The _Gold Hunter_ was produced by the Western Transportation Company, of Buffalo. She was a short, oblong tub, with a square, box-like bow, and rounded stern, designed only to carry machinery and coal, and was to be recessed into the stern of ordinary horse-boats by cutting away an equivalent space therefrom. She was designed to make a trip on the canal, and be immediately transferred to another boat for return trip, thus to avoid the usual loss of time at the termini of the canal. She was abandoned after a brief trial. The canal-boat _Niagara_ had the Cathcart propeller supplied, which consisted of a union of the propeller and rudder by a universal joint in the shaft, and so adjusted as to unite them for steerage purposes. This design was tried on the steamer _Cathcart_, upon the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, in 1858, and with considerable newspaper _eclat_. The _Rotary_, of New York, was a new steamer for freighting purposes, with a rotary engine and common propeller. This occupied but little space, and worked prettily on exhibition. The _Eclipse_, of New York, was new, and had oscillating propeller engines. SCREW-TUGS. The _Gov. King_ was a medium-sized New York harbor propeller, and made repeated trips with three boats in tow, and one trip with five boats. She was so slow as to be unremunerative, as compared with horses. The Western Transportation Co., after the failure of the _Gold Hunter_, built two powerful tugs, the _Washington_ and _Lafayette_. They were soon withdrawn. Mr. Prosser built the first-class tug, _Stimers_, but she had a short canal history. The tugs, _Bemis_ and _Dan Brown_, made good runs each, with three boats in tow, but were short-lived canallers. PADDLE-WHEELS AND OTHER DEVICES. During these years the paddle-wheel system was thoroughly tried, and under varied circumstances. As the locks prevented the use of side-wheels for full freights, an adjustable stern-wheel was tried. This could be raised or lowered in adaptation to the light or full cargo. The _H. K. Viele_ was a first-class canal steamer, with stern-wheel and vertical, or excentric, acting paddles. These were considered by some as peculiarly well adapted to canal purposes, yet in practice proved otherwise. The _Fall Brook_ was built by Mr. John McGee, of Seneca Lake renown, for towing purposes, intending to establish a line between Seneca Lake and New York city; but her canal abilities were so poor as to cause her withdrawal to lake duty. She had powerful engines, with vertical acting paddle-wheel, set amidships between twin-hulls, with a full flow of water from bow to stern, and was decked across forward and aft of her wheel. The _Lady Jane_, of Utica, was a bow paddle-wheel boat with small engines. She accomplished but little. As paddle-wheel canallers have proven less efficient than screw propellers they are more limited in numbers. Other contemporary devices were tried.