El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1917-10-27

0 season. and their loading and unload
ing IS so rapid and efficient that II IS
one OF the miracles Of industrial pro-
gress. The vessels start running as
soon as the ice melts in the spring.
their way being aided by ice-brsak-
ers, and they continue until along in
December. when Jack Frost locks the
upper lakes tight in the arms OF the
winter Within the past season the
steamers have carried down the lakes
66.0O0.0OO tons Of iron ore, and more
than 5000, 900 tons have been trans
ported each month There are 500
steamers now carrying such freight.
Steel shell COO Feet Long.
The James A. Farrell is Of the best
type OF these steamers. II is one OF
the largest of all that ply the lakes,
and IL is in service day and night
weekdays and Sundays. from one end
Of the season TO the other The yes
sci was built at the Cleveland ship
yards in 1913. II is made OF steel
throughout It IS a great steel she'll
almost 500 feet long. about so feet
wide. and so large that il would fill
the roadway OF a city street from one
end Of the block to the other. rising
to the heiCht Of the third story OF all
the buildings There are engine
houses and smokestacks at the stern
and pilOthouse az the prov. which
extends considerably higher but the
main part Of the vessel is the great
hold. more than 500 feet long and
over 20 feet deep. which carries its
vast cargo Of ore. This hold is en-
tered by - matches II has three
great cnmpdrtue all 81 which are
filled every trip. When outside the
harbor the matches are closed. and
the main part Of the deck IS q long
eVpanse OF steel absolutely free of
rigEiuE OF any obstruction whatever.
The vessel is more like a Ereat
barge than n modern steamer. and one
would never imagine its fine machin-
cry and wonderful efficieucv- The
engines. which were made ut Cieva-
land. are ~ triple expansion and Of
$500 horsepower. They send this
ten-thousand-tou shia through the
water at speed Of Is miles an hour.
and that at the expenditure OF only
about two and one-fovrth tons o.
coal The shin makes The round trim
from Lake Erie 20 Duluth and hack
in seven DAYS. and within that time
10 loads and unl0adS its cargo or
TO- ln tons some OF the vessels on
the Atlantic uze IS much coal I'm one
day as this ship does in q week and
they carry less freight The larger
OF the Atlantic grevhounds consume
inward OF 500 tons ~ coal in one dav
The Farrell IS driven throuCh the
water by a proneller. great steel
screw which weighs seven tons and
" men is composed or FOUR 0l7QeS
which make q revolution and a half
every second This is fastened 20 a
steel shaft rs big around as p peck
uea sure which IS turned by the en-
sine. AS it moves II forces the ship
on through the water.
II e in vessels like the FarrPl that
the most % the Great lakes traffic
is carried There arc hundreds ~
such ships which take down rho grain
and ore from Like Sunerio~ 20 the
1orts OF Like Michigan and lake
rrie. and brir- beck coal ROW lake
Erie to Duluth. The fre7-ht that IS
carried across Lake Sune~ior I'm one
wear is worth almost q billion dollars.
and I'm tons r. amounts ~ just about
90 600 400
Food Tor Many Millions.
The wheat that goes down from
the head Of the lakes is more than a
quarter Of a billion bushels per an
mum. and In addition there are ten
million barrels Of flour and more
than ninety million bushels o. other
grain. As 20 iron ore. the amount
carried in 1915. as have said was
more than sixty-fiVe million tons.
w 17f07 avraainf zfw-eeV-aufne OF all .