Regular Foreign Steamer Service for Haichow: Contract with Railway From Our Own Correspondent.
Haichow, Ku., Nov. 17.
The isolation of this city from the world and even the remainder of China since ancient times may be said to have come to a definite end by the establishment of the foreign steamship line to operate regularly between here and Tsingtau with occasional trips to Shanghai. For several years there have been~ several small Chinese steamers and one or two Japanese boats that have made periodic or rather spasmodic efforts to operate. They always seemed to have plenty of cargo and_ passengers but they could never be relied on either as to when they would get in or get out. After they once got in and it was a regular performance to stick on the bar at the mouth of the river for a period of a-tide or two. It goes to prove that vessels and cargo and passengers alone do not make success. There must be a character to the line and the only way that seems at present possible is under foreign operation.
The bright new vessel, the Fortuna, flying the Danish flag has just made her first trip in. She is of some. seven or eight hundred tons, one would judge, with a foreign captain and a full foreign force of engineers. She is of the latest type of Diesel engines which the engineers were glad to explain to visitors. She can operate on a very small fuel she burns crude oil, which will in some way offset the heavy expense of the foreign staff. We understand that an effort is to be made to train a corps of Chinese engineers but owing to the complicated and very delicate machinery we will wait the results with no little interest.
The Fortuna comes just time to land a very valuable tract with the Lung Hai Railway for transportation of railway materials from Tsingtau. It is a contract of mutual benefit as the Lung Hai has been hampered at this end by lack of necessary materials. The Chinese companies that have been running for some, time have had the good sense to put their vessels under the agency of the Fortuna's manager and we ought now to see good regular service established.
The residences for the Lung Hai staff are rising just outside the north gate. The chief engineer of the line has just paid us a visit, With the railway rapidly approaching from the west and reliable sea service now assured Haichow feels that she can at last. claim a place on the map.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.