Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-12-13

whaleback ffeighters. As these vessels COM
bine speed with cheapness of construction,
and roll less than the largest passenger
stesmers afoat, they will soon be the most
popular among the Atlantic liners, and it is
exceedingly doubtful whether any more of
the latter not already projected will be
built, as they cannot make money in COM
petition with the whaleback. As an evil
dence of the steadiness with which the lat
ter run on the ocean, during the voyage of
the Wetmore, it became necessary to do
some work in the hold, snd men went into
it for that purpose. Well, when the vessel
arrived at LIVERPOOL and the matches were
removed, the tracks of the men were found
In the wheat, the motion had not disturbed
the cargo sufficiently to obliterate them.
It Is Mammoth One.
No danger of seasickness on a vessel Of
that type. The passenger whaleback now
building will be 900 feet in length with 45
feet width of beam and have accommoda-
tions for 1000 saloon passengers. Now
here is where the rub comes in. The steel
plates and angles used in the construction
of these vessels are now and have been
made in this city, but the company building
whalebacks has concluded that the freight
from Pittsburg to Superior is too great an
item and has decided that it is unnecessary
manufactured so blast furnaces, steel mills
and everything else necessary in construc-
tion will be made at Superior and an army
OF men is now at work on the excavation
for the new plant When it is finished
Pittsburg will lose some of her trade
"Why cannot Pittsburg have shipyard
ss we'll ss SUPERIOR" is the question that
propounds ITSELF Considering that we
have all the facilities tor making every
thing that enters into the construction Of
these vessels and the fact that when un-
laden they are very light draft and could
be floated to the Gulf on an ordinary barge
rise, the digging Of harbor sufficient to
overcome the impediment of our strong
river currents would not be so great work
ss some people imagine.
Tho Shipment of Coal.
A gentleman who is interested in coal
states that it can be transferred from our
ordinary coal boats into an ocean steamer
ut the Eads Jetties for less than Is cents q
ton. He gives some figures that are of in
terest. Coal has sold in New Orleans
as low as % cents q barrel, but there
Is little or no profit in it at that figure, but
at 33 cents barrel there is q fair margin of
profit. A barrel is 2 3-5 bushels, which
makes the price II 9-13 cents per bushel.
Ten barrels make ton and consequently a
ton can be delivered at a profit in New
Orleans or at the jetties for So 80. Adding
the cost of transfer, say 15 cents, makes the
cost of delivery on shipboard there, with
benefit to all concerned from the miner up,
S. As, and if loaded into whalebacks it can
be delivered with still more profit at S4
ton in Cuba, q price much below that paid
there for English coal much inferior to that
of Pittsburg.
This same English coal sells In Rio
Janeiro at SIS ton, and as distance is of
less consequence in water navigation than by
rail, the profit of delivery at Rio on Pittsburg
coal at $40 ton would PROBABLY be several
times that on the article delivered in the
Ohio and Mississippi river towns. A whale
back of 4, 900 tons burden built here could
be foated down the Ohio on an ordinary
barge rise, and better reasons than those SO
far given must be set mp to prove that their
building here is not feasible.
Plans for q shipyard.
Unnecessary, build dam 40 feet high at
place where the river banks are high, and
This would give sufficient slack water to
operate shipyard in perfect safety. If
Superior refuse to buy our wares, why not
compete with her from the ground up?
The company operating in Superior
has the courage to put S6,0oo,- |
BOO into its plant. Toronto will |
soon have a shipyard for the purpose and
the Clyde builders must follow suit as
owners of the present merchant marine will
be forced out as soon as sufficient number |
IF the new type vessels are completed to |
10 the work, and they can be built for less |
han one-third the cost of the old type |
vessela