The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1895-11-27

IOWtu nGI ltO JOllAAHOAA . bNy AA - WANNA
logged condition. OF course the cargo
American lumber-blocks the entrance,
but the hole is there all the same, and
had the ship been loaded with coal or
with almost any other less buoyant cargo
thar American redwood and pine she
would have gone down in m~id-harbor, so
fast did the water pour into her. In all
other respects the Alameda looks a we'll
preserved. well-found ship"
In the moulding department of the AL
bion Iron Works the largest propeller
ever made in British Columbia was yes
terday afternoon cast for the big steam
ship Mathilda, which now awaits 1t in
Esquimalt harbor, says the Colonist.
The casting was witnessed by a small
gathering, including several ladies'. and
to these especially the process was inter-
esting. A mixture Of metals formed the
material for the great wheel. These
were melted to a liquid, and when suffi-
clent of the molten metal had been pro-
cured it was poured into two large con-
ductors leading to a specially prepared
mold beneath. This latter was the exact
shape of the proposed propeller, and as
the liquid poured its way through the
little passage way 1t soon hardened into
shape.
Captain G.. II. Morse. says the Journal
Of Commerce. made his debut as a lee
turer at Golden Gate hall last evening.
and for more than two hour entertained
with a story of his travels an audience
that completely filled the house. Captain
Morse has followed the sea since 1874.
shipping as a cabin boy at the age Of 10.
A master at the age of 20. he has been
in COrnRnan6 IF chfnQ for mora thon fOrtxy
years, during that time sailing some of
the best vessels afioat and visiting al
most every portion of the globe under all
sorts of strange commissions The cap
tain can make the proud boast that he
never lost a ship nor a man who sailed
under him. He has been prominently
identified with the history of shipping in
this port, coming to San Francisco in the
early SOS. Recently he retired from ac-
tive service n has been prevailed upon
by his friends to go upon the lecture
platform.
The Columbian says: Sturgeon fish
ing is now taking the place Of salmon
fishing, and there is every prospect Of q
large number of men engaging In the
work. Heretofore the fishermen have
not been inclined to pay much attention
to sturgeon fishing, owing to the irregu-
larity of the demand, but there is now a
steady demand and good price for these
fish, and fair to middling wages can be
made in the fishing. Two methods of
fishing are permitted by the fisheries de-
partment, by nets and baited hooks.
Fishing with bare hooks. which proved
very destructive, has been abolished.
The baited hooks do not give general sat
isfaction, as they catch but few fish, and
the fishermen are turning their attention
to net fishing, which, IN the whole, is
more successful, though such a thing as
q large catch is rarely made. Scores Of
fishermen are now hard at work making
nets, and it is estimated that by spring
fully 200 will be in use. The nets run
from 600 to 900 feet in length, and the
meshes vary in size from IL to 10 inches.
The question has not been decided yet
whether a large or a smal mesh catches
the most fish. Some fishermen hold that
the small mesh Is the best, while a great
many believe that more successful work
can be lone with the large mesh"
The investigations of Admiral Ramsay
showing that the ships of the American
navy never reach in cruising the record
speeds Of their trial runs, has occasloned
considerable comment. I'VE doubt very
much" says the Railroad Gazette, "if the
admiral reasons from the figures collected
that record trials are useless or that we
should cease to try to build fast ships.
The record trials are the basis for the
comparisons of speeds of our ships with
each other and with those of other na-
tons. To make the basis as nearly alb
solute as possible the conditions must be
as nearly uniform as p~ossible-whlrh
means the best possible. If they are not
so, then we ave no measure of compare
tive speed. II we build warships at all,
presumably they must be fit for war
which means that they must be fast
when speed is wanted Speed is wanted
not only in flight and pursuit, but 1t is
wanted very much indeed in the few try
ing hours, or perhaps minutes, of an en-
gagement. No one has yet said just why
Japanese won at Yalu; but the average
speed of their fleet wal two or three
knots higher than that of the Chinese;
they sailed right around their slower an
%tagonists. No doubt this element of SUI
periority has as much to do with winning
the victory as better gunnery or more
pluck; perhaps it was the really deciding
element At any rate, the proposition to
quit trying to build fast ships is too alb
surd to discuss, If 1t Is admitted hat we
ought to build any more warships now.
That is altogether another question"
Acts at once. never fails. One Minute