(235.)

The steamers which navigate the great northern lakes differ so little in their construction and appearance from the European steam-boats, that it will not be necessary here to devote any considerable space to an account of them. These vessels were introduced on the lakes at about the same time that steamers were first introduced on the Clyde. These steamers are strongly built vessels, supplied with sails and rigging, and propelled by powerful engines. The largest in 1837, when Mr. Stevenson visited the States, was the James Madison. This vessel was one hundred and eighty-one feet in length on the deck, thirty feet in breadth of beam, and twelve feet six inches in depth of hold: her draught of water was ten feet, and her measured capacity seven hundred [Pg500] tons. She plyed between Buffalo on Lake Erie and Chicago on Lake Michigan, a distance of nine hundred and fifty miles.

The severe storms and formidable sea encountered on the lakes render necessary for the navigation, vessels in all respects as strong and powerful as those which navigate the open ocean.