SHIPPING REVIEW

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2345, 30 December 1914, Page 8

SHIPPING REVIEW

AN INTERESTING YEAR

■ WHAT HAS HAPPENED IN 1914 •

PROSPECTS FOR 1915

[By Landsman.]

,; •; y dn -tlia f eve' of. tho birtli. of the ,New well to. look back on what K iias happened as far as tlio Port' of JWelj;. 'lington,'. and ,m-'fact,., Now Zealand, is. ' concorned in tho shipping world. In 1 ' comparison with .former years 1914 will .'.. Btaiid Jout- in history. Its predecessor ', - was remarkable;for tho greatest strike •New Zealand • has Qveiv. seen, and Wel- ?: lington}•;'like other,' New " Zealand ports, - sufered-- in consequence. Trade and r -'commerce soon .b'ecame;-normal, how-fi'-v ever, and things, Began l :to ; flourish after -'temporary . set-back; , New ; trade /'■t ToutesV.were, opened up and more Bteam-fe-Vtors . be>gan,'.to' visit .our. ports. ;on_,the. ■ shipping horizon tlie weather was -fair," and it continued, so till towards tho end of- July when, tie greatest interna- ■>' V;,tiondl;.6risis in history-' was threatened.' England, was on the verge of war, after i-v OiaTOig.-had' peace at'sea : for 108 years., ; -On August 5 -the blow fell, and the one ; "great of the. hoiir, as . far as sea-faring- men wero (concerned, wis j . .'Will our - trade routes bo kept clear i,. ; . i ; ,Thanks-ito the foresight of; the 'British 'Admiralty and to our brethren: across; ■ ilio Tasman Sea this question lias been ' flriswere'd iin . tlie' affirmative,'■ and four ■ anontlis" after, tho first shot, was .fired the Germany Navy 'is still bottled up,' and. all-but three insignificant men-o - .- war belonging to- t'hat nation have been ■ swept-from the seas. German trade nnd commerce lave been permanently crippled/and British, trade, is assuming abnormal proportions. This-state of af-! ■ fairs'-' applies to Wellington and New. . Zoaland-'as well as to practically ;every : country," over .wliicli . the ; Union Jack •ilies. -'.;i/•";

• Apart-from.jfte,war there hare'.been ' ■i- iraaiiy happenings /whidh; will -.go ;down ito posterity -in shipping history as far . as the - Port' of Wellington arid Now . 'Zealand '.is -concerned.One of tho out-! ' standing; features of fho year,, which is drawing to a close, is the opening of r';:\.theiVPaiuima'Canal.This in ; itself- is a : ' : .iiatiohal.,event as 'NewvZealanu . . 'da concerned.. As for the. Port of Wel- • .lington some important works' have, i;'been carried .out, ■ and iii the -New ■ Year •tho-works contemplated .will make inort •history for tho port. Works In Hand; - j , t ,The. works at present under construc- ' ■ifcion consist of a■ .■ concrete' breastwork !•••• 1200 feet in length,_along the ,Waterloo ;.. Quay. sea-.wall, to give berthage accom- ; , ir.odation to . vessels - carrying timber, coal, and rough cargo. This work is " 'being earned out by day '.labour.- About one-half of the piles have been driven . and about 250 feet of tho wharf'- has ;- ; 'been : oompleted : and . is ready for ■ nshphalting. Tiio work of .ereotino- a ; large .brick store, 283 feet.lon- ancf 7i feet wide, -suitable for storage'of wool ; awaiting shipment,: and for handling general cargo, on Pipitea. Wharf breastr- work as espect-ed-to'-be-'oompleted " early' • P o ®™:- lbs Te Aro teclamation 5 j ; : hee.n finished and at;present a, staff ™ €n employed in draining • arid this important new city- site. . iWaterloo Quay reclamation is nearly completed and the Glasgow Wharf has ; "COJ 1 lengthened by. 160. feet - together Wlt \ l the lengthening of the', shod there- . 011 by 163 feet. ./;TMs; structure will be quito ready fio receive ocean-going ;- steamers by the timo these lines ap- ; pear m print.. . '

Works Contemplated. .Tho Wellington Harbour Board intends in the near future to call tend- , era,for;a large now wharf for the larg- / ocean-going: steamers the proposed to build this wharf to ."the. east-of .tM King's Wharfi- with 1 Jengths, 948 feet on. the east siclc aucl y64.feet.on the west side,.with 186 feet oror all-. ■ Latest -methods in'handling . cargo will bo provided, and two . lines of railway tracks will run down on .. either;side ; of .the wharf.' •• • S ; . : Drawings;aro now being" prepared for thorconstruction! of .';-Te-'"Aro "Wharf, '.which will be,-, built''to the eastward of faranaki - Street 'wharf. It will bo '. - constructed .of reinforced concrete, and, .will have , a length' of 664' feet, with a Width of 123 feet.. • ; , Our New Ferry Wharf. ' T}ie travelling publio have been pro"mised a, new permanent ferry wharf '• tho 'Yv clfington-Lytteli/on. ferry steamer. For years' this work- has' been advocated,'' and 'at last, in 1914, it has been ~ authorised. ; So'Athat by tie end 'of lOloj if. all goes vrell, "Wellington .should, be : Tip-to-ddte : . in- this , respect. The; proposal .'is to. convert ( the present" Wool Wharf into the Ferry :-\?harf by making- certain!, additions.' Proper, passenger and luggage. accommodation will be 'provided, {.and ' when 1 the : work is completed tho ferry service, it is considered, :wiU'be : onevof. tho, best ■ of: its_ kind in the world. The year that -is drawing/to a close l has ■ seen >maiiy improvements in this;connection, and it only wanted a permanent' Ferry .Wharf to make the service well-nigh perfect. Shipping. Retyrns. . 'Although tho. completo figures are not available, it appears as if. the shipping, returns for the port will constitute a, record, this.year.' : Up till 1 September- ; 30 (tho latest date for which the figures* iro available),. 3245 .vessels,; representing 3,059,073 net' tons,'arrived at the port. The corresponding figures for the year 1912 were 3356. vessels of 3,087,382. tons, and for.the year of; the big. strike ' tho figures were 3620 vessels, of 3,146,387 tons.' From ..the year 1882 the progress of tho. shippihg handled at tho port of AVellington - has gone ahead in leaps and bounds. Last year dozens of Homo steamern were to bo seen at anchor in Kaiwarra Bight on account of tho strike. This year Kaiwarra Bight was used as an anchorage ground for a' large fleet of Homo and intercolonial steamers, but for quite a different purpose. This timo they were transports, and on tho inorning of October 16 tho ten vessels, accompanied by four men-o'-war, left tho port under sealed orders with over . 8000 of New Zealand's sons on board who had volunteered to help tho Mother Country against the foe.

