The daily morning journal and courier., 1905-12-28
LOADING OF A GRAIN SHIP.

How the cargo Ol w neat dOl 1OASAotA
 Shipment Is Placed Aboard.
 From the time of sowing until it's final consumption wheat has an en- chantment peculiarly it's own and it's witchery has formed the groundwork for both romance and tragedy. Not the least of it's fascination is its ship ment and to see a steady stream Of the golden cereal pouring into the hole of a vessel is ever alluring. Many fac tors enter into the process of trans portaticn of the wheGt from the pro- ducer to the cinsumer, and the pit" the railroads, the ocean, with all their side lines of labor, play the prominent part
 Portland's foreign distribution of wheat requires a yearly average Of something like a hundred vessels-the number sometimes going up to lO0 and the loading of these ships is the final chapter in a story of sowing ana reaping, buying and selling. In the transportation of the wheat the fail roads are first utilized, and the wheat is brought to the docks by the train load. Although examined and graded when bought, its arrival at the dock means a repetition of such examining
 and grading before it is loaded into the ships.
 i The actual shipment of wheat for foreign ports begins with the sale of cargo and the charter of vessel. Ar i ter the vessel is to line" her, which
 ter the vessel is chartered and arrives at the dock the first work is to line" her, which means the sheat-
 ing of the hold with rough lumber, the
 latter covered with burlap or cheap
 cloth The lining is done for the pur-
 pose of protecting the grain cargo from
 dirt and dampness. and is performed by contractors engaged in this work
 and commonly called liners" When
 the ship is lined the actual loading be-
 gins. In this work two distinct bodies
 are employed-thes longshoremen and
 the grain handlers~and there is in ad-
 dition d government inspector.
 The grain handlers, with theiI trucks. form the first link in the chain
 of loading. In a., continuous process sion they receive on their trucks Il and IS sacks of wheat from the piles in the docks talSeHthem on the scales
 for weighing pass the Government in spector. and deliver them either at the electric conveyer or to the chute. Al , in all other things, the labor and timt . saving appliance has entered into grail loading. A few years ago when whea was loaded into a vessel, the deck O l which, owing to the stage of water 5 was higher than the dock, 1t was han I ar. l-1k1 kA 3 means of slings, slow method at bes
 Now electrical force has beer brough - into use, and the electric conveyer, b. - means of an endless belt, receives tn r sack of grain, carries it up the in s clined plane and drops 1t into the hol = as easily and quickly as it is throw = down the crute, as is done with lowe s vessels In the transferring of tn f grain to the conveyor or chute 50 an
 60 men, with trucks, are employed e Two men take sacks off the truck an }. place them on the conveyer or chut' t at the end of which there is a gang ( @ 20 men to receive the wheat and stor - it in the hold of the ship. Such - crew can load from 500 to 700 tons ( | wheat daily. When the grain handl1 It receives his truclzload of wheat Q Il the dock he first takes it to the scale
 where it Is weighed and branded wit
 the consignee's distinctive mark. Pas'
 ing from there, and before reachin
 the ship each sack comes under tf n careful scrutiny of a customs inspeI
 tor, this inspection being held in O
 der to cinfirm the bagmaRer's clai n | for rehata Tho material from WhiC l. grain bags are commonly made r. principally imported from Calcutta l. some other foreign port, and und, n, the customs laws when this importe |, material is exported in manufacture of form a drawback is allowed on tl l. duty paid. Each bagmaking fir
 places a distinctive mark on it's sack e comonly a colored circle around tl ;. bag, and the customs inspectors du le at the loading of grain vessel is l. keep correct account of the vario1 o- marked sacks exported, so as to veri if the later claim for rebate by the ba Id makers.
 D. After passing the inspector | Il. sacks of wheat are placed on eith Is. the conveyer or chute and dump ,e into the hatch of the ship. Below u .t hatch there is a crew of 20 lon +s shorernen whose work is to take t r~ wheat into the hold. When the Ia he sack has been packed in the hold t n+ hatch is battered down, and the trar
 fer of the wheat to it's far off mark
 begins with the sailing of the ship
 Bits.