The San Francisco call., 1899-07-03
GOOD YEAR FOR
MERCHANT 7 MARINE
Bureau of Navigation
Receives Reports.
Special Dispatch to The Call.

WASHINGTON, July 2.-The fiscal year
which ended on Friday was exceptional
for the American merchant marine in sew
eral respects. Full reports will not be
received by the Bureau of Navigation for
several weeks, but returns already re-
ceived to warrant these statements.
The total output of American ship
yards has been the largest in any year
for the last quarter of a century, except
1891, when 1884 vessels of 1863, ,302 gross tons
were built and documented in the United
States. During the past fiscal year the
construction of merchant vessels, otf1-
cially returned, has consisted of 1929 ves-
sells of 320,S ,S76 gross tons. Besides these
twenty-five vessels of foreign construction
aggregating 30,1S1 gross tons have been
admitted to American registry. 1t is also
reported from Manila that since last Au-
gust al vessels have been transferred
from the hands of the Spanish, German
and British subjects to Americans, 1ndl-
eating the confidence of the business men
of Manila in the American Government
The tonnage of these vessels has not yet
been reported and the transfer does not
carry with il all the rights OF American
registry. Had the Senate passed the
House bill for the registry of Hawaiian
merchant fleet during the year would
have reached nearly 100000 tons. Our
largest annual producti60n 65 TIC was IN 1872 1872.
and documented During 1893 Great Brit
ain built 1549 vessels of 1896, ia tons. The
difference in the kind of vessel built is
roughly disclosed by the average size
our construction averaging only about 20
tons while the British averages 800 tons.
Nearly all of our new tonnage IS eu1lt
to navigate in the coasting trade reserved
to American vessels The only steamships
built directly for the foreign trade We're
the Havana and Mexico of the New York
and Cuba Mail and the four admiral
steamships for Cuba and Jamaica, aggre-
eating 1880 tons, which were built under
the postal subsidy act. In anticipation OF
legislation at the coming session, how
ever, construction has begun or been con-
tracted for on about 100000 tons of steel
steamship for foreign trade and trade
with Hawaii and Porto Rico, involving
an expenditure of about $15,000,000.
For the first time in our history, on
June 30, the total tonnage of our steam
vessels, when tabulated will exceed the
total of all other kinds of documented
vessels. During the year, however 460
sail vessels of 6,45S tons have been built.
compared with 426 of AZ 502 tons for the
previous year, while the steam vessels
built numbered ATS of 167 S51 tons, COM
pared with AIS of 110,12S tons for the pre-
vious year. In certain trades our large
sailing vessels endeaVOr to compete with
foreign cargo steamships and doubtless
will continue to do so. at all events un-
til the construction of the Nicaraguan
A notable vessel is the John Smeaton,
a steel schooner of 5049 gross tons, built
largest fore and aft vessel ever built
The largest sea-going sailing vessel built
in Europe in 1898 was the Ernest Siegfried
of Havre, 1914 tons
For the first time in our history steel
has become the principal material in our
annual construction of rigged vessels, the
steel tonnage for the year being ,99l
tons wood 130 ,309 tons. Iron has ceased To-
be q shipbuilding material, only one Ves-
ell of nine tons having been built of iron.
During 1898 in Great Britain 80 per cent or
practically the whole construction except
small fishing vessels was of steel