The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1901-03-23
One Years Commerce
on the Great Lakes

Special Cor spOndCnCC Of TIL" Tribune.
~ IIE PROSPECT OF an carly opening Of na'l.
cation on the Great Lakes and the prep
4 aratons made bv the Treasury Bureau of
statistics to continue its work, inauguiated
in 1900, of gathering statistics OF that commerce,
lends interest to a review OF last years busl.
ness on the lakes. compared with that of earlitr
years, Just prepared by that bureau The entire
commercial development OF the Great Lakes
and OF the territory contiguous thereto has been
embraced within the century which has just
closed, and the more interesting phases OF II
are presented by the record OF the past ten
wears. Prior to that time the growth had been
By leaps and bounds mtcrSpersed with periods
OF depression, and during the fye years follow
ing 1875, when rail competition first became
active, there was very appreciabe falling oi
both in vessel tonnage and the volume of freight
Traffic
Taking up first the acccssions to the tonnage
engaged in the carrying trade on the inland
seas il may be noted shat never Iior to lsO
had the lake tonnage reached an aggregate OF
1,OO,W0 tons. In that year the aggregate ton
mage was 1,O63,Ni tons, and from that time
until the present day an almost steady in"relsa
has been noted. Never since 1889 has tho total
dropped below the l,OGO,OOO mark. and with the
single exception of 1894 there has been no year
wherein the tonnage has not shown an
increase over the preceding twelve months. The
minimum yearly increase during the decade was
li,Oi9 tons aud the maximum sG,O35 tons. ib'
latter having been recorded in 1897, while the
year previous has gain of S2,6Os tons to its
credit. The aggregate tonnage on the lakes at
the close of the last fiscal year GIunc 30, 1900>
was I,5Gj,jS7 tons, gain OF 502 j2t tons, or
81 per cent, during the interim covered by the
comparison.
It may bo OF interest to dicress FOR d mo.
mcut at this point to consider the relation of
the lake fleet TO the vessels OF all kinds owned
in the United States. In 1891, for instance,
when the aggregate tonnage under the American
flag was 1854. $50. the tonnage of the lake craft
amounted TO l,iji,S.0 tons, or over y per cent
The aggregate tonnage for the nation increased
very gradually prior To 1900. and thus in 1896
and 1897, when heavy addito were made TO
the complement Of fresh.watcr carriers, the
shipping of the inland seas represented as high
20 per cent. OF the whole. According to
the latest statistics compiled by the United
states commissioner Of navigation. the aggregate
burden Of American vessels is jlGi. $50 tons, and
the Great Lakes, with l,55j,5s1 tons. thus en-.
braces 30 per cent. Finally il may be noted,
for purposes of comparison. that the tonnage OF
vessels now owned on the Atlantic and Gulf
coasts of the United States is 2727. SOP tons.
and thus exceeds hy q per cent, the tonnage on
the Great LakCs.
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