and South America, $65,000. Steamships plying between the follow- -ing ports received the amounts of sub- sidies given: St. John-Halifax-London, $40,000; .Montreal-Manchester, $35,000; Halifax-St. John's-Newfoundland-Liver- pool, $20,000; St. John's-Glasgow, $12,- 000; Halifax-Jamaica, $15,000; Victoria- Vancouver-Skagway, $12,000. It is generally considered that the subsidies for 1910 will show a consider- able increase over those of 1909, the government having already made ar- rangements with additional steamship lines in anticipation of an increased trade with New Zealand and France; with the former for the purpose of providing transportation facilities from Montreal to Australasian ports for Can- adian products, which are now being forwarded via New York, and: this seryv- ice will begin with the opening of navi- gation on the St. Lawrence, about the first week in May, on a monthly service. 'It is also expected that there will be three direct steamship lines to ports. in France for the coming season--one to. Havre, another to Cherbourg, the third. not yet being chosen. THE BRAZILIAN BATTLESHIP. It is now reported that the third bat- tleship for Brazil, to be named the Rio. de Janeiro, unlike the Minas Geraes and Sao Paulo, is to be fitted with turbine- propelling machinery, thus adding an-_ other to the already important list of turbine contracts now in hand at Messrs. Vickers, Sons & Maxim's, Barrow. It is estimated. that there is at present under construction, or about to be com- menced, at the Barrow engine works turbine machinery of no less than 200,- 000.1. H. P. Like the Minas Geraes, the Rio de Janeiro will be built at Els- wick by Sir W. G. Armstrong, Whit- - worth & Co.