'A. most important. step has been token towards a general agreement Detween the great Hamburg. Amerika and Norddeutscher Loyd Shipping Companies.
They have practically decided upon an arrangement to pool the interests in South American traffic, understood that this "rationalization" will also extend to the Far East, enabling the withdrawal of aight to ton ships without affecting, German interests—Reuter.
Cologne, Mar. 22.
The Hamburg-America and Nord: Jdcutsther Lloyd lines, Germany's two biggest shipping companies, are amalgamating their interests for the next fifty years. Each will retain its "independence and sail under its own flag: there will be an interchange of a proportion of the members on each board of directors and receipts, henceforth, will be equally divided.
The purpose of the agreement is to place as many vessels as _possible on important routes with a view to eliminating the construction of new vessels and enabling each company to develop new routes, It is expected that working expenses on more or Ie able route the past rivalry existing between the two lines out out.—Reutor.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.