570 TRANSACTIONS. OF SECTION G,. 
the interior provinces. For example, of the total quantity of freight 
(1,604,321 tons) passed through the whole length of the Welland Canal in 
1907 about 75 per cent. moved eastwards, and more than 62 per cent. of the 
2,100,000 tons which passed through the St. Lawrence canals moved in the 
same direction. 
Shipping on the Great Lakes. 
Canadian shipping and shipbuilding on the Lakes have made con- 
siderable progress in recent years, although they do not rival those of the 
United States. According to authoritative statements there were not twenty 
Canadian steamers engaged in the transport of grain fifteen years ago; 
only three of these were steel-built, and the largest carried only 90,000 
bushels. The total carrying capacity of Canadian grain-carriers at the 
present time has been estimated at ten million bushels, and the capital 
invested in the fleet is said to be about three millions sterling. Between the 
harvest and the close of navigation in winter it is estimated that no less 
than sixty million bushels of grain can be moved from port to port in 
Canadian steamers. 
Many special engineering features have been introduced into the struc- 
tures and equipment of these Lake grain-carriers. They are really huge 
steel barges of full form, of uniform cross-section for a considerable portion 
of their length; and they possess enormous cargo capacity, moderate engine 
power and speed, with structures of a simple nature which can be largely 
standardised and made to resemble bridge-construction rather than ordinary 
shipbuilding. They can be built in a short time, the largest vessels occupy- 
ing about four months in construction. In this way the cost of construction 
is cheapened, but the rates for labour and materials prevailing in the Lake 
shipyards are so high relatively to British costs that at present these grain- 
carriers are said to cost about 40 per cent. more (per ton dead weight 
carried) than the cost of ordinary ‘tramp’ steamers built in Great Britain. 
Their holds and hatchways are arranged so as to facilitate the rapid ship- 
ment and discharge of cargoes. At their ports of call special mechanical 
appliances are provided for dealing with cargoes, most of which consist of 
grain, ore, or coal. 
In the design and construction of these cargo-handling appliances the 
mechanical engincer has displayed great ingenuity, and the results obtained 
in rate of shipment and discharge of cargoes of grain, ore, and coal are 
remarkable. Cases are on record where vessels carrying 7,000 tons dead 
weight have been loaded in four hours and discharged in ten hours; more 
-than 5,000 tons of ore have been discharged in about four hours. The 
draught of water of the steamers must be kept within moderate limits and 
the breadths of the locks are moderate, so that increase in carrying power 
must be chiefly obtained by increase in length ; consequently, as individual 
cargoes are increased, a greater number of lifting appliances can be brought 
to bear simultaneously, and the rate of loading or discharge can be main- 
tained or accelerated. 
The season of navigation extends over only seven or eight months in the 
year ; consequently, ‘quick despatch’ is essential to success. A large vessel 
of this class has the following approximate dimensions :—Length about 600 
feet; breadth, 58 to 60 feet; depth, 32 feet; draught of water, 19 to 193 feet 
when carrying 10,000 to 11,000 tons of cargo; corresponding displacement, 
16,000 tons. The engines of such a ship develop about 2,000 horse-power, 
and drive her at eleven to twelve statute miles per hour in fair weather. 
The large size and moderate speed result in very economical conditions of 
working, and the freight rates are exceedingly low. From official returns 
it appears that for these dead-weight cargoes the freight across the Lakes is 
from ‘04 to ‘05 of a penny per ton mile, the corresponding railway rate 
being about ten times that amount. The multiplication of this type of 
vessel on the great Lakes is a proof that it satisfactorily fulfils the con- 
ditions of service, Similar vessels would not be well adapted for ocean wark, 
