The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1899-01-26
WORLDS BIGGEST can FERRY.
How Freight Is Carried Across Lake
Michigan the Year Round.

Michigan the Year Round.
From the New York Press.
1t is highly probable that there is no
town in the United States of less preten-
sion than Ludington, a city of 5000 or 5000
inhabitants that is wen spread out over
several square miles of territory at the
point where the Hotepseakam river joins
Lake Michigan.
Certainly there is no town along the
western shore of the southern peninsula
OF Michigan where the dweller in a sea-
board city would be more surprised by
anything strongly reminding him of the
shipping to be seen in great Atlantic
port Yet not a day passes that the in
habitants of Ludlngton do not see the ar
rival of what closely resembles an ocea-
going steamer of such size and would be
no discredit to any transatlantic line, and
built throughout of steel And then If
you ask some Ludington bystander about
the craft, he will tell you proudly that the
Pere Marquette is the biggest sea-going
car ferry in the world" and that she is
apparently Transforming the Flint and
Pere Marquette Railroad, of which she Is
an appendage, from a line almost wholly
local in its business to through trunk
highway of commerce.
Further investigation will develope
number of facts novel to most Eastern
men. The so-called "sea-going car ferry
is an important institution on Lake Michi-
gan By its use freight between the Mid
die Wisconsin, Minnesota and
the Dakotas-and the great cities of the
Northeastern seaboard-New York Bos-
ton, Philadelphia, etc.,-Can be put through
in a shorter period by at least thirty-sIx
hours than by any of those lines which go
round Lake Michigan by way of Chicago,
instead of across it, Moreover, instead of
paying extra freight for this shortening
of transit shippers actually make as big
comparative saving in money as they
do in time.
That the shippers appreciate this com
buation is abundanuy proved by the big
business done by the various GER ferries
on Lake Michigan Those who know most
about these craft and their per 'ormances
feel assured that they are bound to work
nothing less than a trapsforma ton la the
carrying trade between the Northwest and
the Northeast Already four vessels are
kept constantly busy in the trade Three
of these are run in connection with the
Ann Arbor Railroad, plyi ng between
Frankfort, on the Michigan shore, and one
or two Wisconsin ports. None of these
three can compare favorably either in ca
pacity or appearance. however, with the
Pere Marquette. being smaller and much
more like the car ferryboat Maryland
that plies New York harbur in connection
with the Pennsylvania Railroad.
The Pere Marquette plies between I.ud-
ington, Mich, and Manit owoc, Wis. She
is a twin screw vessel. $50 feet long. of
Sc feet beam and drawing II feet Her
compound engines-two sets, working in
dependently-were built for the Develop
ment of $500 horse power. Her main deck
is 80 feet and her bridge 50 feet above
the water. She is fitted with sufficient
trackage on her car deck to accommod ate
30 freight cars of the largest size in use
Owing to her ocean steamer-like b1iid
the cars, once safely loaded on her tracks
are as secure from being wet by the
waves, no matter how boisterous the
weather, as they would be on land.
Lake Michigan. as every one kno VS., is
a pretty big pond, and wide enough for
good stiff gale to develop seas mo intains
high, even If not as colossal as the, heast-
est ones developed on the ocean
Naturally, heavy seas result ~ deal
of pitching and tossing and rolling aobut
on the lake. exactly as they would on the
Atlantic, and were II not for divers in
genious devices adopted on board the Pere
Marquette her wheeled cargo would often
be in imminent danger of rolling from its
proper resting place into the fresh green
waters. These devices include. besides au-
tomato couplers that fasten, each short
train Of cars firmly to the snegbbing posts
on board, a series of locks and chains that
fasten each individual car sEiugly TO the
rails. These hold the heaviest cars as Sc
curely as " they were part OF the ships
structure itself. and no matt er what the
weather the Pere Marquette makes its
trips as uninterruptedly as any steamer
anywhere in commission.
OF course, this could not be so were she
not stanch and seaworthy n this regard
she appears to be all that an be desired
since she successfully has w',athered many
a storm that has wrought destruction 10
all sorts of steam and sail ing lake craft,
including several bad spells of weather this
fail, without ever suffering a delay of more
than an hour, and has also proved herself
able 10 cope with the heaviest lake Ice ever
known to form
Before she was put on February, 1897,
there were some predictb )ns that it would
be ice. II anything. th9t would interfere
with her service So far however, she has
shown the ability TO plow through the
product Of the heaviest freeze-up with al
the ease In the worBl, though IL Is true
mat she might be put 10 more delay than
any she has yet experienced were Il not
FOR The uans taken by the railroad COM
many to keep the 'harbOr open for her