The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1895-11-21
Immense Traffic Done Thereon
is Little Understood.
THE DETROIT RIVER GATEWAY
Very Interesting Figures Of Ship
ping and Tonnage of Large Lake
q. Steamers and Sail Craft.

Apropos Of the Deep Waterways Con
vention. the Chicago Tribune presents
some interesting statistics of the com
| merce OF the lakes, a commerce so vas
THAT there is, at distance from tht
lakes, a general failure to apprehend fti
extent
The commerce of the current year, 1t 4:
estimated, will amount to 100000 tons
worth $640, 900 900, an increase of 9000,0 ,00(
tons and $100000,000 over last year. The
value of this commerce per ton Is in
creasing, the advance from 1892 to 1891
being from $12.60 to $15 Chicago. Buffalo,
Toledo, Superior, Duluth, Milwaukee and
Detroit have a wheat storage capacity OF
10, 900 bushels, which Is 100000 more
than the wheat storage capacity OF New
York, Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore,
Albany. Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Kansas
City. Peoria, st. Louis, Galveston, Mime
apolis, Toronto, and Montreal. Grain.
COAL iron ore and lumber make up 90
per cent of the business of the rail roads
bordering on the lakes.
There are on the lakes S,3A vessels of
more than 800 tons each, having an aggre-
gate burden of 12274.00O tons. and Of these
S6N are steamers of over 1000 tons each,
having altogether tonnage of 656,74
The cargoes carried by lake vese,s last
year amounted to one-third ais much as
the freigfhts CARRIED by all the railroads
of THE country. In THE past five years S72
vessels were built.
nhe Qetroit River constitutes the great
est maritime gateway'in the world.
Through 1t last year passed 52,70O vessels
with "a tonnage Of 32,0OOO 900. and through
the st. Mahy's canal passed nearly 1900
vessels Of a tonnage of above 1S, 900, ,OOO
The lake fleet representa- am investment
of $5,0000OO and the piers and docks
$S.0O0000. There were launched at Chica-
go this year two steel steamers of 5000
tons, and other steamers OF nearly that
size are IN commission, while larger
steamers are In process OF construction.
At the port of Chicago the arrivals ana
clealrances numbered 16,768 vessels, of
10. 392. 40 tons, and There was shipped from
Chicago by lake 6S000,0O0 bushels of grain
and 1,630.S45 barrels Of -four, and there
were enormous receipts of lumber from
the Northwest and coal and salt from
the East, while ore was received for the
Chicago and Joliet furnaces, and the
stock of lumber ON hand at the opening
Of navigation this year exceeding 400, COO, ,OOO
feet, exclusive of lath and shingles.
The tonnage of vessels owned in Cleve-
land has increased in ten years from
81 900 to 250,000. and the iron interests
OF this port and its vicinity have been
immensely. Last year the re-
celpts of ore approached two million
tons and Ithe shipments of coal exceeded
one million tons. Buffalo ranks as the
greatest flour port in the world and the |
second largest grain port and last year
two and half million tons Of coal were
shipped. The lumber receipts were 24O,000,- |
900 feet. Duluth's flour shipments have
Increased from next to nothing to more !
than 100000 barrels in ten years, and that |
port has a single ore dock, or more prop
erly ore pier, on which 67200 tons OF
ore can be stored and at which a vessel |
can be loaded In half an hour Other |
docks at Duluth will carry $4,000 tons
Of ore and 125.OOO,OOO feet OF lumber. The |
growth Of the neighborlng port of Su- !
perior has been even more rapid than |
that Of Du'uth. Bay City and the neigh |
borthood Stripped last year 4S1, 200, 900 feet |
Of lumber and Bay City Itself contains |
one Of the largest steel shipbuilding yards |
In the world
The total Of the lake shipping business |
Includes besides these items the COM
merce of Escanaba and Marquette, Mil |
waui1ee, Port Huron, Toledo, Sandusky |
Ashtaibula and Erie, besides the MINOR |
ports, which contribute good deal to the |
grand total.