New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1870-09-03
Total in currency. S9,442 II
Total. SAP to 500

Total. SAP TO 500
Llghterage UP to the city Of Hamburg for
vessel drawing more than seventeen feet
about fifty cents per ton dead weight.
In Hamburg. all goods are received along
side, no ship being permitted to receive or
discharge at the wharf. Expenses are paid
by receivers OF cargo. The lighterage, which
the consignees pay, amounts to between fifty
cents and one dollar per ton dead weight,
according to the nature of the goods. At
Bremen, all cargoes have to be lightered
The cost is from fifty cents to one dollar
per ton. PilOtage is about half the price
charged here.
The great docks of Liverpool and Havre,
with their unequaled facilities for dscharg-
ing and receiving cargoes, take i'll ships at
from fifty to seventy-tive cents gold per
ton. This does not include pilotage and
tOwage, but covers nearly all other port
charges.
SO far as the grain trade in bulk via the
Mississippi route is concerned, the opening
of the Mississippi and Mexican Gulf or as
it is commonly called, the Lake Borgne
Canal, will almost entirely remove the Oh
stacles of towagc and expensive port
charges, and make New Orleans one of the
cheapest ports in the world. The distance
from New Orleans to Ship Island harbor, by
the new canal, will be about sixty-tive miles.
This harbor is one Of the best on the South
ern coast, landlocked, easily entered and
furnishing good anchorage with twenty
three feet water at low tide. Lake Borgne
and Mississippi Sound-the approaches to
Ship Island harbor-average about nine
miles in width, and are navigabie, except in
very rough weather, by Mississippi barges
Some months ago, Lieutenant Governor
Stannard, Mr.. Fi!ley, and several other st.
Louis gentlemen, largely interested in the
grain trade movement, examined the route
TO Ship Island harbor in person. and pro-
nounced themselves entirely satisfied as to
its practlcabllity for the shipment of grain
N bulk.
Al Ship Island the port charges would be
merely nominal, the pilOtage n and out be
ing the main items. The average freight on
grain i'll bulk from St. Louis to New Or
leans is twelve cents per bushel. Add. say
one and q hall or two cents for additional
towage and canal dues TO Ship Island har
Dor: and fourteen cents at the outside, would
cover the cost from ST. Louis 10 the deep
waters OF the Gulf. According to my cal
culatlons this will make q saving of five or
six cents from the present cost Of shipment
via New Orleans, not to mention the saving
il time. The empty grain bArges could of
course be reloaded with railroad iron and
merchandise at Ship Island or with pine
lumber at the numerous mills on the Missis
sippi coast. The transfer from barge to ship
can easily be made with floating elevators.
the same as is now done with nearly all the
grain shipped from New York.
With the exception OF the lock. the Lake
Bnrgne Canal will be ready for use before
the first OF January next
The lock viii require some four months
more.
l believe that the opening Of this canal
is the one thing now requisite to make the
grain trade, in bulk, Via the Mississippi,
complete success.
Respectfully,