OIL FUEL COMING.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 161, 25 November 1912, Page 7

OIL FUEL COMING.

SHIPPING WORLD ACTIVE. Sydney, November 1. A holiday en the broad of his back was the experience of Mr. H. G. Jefferson, managing director of the McArthur Shipping and Agency Co., Ltd. Mr. Jefferson left Australia in April, and had not been long in London before misfortune overtook him. Ha was standing on the footpath just about to enter his hotel when a taxi-cab drove up, and the mudguard struck him behind the knee. Synovisits developed, and for two months he was an invalid, a great deal of which time he spent on his back. When he was able to get about only five weeks remained to sailing time, and he endea%'ored to crowd into that period what he had missed while he was confined to his room.

\ On board the Moldavia Mr. Jefferson said that what had impressed him during his visit had been the extraordinary shortage of tonnage all over the world. Freights now, with the exception of the Australian market, are higher than ever before. The regular lines of steamers reaching Australia, and the large carrying capacity or the vessels, however, keeps, the Australian prices comparatively low. The outlook is that there is no opportunity of raising freights, and Australia therefore is the worst market in the world for the shipowner at the present time. Despite this fact, wheat freights are vfc a record figure, having increased recently from 32s Od to 40s a ton. 'The action of the Commpnwealth in giving an interpretation to" the Navigation Act, by which steamers which have passed a high survey in the United Kingdom must go through another survey in Australia, is, Mr. Jefferson declares, looked upon as monstrous. The consequence is that .if a shipowner was looking for business anywhere, Australia is the last place he would visit. He would he afraid of the charges which would b/ put against him. As for'the Australian trade,/'its development .would'depend on the increase!: of'-p'opulsttion; and production of wheat,?an&itrade and' commerce. The ground so far, lie said, has only been scratched..-.''But'Australia has one of the finest coastal services in the world.

Talking of shipbuilding, Mr.-Jefferson said that three $&% cargo steamers for the-•Clan li[ncMY]ll4rado- Australia before, very 10ng,," C-nOj-the 'Clan McArthur, has just been launched; another, the.Clan Macqiiarie, is being built, and the third will be commenced shortly. There will then be six steamers in the fleet, the Clan McPhee, Clan McEwen and-CIW Davidson, in addition to those named, and a regular monthly service will.be maintained. The new boats are the last word .in their class, and have a dead-weight capacity of 9300 tons. "You cannot fret ships," he went on to say. 'Xo shipyard in the United Kingdoin willundertake to build, a vessel and give yo.u'aitlate'of delivery; You have to take your.chanee. Only liners ■iiid' Admiralty wo'rk is being done. A lot'of people'''who.'-would' build are holding'back to see how the.'Diesel'internal combustion engines get on. These are oil engines, aMd'Softie'.'very fine' results have been got from themJEMMTuse of oil fuel, is coming all right. The Admiralty has placed oflfejs sor aft armored cruiser fitted f with'these engines! and success 1 with rfc.'wilkineain'!* treriidndbus lot. The ; shipbuilding world is 1 looking for an engine of wTiifch'it-can ;be absolutely "sure; and builders are therefore waiting. Oil will be' more expensive than coal, but the difference will be more,-..than, .made up W the increased carrying'capacity, for, I understand, 500 tons of oil are equivalent to ISOO tons of coal."