Washington telegraph., 1851-02-12
I'D Rtxer.-0uachita and Red River plank

which We puDllSned lew weeks Slnce,
from the pen of Major G. w. r. Bayley.
Assistant Engineer Of the State Of
Louisiana. on the Improvement of the
navigation of Red River. The Editor
thinks it "a great pity that his Red River
| friends, having the finest cotton growing
regiot, in the world, should be subjected
20 such great inconvenience in getting
their prodaees.to market" After ten
dering. in their behalf, the most grate-
| full acknowledgements for the interest he
spectfully beg leave to correct an errone-
Gus impression which his article would
| induce us to believe he has faifen into
viz. that they are deprived altogether Of
the advantages of navigation, and wholly
dependent upon the public spirit and
muniffcence of their friends on the
Ouachita to enable them to transport the
product of :heir fertile soil to market. We
| have TO doubt he will be pleased to learn
| that the people of the Red River valley
are not altogether destitute Of the facilities
Of transportation, but on the contrary,
notwithstanding that great barrier to their
prosperity, the Raft- have navigation.
amply sufficient to transport all they
| produce, and to import all the supplies
! IL, l. f.,rf
Indeed for the last three years the nav'ga-
ton of upper Red River has been un-
preceden,ly good, and is improving every
year, although Congress has refused to
contribute anything to lis Improvement,
or when all appropriation was made by
| Congress, it was withheld by the pre-
rogative of the Executive.
| Tie Editor Certainly evinces want of
| correct information upon the subject when
he assures US, that the raft remains in its
original condition Notwithstanding the
most lavish expenditure of money by
the General Government for its removal
The original extent of the raft when
these operations commenced was from
| 40 TO 100 miles. In 1913 navigation
since which time diff has accumulated
to the extent of 7 or 8 miles, ard the
river below the present obstruction and
throughout nearly the whole of the
original raft region, bias been rapidly i'm
proving.
| That the most scientific engineers pro-
nounce the permanent removal Of the
raft utterly impracticab!e, is also mis-
taken idea. Competent engineers have
pronounced it altogether practicable, and
| Maj Bayley advocates the cut off through
| the Lakes, in consequence as ne regards
it, Of beirg the most easily accomplished
on account of the natural tendency of
the water TO take that route.
The interest of the people of the valley
of Red River demands and will be satisf.
ed with nothing less than the unobstruct-
| ed navigation of Red River. Their
wants and necessities. the rapid growth
of its population, and the increasing
| development Of its agricultural resources
! all require it, and if the General Govern.
ment, as it in justice ought to do, will not
| contribute to the accomplishment of that
object, it will ultimately be done by those
most Immediately interested-the people
themselves. AT all events we have every
confidence in its being accomplished long
before our citizens will derive any ad-
vantages from the much talked of
Ouachi1a and Red River Plank Road
| Such temporary and inadequate re-
lief as this proposed plank road would
furnish, even if there was prospect Of
The work being mpleted-upon which
point we must acknowledge we are skep-
tical-would not satisfy them, or answer
their purposes. They desire something G
more permanent-somethin more GER
tain, than the facilities afforded by a
plank road, in prospective.
We will however, as our friend Of the
Herald desires our reasons for not advo-
eating his favorite scheme, take glance
at the subject, and state some of the reas-
ons which have induced us to be silent.
In the first place we have regarded the
investment as an Improbable one, and
| consequently could no: urge our citizens
| to invest their money in an enterprise
| that we believed would fail to make a
remunerative return. We arrived at this