The evening times., 1900-04-13
COMMERCE ON THE LAKES
Navigation for the Season About to
Be Opened.
Traf;c Without Precedent Predicted
for the Appr0aching Period of In
terror Trade OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES and
Figures Presented by the Bu-
reau of statistics of the Treasury.

| No feature Of the commerce of the Unit
J ed States. whether domestic or foreign
shows a more wonderful development thar
that carried upon the Great Lakes where
navigation is about TO resume for the sea
! son of 1900 A growth in our foreign COM
merce from cpe billion dollars in 1872 to
two billion dollars in 1900 is remarkable
and an increase of our exports from S444,-
OOo 600 in 1892 to 81. 227 900, 0C0 in 1899 is
| even more striking, but this growth is IN
| significant when compared with the growth
| of commerce Oh the Great Lakes as meas
ured by the few available measuring rods
which the present rather unsatisfactory
statistical system furnishes. Yet the fact
! that navigation on the Lakes is about 10
! open and that the greatest season" ever
known is confidently predicted by those IA
miliar with the traffic there makes some
facts which the Treasury Bureau Of Statis-
tics has just presented in one OF its month
ly publications especially interesting
The single point at which accurate sta
tistical statements have been kept during
considerable term of years is al st.
Mary's Falls Canal, which connects Lake
/ Superior with Michigan Huron, Erie, and
Ontario; and by a study of these figures it
is practicable TO compare in some degree
the growth Of internal commerce on the
| Great Lakes with that of our foreign COM
merce. AS already indicated, the foreign
commerce OF the United States has doubled
since 1872 and the exports have trebled
during that period During the same time
the tonnage of vessels engaged in COM
merce passing through the St Mary's Falls
canal increased from 914 735 registered tons
in 1872 to p. .95S,3i7 tons in 1899, the in
crease having been over 2OOO per cent. as
against an increase of 100 per cent in total
foreign commerce and 2G0 per cent IL eA-
ports.
The great articles entering into the
commerce on the lakes are wheat -four,
and other grains: coal iron, and lumber.
The statements OF the quantities Of these
articles passing through the 500 Canal
illustrates the growing utilization OF this
great water route for transportation OF
these articles so readily transported in
bulk. In 1871 the number Of bushels Of
wheat passing through the canal was l.
316 105 while in lS@g the number of bush
els WAS IS .397 ,33j or more than forty
times as much as in 1871. Meantime the
receipts of wheat al Buffalo Increased
from II COO 0OO bushels in 1872 to s., Gee 00G
in 1885 while the total receipts of grain
of all kinds Cincluding wheat in the form
of four. received at Buffalo by lake in
creased from 81 GG0 600 bushels in 1872 10
267 600 eco bushels in 1898. Meanwhile the
expectation of wheat and wheat -four in
creased from 80 600 900 bushels in 1872 10
222 000 0G0 bushels in 1899 the increase
in transportation by lake thus being much
greater prOportiOnately than the increase
in exports from the seaboaTd. Transpor-
tation of -four through the 500 Canal has
increased with even greater rapidity.
growing from 13e4ll barrels in 1872 to -
ia. .l47 barrels in lS99. while grain other
than wheat increased from 4i5.514 bushels
in 1872 to 10000 600 bushels in 1899.
In metals and minerals the gr9wtl OF
transportation on the lakes Is quite as
striking as breadstuffs. the quantity Of
coal carried on the 500 Canal having iu-.
creased from 81. SlJ tons in 1872. TO 3.940-
SS7 tons in 1899. Coal from the Pennsyl-
vania and Ohio fields is supplied at low
freight rates 10 the Lake Superior Feg.Cn.
where coal production is light and fu
greatly ii demand. as lIB Vessels WHO n
carry the iron ore. grain and -four from
the Lake Superior region carry cal on
their return trips at nominal ffeight rates,
and as a consequence the coal passing
through the 500 Canal has. as already indi-
Gated, increased from SO.Sl5 tors in 1872
to 3,940S tons in 1899. TIE product CT
the Lake Superior region. which is poured
through the 500 Canal in increasing guam
titles every year is, after grain and -four,
which have been already mention &.
chiefly iron ore, copper, and lumber The
iron ore shipments through the canal in
creased from 3S3, 165 tons in 1872, to L.
32S. .240 tons in 1899: copper, from 1891
tons in 1872. to 120090 tons in 1899 ard
lumber, from 1.7i2.000 feet in 1872, to
OBS, ,051. 900 feet in 1899. The rep-rt
from which these figures were obtained
indicate that they also include the traffic
through the Canadian Canal (lying along
side st. Mary's Falls CanaD which was
opened to commerce September 2. 1898.
Some additional and equally interesting
facts are shown for the period 1887 to
1898 These relate to the proportion of
freight carried by American and Canadian I
vessels, value Of American and Canad an /
craft, and cost of transportation per mile (.
ton. of freight passing through tie
canal 1t shows that the percentage /
of freight carried by Canadian yes |
sells which in 1887 was per cent of the !
total, was in 1898, only % per cent The /
value of Canadian craft passing this point
was in 1887 $20S9. 400, and in 1898 s.. .491. = /
900: while that of American craft which /
in 1887 was ST., ,6S4, $50 was in 1898. s45.- |
1879, 500, the value of Canadian craft hay |
ing increased less than % per cent. while |
that of American craft had nearly tretled /
and the total registered tonnage, as al |
ready indicated having Increased from
9lS 435 tons in 1872 to 21,95S,34 tons ia /
1899. With this increase in tonnage and .
business comes an equally striking de- !
crease in freight rates, the cost of trans |
portstion per ton per mile having fallen /
from 90 mills in 1887, to 70 hundredths of /