The Evansville journal. (Evansville, Ind.) 1834-184?, 1844-03-28
STATE ELECTORS.
H N ERIE ANA

OHIO AND ERIE CANAL.
The extension of the Wabash and Erie
Canal from Terre Haute to Evansville, COM
mends itself TO the favorable regard of the
people of Indiana, in proportion as it is CON
sidered in all IFS relations and bearings.
Several publications have been made
showing It's importance to other sections of
the Union, and yet these have not exhausted
the subject. Ii may be well to further pre-
sent it in ths several points of view inwhich
it may be considered, inorder thatthe truth,
which, by being often repeated, rarely fails
to command public attention, may in this in
stance make its legitimate impression on the
pubIis mind.
Il is to be regretted that certain papers in
our region, should seek, by efforts to excite
the public prejudice against this work, to d.
vert public attention from its claims TO a IA
yorable consideration. These attempts, how
escr, will fail of their intended effect, and
trdth will, sooner or later, show where the
rue interest Of the country lies.
That the opening of the canal to the Ohio
IS the only practicable means, of having a
uniform and permanent outlet from Lake
Erie to the Ohio river, is a proposition that
will appear the more manifest, the more it is
investigated. All agree that it would be a
permanent channel of inter-communication,
between the Northeast and South West por-
tons of the Union. The Wabash rirer te
already haze, with all its benefits, afforded
during the Spring foods, and those occasion
al swells which enables our farmers and 9TH
ers by means of aat-boats, to export such an
immense amount ofthe produce of the coun-
try. These benefits, We admit, might be in
creased by an improvement of the Rapids,
and the Grand Chain To such an improve
ment no citizen Of the valley of the Wabash
objects; bat that such an improvement would
give a constant and permanent navigation as
high as the present terminus of the Canal
during the months Of July, August, Septem'
Der, October and November we deny, and
rest for the correctness of what we say, Oh
the reports of our Engineer, and on the fact
as they are, and must continue to be, indie
pendent ofalI public documents.
The Green and Kentucky rivers, have
been cited as examples of successful slack
water navigation. 1t may do for person
who do not understand the difference be
tween these rivers and the Wabash, to hol'
this doctrine but to all who know the char
acter of each, it must be manifest that tn
argument drawn from the Kentucky rivers
loses IFS force when applied to the Wabash
1she general character of the region of Ken
lucky through which the above named riv
ers flow, is wholly different from our valley
Generally the streams have narrow beds, c
rock, the whole ofthe middle region of tn
Stale having a substratum of limestone
This limestone and other rock appears suff
cientIy to furnish the foundation for perm;
nent dams, and the banks are generally of
character to resist the effect OF these current
that form the sudden swells of the river
would in loose ~all1vial deposite of fine san
and Vegetable matter, force their way thr
new channels, and leave dams for slack-w;
ter navigation TO be actually obstruction
instead of an improvement of the river.
This is shown in the report of the "Boal
of the public works. in the State of Obi
respecting the Muskingum improvement
were one Of the reasons given for the insi'
biIity of some of the dams is, that they wei
built on gravel foundations. Report ofls4
page IA. On page Is of the same reportitw
appeart that the Muskingum improve. has CO
Si,602,0l6 30 cents Zone million six hu