Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1865-02-09

might put them completely. beyond the
power Of the united Kingdoms of Great
Britain and ireland, coupled with all the
forces of the proyinces2
The bill proposes to construct canal Of
sufficient dimensions, with sufficient locks
and sufficient depth Of water to pass gun
| boats from Lske Ontario into Lake Erie,
or from Lake Erie into Lake Ontario.
And the question at once comes back to
us, elli bono for what good would you
make canal to connect Lake Erie and
Lake Ontario, unless the project be extend
ed still further2 for how will you get gun
boats upon either of those lakes unless
you connect with the eastern metropolis
by means of an enlargement of the New
York cansl2
MIR. Speaker, the major part of the COM
mercial marine upon Lakes Erie, Huron,
Michigan, and Superior belong to citizens
of the United States. In this commercial
marine we have fleets of steam propellers
strongly built and suitable for gunboats
with little expense in giving to them an
armament. Not so with Ontario On Lake
Ontario, the commercial marine belongs
mainly to the Cansdas; and in the event
Of war we have no vessels there suitable
to be converted into vessels of war. We
have the material on Lake Erie. We
could, with very little trouble snd expense,
convert our freight Iropellers into gun
boats, and those gunboats could be trans
ported through the Niagara canal to the
aid of the population residing upon Lake
Ontario and the st. Lawrence, If need be,
without further ship-cansls toward the
Esst.
But, Mr.. Speaker, it is mainly in a COM
mercial point of view that I should like to
call the attention Of the House to this
great subject. 1t is commonly thought
that the young West has grown up and at
tsined the dimensions of manhood; that
she has arrived at point beyond which
she will not speedily go, and that the ca
mails and railroads now constructed through
the State of New York will take off the
supersbundant produce of that country
with all manner of eRsA--
I want the members of the House who
are not Immediately conversant with the
growth and greatness of our northwestern
States to understand that they, at this
time, grow five hundred million bushels Of
wheat and corn. I wish them to under
stand that one hundred million bushels are
annually transmitted, already through the
canals and railroads of New York to New
England and New York, in a great meas
ure TO be consumed there, but in part, and
that not considerable, for export to foreign
countries.
I want the House to understand further,
that although the northwestern States, Of
this time, yield this immense amount OF
wheat and corn, their produeEEzni is increas-
ing at the rate Of twenty per cent. year,
and already the thoroughfares of transpor-
tstion from the West to the East are crowd
ed to suffocation, so that unless we have
additional means of transportation afforded
US from some other quarter, the necessary
result must be that our people in the West
must cease producing, or they must suffer
their surplus produce to perish in their
storehouses. We now have q ship nRvigs-
tion for our agricultural produce from Chi
cago to Buffalo, near the foot of lake Erie
We have further nsvigsble ship COM
municstion toward the tide-water through
the permission of Great Britain, by the way
of the Weiland canal, for three hundred
miles moro to Ogdensburg, onthe st, Lawr-
ence.
Now, I wish it remarked that the op-
ponents Of the abrogation of the reciproci-
ty treaty threw it into our teeth more than
once that our trade between the West and
East through the WeIland canal would be
interrupted if we provoked Great Britain
to unfriendly feeling. Sir, have too much
pride, as an American citizen, TO be subject
ed to the caprice Of Great Britain or any
other nation. Great Britain has made her
canal around the falls of Niagara, and the
United States have the same opportunity to
make canal around the cataract upon her
own territory, through which she could
transmit her produce and merchandise,
without saying to Great Britain at any time,
HBy your favor"
But what will be the effect Of this in.
crease in the nsvigsble ship communication
between producing States of the West and
consuming States of the Esst2 1t is an
admitted fact, believe, that it costs Just
twice as much to transmit ton of produce
over canal as it does on shipboard over the
waters of the wide lakes, exclusive of tolls.
1t costs much less than that, in proportion
to the price of freight, over the railroads.
And now, although l do not profess to be
well versed in matters of trade, my best in
formation tells me that every farmer in the
northwestern States who produces bushel
of wheat would be directly interested in the
making of this canal around the falls of
Niagara, as it would save at least five cents
a bushel in getting his wheat to market. If
that is the result, why should we hesitate2
1t is well known that many of our farmers
in the West absorb most of the considera-
oh hNaiT for fhaTs ha,
dustry in paying the expense of getting
their products to market
1t must, then, be matter of prime ne
cessity to attend to everything which
shall reduce that expense of transporta-
tion. 1 say, then, and state il as fact
ascertsined by that eminent engineer of
New York, Mr., Stuart, whose personal in
terest, if he has any, would be against
this proposed improvement, there would be
saving of from three to five cents per
bushel in passing the cereals of the West
to an Eastern market by way of the Nj
agara Canal, instead of sending them as
we now do through the canals and rail-
roads of New York; and, taking the
amount Of produce which has been sent
forward during the last four years as cri-
LeElOLlf bA0 uAOAo SApOAso VI h4hhAuB buls
ship-canal would be reimbursed IN four
years by this saving. In one short term
of four years the people of the Northwest
who grow this grain, would save enough
to pay the whole expense of constructing
this canal.
1 regard that proposition as impregns-
BILE; aud if so, why will the American
Congress hesitate to adopt: q measure of
such high State necessity, and why should
they hesitate to make the needed sppro-
priation for that purposs2
And here, Mr., Speaker, 1 meet the only
serious argument Of the opposition which
can be urged against this measure. 1 take
it for granted that no man in this House
will doubt the practiesbility of making
this work, or doubt the more convenient
outlet it will afford to the products of the
West. But gentlemen question the poll