the employees, who are both often inclined to take advantage of the good years and trust to Providence to tide them over the lean ones.

The shipping trade being, as indicated, a complicated business, and involving in some of its branches highly technical knowledge, it is impracticable for any one individual to undertake to become proficient in all branches. For instance, the designing and building of ships, marine insurance, and general average adjustments, the law, both national and international, relating to shipping, call for specialists in these branches; and all that a shipbroker or a ship manager can aspire to is to have a knowledge of those aspects of shipping, sufficient to enable him to apply the information given to him by the experts to his own particular requirements.

He must know the general principles underlying all aspects of the subject, and specialize himself on the obtaining of the best freights for his or other vessels, combined with the economical running of the vessels compatible with their proper maintenance in a state of efficiency.

In the following pages the chapter on vessels and their types will give the reader information sufficient to enable him to understand the chief distinctions in type, the common measurements of vessels, their classification, and, generally, the main features of shipping property. The broker, or manager, cannot pretend to the knowledge of a naval architect or engineer, but he must be able, as it were, to examine and compare the ideas and plans produced by the experts for his consideration.

In regard to the chapters on stowage and ports, the former subject calls for technical training, and the latter is too wide a subject to condense into one chapter, or even one volume, but the lines on which a broker must work are shown.

The chapters on charter parties, chartering, and agency will, it is hoped, show clearly the actual work of a broker; and that on liner trades points the distinction between "liners" and " tramps."

The subsidiary, but important, subjects of marine insurance and general average, and shipping accounts, have been dealt with, and, in addition, there are several chapters on the law of affreightment, etc., complementary to the more practical chapters on chartering and charter parties.

Short chapters on estimating and ship management are included, and also an article on the upkeep and maintenance of steamers.

The appendix has been carefully compiled, and includes all sorts of documents-charter parties, Customs forms, insurance forms of interest to those engaged in shipping, also excerpts from various Acts relative to marine matters.

The authors have received help from the criticism levelled at their Introduction to Shipbroking, and have endeavoured to give effect in the present work to the suggested improvements. The business of shipping being so wide, intricate, and international, it is not to be presumed that the present effort represents the final contribution to the literature on the subject, and it is hoped, therefore, that allowance will be made for any inaccuracies or omissions that may have occurred.

The Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers, having recently received a Royal Charter, has instituted a system of examinations for those desiring to become members, and it is believed that this book will be of assistance to those intending to sit for the examinations.

We shall conclude our opening remarks by pointing out that, as the personal element enters largely into the success, or otherwise, of the broker, who must develop and maintain relations with owners and charterers, the necessity for tact and energy, as well as knowledge, is obvious.

CHAPTER II

TRADES OF THE WORLD

BALTIC-Near Continent-French Bay Ports-Spanish Ore PortsSpanish Fruit Trade-Mediterranean-India and Far East-Australia -Pacific Trade-Atlantic Trade-South America-Africa-General Remarks Division of Trades.

THE trades of the world by sea are carried on by vessels of all sizes and types, from the small coasting vessel to the luxurious Atlantic liner, and with various forms of propulsion-sail, motor, oil-burning, steam turbines, and reciprocating steam engines.

Round the coasts of the United Kingdom there are various routes between different trading centres on which small vessels carrying goods only, or goods combined with passengers, ply a regular trade. These small vessels give a more or less regular service between particular ports, and, by advertising, obtain a general cargo of all sorts of merchandise, usually composed of small parcels which merchants in one of the ports served desire to ship to the other port or ports to which the steamer sails. These goods are carried on terms and conditions laid down by the shipping company running the vessel, and, as a rule, no special document such as a charter party or a bill of lading is required. It is customary for a simple receipt to be given by the steamer when the goods are delivered at the quay for shipment, and when the goods are uplifted by the consignees at discharging port, a receipt is given by them in ordinary form. These regular shipping lines have lists of rates for different classes of goods, and usually have regular staffs and shed accommodation at their ports of call for attending to the loading and discharging and delivering of cargo. But, in addition to these small "liners," there are frequent cargoes passing from one United Kingdom port to another United Kingdom port, which, owing to their nature, or to the fact that there is no regular steamer running between the two ports in question, require to be carried by outside tonnage, that is, by small "tramp" vessels. These cargoes are usually bulk cargoes, such as coal, grain, potatoes,

stone, clay, and the contract of carriage in these cases is usually by charter party, and the services of a broker are required to obtain the necessary tonnage space.

