Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1894-11-29
SHIPPING STATISTICS.
Report of the Government Bureau
of Navigation.


sells Increasing.
WASHINGTON, Nov 20.--Extracts
from the annual report of the chief OF
the navigation bureau, Mr.. Eugene t.
Chamberlain, to the Secretary of the
Treasury, show decrease in the ton
mage Of the entire country in the past
year. OF the States which have the
greatest amount Of shipping and ton
mage OF every description, Maryland
stands good seventh ami just behind
Pennsylvania. New York leads with
an aggregate tonnage OF | ,333, 665. The
total customs tonnage Of Baltimore in
the past year was 122,Si2, or about 100
tons greater than that of st. Louis and
1000 IONS less than that of Bath, Me.
OF the steam tonnage it is u remarka-
BILE fact that after the city of New York,
the lake cities OF Cleveland, Buffalo
and Detroit show by far the greater
amount of commerce, and there is no
city on either the Atlantic or Pacific
coast which approaches them in the
amount of steam tonnage entering and
departing from their docks in the last
twelve months. The report estimates
that to man all our vessels registered for
foreign trade would require about 22 900
men and that last year the number
actually employed was just about one
hall. This shows that every vessel in
the trade is undermined.
The vast extent of the commerce on
the inland rivers and great lakes is
shown by the figures contained in the
report, and those who are under the im-
| preston that cities like Baltimore, Phila-
| delphia, Norfolk and Boston are the
great commercial ports OF the country
| will be amazed to learn that cities of
one.half their size have larger COM
merce.
INTERESTING STATISTICS.
The figures show that on, June Both,
| 1894, the documented merchant marine
of the United States comprised 23,5S6
vessels Of 4,6S4,029 gross tons, distri.
buted geographically as follows
Atlantic and gulf coast, II ,46S vessels,
2,712,944 gross tons; Pacific coast, 1920
vessels, 456,359 gross tons; Northern
lakes, 3,Sil vessels, .227 ,401 gross tons;
Western rivers, 1857 vessels, 297, 1926
gross tons. Cod and mackerei fisheries
employ 1906 vessels, 1853 tons, OF
which 81, ABB tons are documented at
Gloucester, Mass. Vessels built and
documented during the year numbered
o5S, OF III, l05 gross tons, a decrease OF
lis vessels and $4,000 gross tons COM
pared with the year ended June Both
1893. incomplete construction (St. Louis
and st. Paul) at Philadelphia has alb.
sorbed much labor and capital during
the year which will not be noted Off.
cially in construction until the vessels
are finished. Every shipbuilding country
shows decrease in construction last
year, that of Great Britain amounting to
20 per cent.
VESSELS FOR FOREIGN TRADE.
Our vessels registered for foreign
trade number 1850, of 9l6,1S0 gros:
tons, including whalers, while those
documented for domestic trade number
22,236, of 1857 $50 gross tons, and 49,
canal boats, 126,279 tons, and 1,41I
barges, of 397 1926 tons, are dnaumented
Included in the merchant fleet are 81.
iron or steel steam vessels of SIS, 33;
gross tons and 5,7l5 wooden steam YES
sells of 1871 ,097 gross tons. Invent,
sailing vessels, OF % 1888 tons, are of iror
or steel.
A DECREASE SINCE 1884.
Since 1884 the number of our vessel
has decreased 5O4, while the gross ton
mage has increased 4l3,000 tons Tn
average size of vessels has increased
from III tons in 1884 to 1888 tons in 1894
Five ships and 1913 steamers are owe
$500 tons each. In 1884 our steam ton
mage (5,401 vessels of 1465,9O9 rros
tonsl Has one-third Of our merchan
marine, while in 1894 it comprises 6 so
vessels of 2, 1S9, 43O tons gross, or nearl
one-halt of the total. Considering til
greater efficiency OF steam tonnage, tn
carrying power of our tleat, reckoned a
100000 gross tons for 1854, may be pu
at 100000 gross tons for 1894. In 1888
our iron and steel tonnage was less tina
y per cent of the total; IN 1854 it is 2
per cent. In 1884 the steel tonnage i
our fleet was only 5000 tons; in 1894
: is $780, 900 tons. Steal marine construc
ton in 1854 was carried on at only ion
points in the United States, while las
: year 16 ports return such construction
During the decade wooden sailin
vessels have decreased 100000 tons i
Maine and 100000 tons each In Mass,
e cAusetts and New York, while Cal
}. fnraia and Michigan show gain {
d 10000 tons each.
y INCREAsE IN STEAM VESSELS.
= Vessels registered for foreign trat
: number 1850, OF GIG, 1870 gross ton
= compared with 2,127, Of 1904 ,2s1 gro!
y tons in lsSl, the decrease in suiiiug We
y sells being $50, of 459,944 tons; iaCrea
of steam vessels, IS, of 81 SOB gross ton
T OF the increase O,000 tons is due TO ii
y admission of forclgn. built vessels, Ii
= New York and Paris constituting 81 ,0
f tons Of this amount. In the decade
!, Maine, which imposes the highest tax
# on shipping noted in any State or cou
- try, tonnage registered for foreign trat
Il has decreased two.thirds(223, 00g, Mass
:, chusetts, three.dfths (120,000); pennsy
% ysnia over one-third (2S,0JO tonsG Ne
= ork, Une.sGVUnth (600U0l; Calforn
: has increased about onc-sixth GAO
Ions and Washington more than dUuUl
!, $4,000 tons.)
IA IRON AND STEEL STEAMSHIPS.
IS, Iron and steel steamships register
81 fpr foreign trade number los, of 22S, 5
IT. gross tons, but OF these only six la
IL year crossed lho Atlantic and seven t
lie Pacific to Asia o. Australia. Of I
total 81, Of 100, SOC gross tons, arc reg
eS tGEeu az n W lUTk, which imposes
taxes on shipping in foreign trade, al
ne Is, Of 5000 toAs, at San Francisc
la Philadelphia registers for foreign ira
il 5 iron steamships OF S,432 tons, Bost
~ 3 Of 2,026 tons, New Orleans Is
Il 36630 tons, Tampa . OF 1886 tot
Seattle and Tacoma A OF 2,S75 grt
tons. States with the greatest tonna
of ali descriptions are New Yol
ty 1885, $50 gross tons; Michigan, 436 3.
m, Massachusetts, 3d6, Ss1; Maine, 327 81
"a Ohio, 1927 $50; California, 315,5i6; Per
IL | .ylvanio t{0.J IttS. N,r,,11,nJ t1k 100