10 



THE COASTWISE 

 NAVIGATION. 



RIVER STEAMERS. 



700 to 1000 tons of effective load, and of a draught of 18 ft. 

 as maximum. 



A serious inconvenience for vessels above certain draught 

 is the «Barrial» bar situated below Fray Bentos, where 

 the mean draught is only 17 feet, though vessels can cut 

 their way through this bar drawing two feet more, (see 

 page 16). 



Before de dredging of the Banco Grrande» and «Altos y 

 Bajos» bars was carried out, the captains of the vessels 

 stipulated in the shipping contracts that the vessels should 

 be lightened or their cargo be completed below the first 

 mentioned bar. To-day this inconvenience has disappeared. 



The coastwise navigation is carried out: 1st. by river 

 steamers, which belonged successively to the following 

 Companies: «Saltena», «La Platense», «Nacional de Na- 

 vegacion a Vapor», and «Mensagerias Fluviales del Plata» 

 and which are-now all belonging to Mr. Nicolas Mihanovich: 

 2 nd . with lighters specially constructed or made up from old 

 steamers, out of service, and which are towed, and 3 rd . with 

 the smaller coastwise vessels. Nearly all the river steamers 

 ran before in the Kiver Uruguay, the navigation of which 

 used to be fairly active on account of the numerous slaugt- 

 herhouses situated on both banks and also for the reason 

 that there existed no other economical communication with 

 the ports of Buenos Aires and Montevideo. 



At present and in consequence of the paralisation of the 

 slaughterhouses and the construction of railways in the 

 Oriental Republic, which unite its Capital with Paysandii. 

 Salto and the Brazilian frontier, this activity has partly 

 decreased but is still sufficiently important to occupy for 

 the service of the river the steamers, Paris, Triton, Helios. 

 Labrador, Comercio, Tridente and others, which make 

 weekly trips. 



The draught of the steamers with a normal cargo on board 

 is'.) feet, in "which condition they can carry 300 passengers 

 and 550 tons of merchandise. 



Several ports ofthe River Uruguay are situated on creeks 

 and the cargo for them is transhipped from the large 

 steamers into smaller ones, which have sufficient accomoda- 

 tion for passengers ami cargo. 