Coal from colliery districts has to be transferred to places that have no coal, and, where this can be done by water, there is a considerable trade for small steamers. Grain and potatoes are shipped from districts where they are plentiful, or from places to which they have been imported in large quantities, to places where these goods are not available. Clay from Channel ports, where clay of special quality is produced, is carried to manufacturing centres, which can be reached from the seaboard, for pottery and other purposes, and stone from quarry districts for building is shipped by water.

These are examples of the trades in which the numerous small vessels continually sailing round our coasts from port to port are employed.

Regular lines of small steamers ply between the Clyde and Preston and Liverpool, in connection with the great cotton manufacturing districts of Lancashire; from the Clyde to the Bristol Channel, Clyde to London, Liverpool to London, Bristol Channel to London; and on the East Coast of the United Kingdom between London, Hull, Newcastle, Leith, Aberdeen, etc. There are also, of course, regular services to Ireland-Belfast, Dublin, and Cork, which can only be reached by water.

There is a very large trade for colliers from the Clyde and Ayrshire ports, and the Mersey and Bristol Channel ports to Ireland, and also to the manufacturing districts in the United Kingdom where coal is not immediately available. Coal is also shipped coastwise from the Tyne and other ports on the East Coast of England. Slate cargoes from Wales, oats from Dundee, Aberdeen, and Hull, granite from Aberdeen, potatoes from the East Coast of Scotland ports, clay from Fowey, are other examples of cargoes carried by small coasting vessels.

The principles which apply in the case of the United Kingdom coasting trade, apply to sea trade generally. Regular lines are established on all the main shipping routes of the world where there is a regular trade in general goods in both directions, and these regular lines are supplemented by the addition of outside

tonnage when required, a large quantity of "tramp tramp" tonnage finding employment with the liner companies. Tramp tonnage is, however, generally concerned with the carrying of homogeneous cargoes shipped in bulk, such as coal, grain, sugar, rice, cotton, timber.

To consider and discuss the various trades of the world would be simply re-learning commercial geography, but it is proposed to draw attention here to the chief tramp" cargoes and the main routes on which "tramp" tonnage is employed.

Baltic.

A very large trade is carried on by "tramp" steamers with the Baltic ports of Sweden, Finland, Russia, and Germany, carrying coal outwards to the Baltic Ports and bringing back mainly timber. The numerous shallow ports of the Baltic limit the size of the vessels on these routes, and the average size of the tramp" tonnage in this trade may be taken as from 1,000 to 2,000 deadweight. A large number of the ports in the Baltic are ice-bound for a considerable portion of the year, and, although some are kept open by ice-breakers, this restricts the trade with many of the ports to certain seasons.

Near Continent.

Between the East Coast ports of England and Scotland to near Continental countries-Belgium, Holland, France, Denmark, etc.— there is a great interchange of commodities, and the general cargo trade is well catered for by regular lines from the Forth, Tyne, Humber, Thames, to Hamburg, Rotterdam, Copenhagen, North French ports, etc. These regular lines carry all sorts of general goods, but the " tramp" tonnage on these routes is generally engaged in the carriage of coals from the United Kingdom ports outwards, the return voyage from the Continent being frequently made in ballast. Large quantities of coal are shipped from the Bristol Channel ports to France, and also from the Clyde; and the Bristol Channel, Clyde, and Mersey ports have both liner and "tramp" communication with the Continent.

In addition to coal there may be occasional cargoes of iron or steel, etc.