The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1902-12-16
OIL FUEL
IN USE ON
STEAMERS


tla pu uiliios of .He future q. ,rr
uD,iiou With The substitution 0E .N I.r
coal as O. fuel FOR steam vessels THE
steamer pecm Of the shell Transport
Company has made o. .uDoDs-.uI r.H.
Mr. Melrose OF the the United Su.'.
Navy Department predicts The use Of
oil In the near future as fuel for war
vessels They might have gone farther
and told Of the remarkable conditions
now existing on the Pacific Coast OF
the United States.
There fuel oil has long passed the
experimental stage. over fifty steam
ers now sail from the port OF San Fran
cisco with oil for fuel. The Mariposa
has just returned from Tahiti, a re-
turn trip of 1900 miles. under steam
generated exclusively by oil. Pressure
and speed were easily maintained. and
she reached port one day ahead of her
schedule Her fuel cost just half as
much as coal; there was no expense
for painting ship. such as is necessary
when coal is used.
Particularly interesting is the opin-
ion of Lieutenant Winchell. who has
reported on the voyage for the United
States Government, as to the character
OF man that. should be employed in the
fire rooms where there Is an oil fuel
installation. 1t neither requires phys
ical endurance nor previous training
with coal fire. The men placed in
charge of the contrivance, however,
should have mechanical aptitude, and
possess readiness Of resource and
nerve.
The sense OF sight, hearing and
touch must be exercised at all times,
since It is essential to keep a good
lookout on the furnace to note by the
sound the working of the blowers and
the completeness of combustion, and to
check by the sense of touch the work
ings of mechanical contrivances II
fewer men are needed in the fire rooms
it is requisite to secure men of high
intelligence, who can judge quickly as
to the tendency toward impairment.
THE MONEY SAVED.
Less space was occupied, the fixed
charges for labor were greatly reduced,
the feeding of the fuel took less time
and cost less. In fact, no disadvant
ages were discovered, and the advant
ages were manifold 1t is estimated
that on one troopship making the trip
from San Francisco to Manila and re-
turn the saving of fuel through the
use of oil has been at least 5000 for
every such voyage.
The result of the lack of demand for
coal is remarkable. In San Francisco
harbor alone fully 100000 worth of
capital in ships has been forced into
idleness. Shipowners and shippers no
longer find ii profitable to voyage to
Japan and Australia and return to San
Francisco, awaiting cargoes of grain to
Europe. The competition in carrying
the small imports of caol has been so
keen and the freight rates are now so
low that the ship oyners prefer to have
their vessels idly ride the becalmed
waters of the bay rather than take the
chance of obtaining valuable cargoes in
foreign ports. One of the benefits Is
that grain importers of California can
obtain low rates to Europe The YES
sells engaged in carrying coal are usu-
ally designed also for the grain trade
to Europe. AS this coal trade is gone,
there is only one source OF revenue left,
and that is the grain trade. Here,
again. competition has entered. and as
result, there are now low rates Oh
grain to European ports.
GOLFERS OUT OF WORK.
Twenty-three shillings is the present
low price for grain charter from
San Francisco to Great Britain or the
continent. The use of fuel oil has put
the GOLFERS out of business, and in turn
they have sought operations in other
channels.
The rapid increase in the shipping
facilities of the world, due in great
part to the artificial demands for trans
portation growing out of the South
African and Spanish wars. has induced
a reduction in ocean freight rates for
cargoes in bulk, and to that extent
favored the farmers and producers, II
not the manufacturers. This favorable
situation is accidental. When Mr..
Morgan and his associates shall have
completed thir transportation arrenge-
ments, an oil-burning equipment for
every vessel being a projected part of
the plan, the tramp steamer will be
out of the running.
In connection with this oil question
the Standard Oil Company has great
fight on its hands in California. The
trouble lies between the Standard PEG.
pie and a big oil and transportation
company.
The Standard OIL people are building
a pipe line 200 miles long from the
great oil fields in Kern county to tide
water in San Francisco Bay. The
Standard oil people will Use this pipe
line for the transportation Of oil fIom
wells acquired by the corporation. II
will carry oil for producers. The rate
OF transportation to producers will con-
form to that OF the railway companies
connecting with the oil-held, as the
Standard OIL and the Southern Pacific
and the Santa Fe Railway Companies
are working under a tariff agreement.
CHEAP OIL.
A big California corporation, which
owns some ~ the best wells In the dis
trict and owns q coast line ~ steamers
engaged In the oil carrying trade has
/ surveyed a direct route from the OIL
field 10 the ocean, and has agreed tina,
! II pledged freight 10 the extent II
10000 barrels ~ on daily II viii build