Despite tho fact that tie Home authorities bavo taken eight of the largest produco and general cargo-carriers in one bunch away from New Zealand, no inconvenienco to speak of has been caused to shippers." Adequate arrangements have been made to cope with the extra trade, and as a matter of fact thero will be - more steamers to take nway our produce' during the coming "rush" Beason than has been the case during forjner The Government nnd the shipping companies have to bo thanked for this excellent state of affairs. ' Panama Canal and, Mew Services. Taking a retrospective view one cannot help being; struck, by tho enormous ' amount of new trade . which' is being built up by the various British shipping lines -trading .to and from New Zealand. During tho! course of tho year a new direct service • has been opened up by tho Shaw, Savill, and Albion Co. and the New Zealand Shipping Co., between New Zealand ports .and Eaat : Coast of England ports and tho.F. & S, Lino have inaugurated'.

a now service between New Zealand ports'; and' Now York. Again, trado between/ .'Australia and New Zealandl and' tlio Pacific Slope 'has increased to such, an extent, that the Union Company has been compelled to place several largo cargo steamers in commission m addition to ■ the usual large passen-j ger liners which run' Tip to Vancouver and San Francisco. This year . 'has also ; seen 'a great increase, in the number of American .four-masted' schooners Tvliicli have ; visited our shores. The numberof these smart craft which have-brought timber from Port-' land, Oregon, and Pugot Sound'to-Now Zealand is phenomenal.. Freights have been good,' and according to latest adviccs, several more sailers are on their ; way, or loading, at Pacific Coast lumber mills for our snores. : , ' An important alteration has also taken placo in regard to the direct mail service between Wellington and London, -and;vice versa. Up till a few months ago Plymouth had been the first and last port of call in England for our direct mail steamers . Homeward and outward bound. This, has,been altered. , On the outward journey Plymouth has been cut. out as a port of call, and the mail -steamers now proceed .direct to Teneriffo.or Cape Town from London. On the", Homeward journoy, Southamp-, ton has-been made the first port of call in England. - Here : . passengers and mails 'are. lauded, and the liner proceeds thence direct to London to discharge.

Great Benefit to New Zealand. As stated previously, the opening of the Panama Canal has been'tie epoch' making -event in the .shipping history <if New Zealand, and the result-has been, .that since! the new between East and West has' been ready for traffic several extra . vessels . have .visited New Zealand from . New York. Although oil tho journey from and to England tlio Canal route does not make Stay difference in steaming time, on the other hand it . brings New/Zealand; and incidentally Wellington, from 42 to 49 days nearer to ports; such as Montreal and St. John, in Canada, and New York in the -United States. At one time several German steamers were chartered by British firms -to bring cargo from Now; York to Now Zealand and Australia, but since the outbreak of war the motto been "British cargoes for British ships," and it has "been cairied into effect. '.-Tho.result- is .that now.,we have 'our own, ships coming down this way, filled'to the hatch combings every trip. ' *

' The''first steamer .to" visit New Zealand . via the Panama Canal was the Chassis,: and ler, first port of call was Wellincton. ' She came with > rude oil from Florida, but'as she. had' been chartered by the 1 no mention was ma3e of her arrival. Had it-not been' that our nation.was at war,-her entry'into this' port would have been heard a'good deal of. Up till the time the Canal was opened it was the cuptom of steamers to take: anything from .73 .to reach 'New Zealand, from New York. .' In those days tliey had to come round ' the Cape of -Sood 'Hq>o, and called at Australian !oorts first. Now New Zealand is the first port of call from New York, and the first merchantman to visit these waters was the A. and A. Line's Purley. Silo: wus followed by the same company's .Lord Erne to'Lyttelton.' Then came the U.S. and: A. Line's ; Cape Corso, and she was followed by . the Westward Ho, on 1 behalf of the A. and A. Line. '

■\ The-Cape Corsb holds the record fur the journey/from New York to New Zealand -at the present time, as ,she cut the distance out in the smart time of 39 days, or 34 days, faster ttan- the best journey made via the Capo o.f Good Hope and Australia; It wiil thus be seen that the Canal means a great: saving/in'time to our shippers. , - . The years 1918 and 1914 have bad their sensations as , far as shipping is concerned, and now the. question is "What of 1915?" f .