The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1867-02-20

BRIDGES AND NANlGATiOh. 40 So'.f
is the life of trade, the seller for whose pro-
ducts there are two earnest and competent
bidders will be apt to be prohted by ms iucAY
situation. Iowa and Keokuk should pront
by the bids that railroads and steamooA1s
make for the privilege of being our carriers
We wan, railroad and water travel. The o.
I,ouis Democrat has this article on navigation
and bridge question We copy it from the
facts and figures it gives as showing the value
Of our river to trade. The bridge question
is not up for discussion:
Is there any plausible cause, save wish 70
nerfect their communications, that pTompted
nine railroads at ST. Louis, Quincy, keoknk,
Burlington. Savanna, Dubuque, Prairie du
Chen. Winona and Hastings to urgently
crave bridge charters? We can give at ieas!
one plausible cause, which, II not vel
founded. will prove that IT - the oirect III
terest Of railroads east of Chicago to hamper
and obstruct by all possible means the free
and unobstructed navigation OF the Missis1
sippi.
TO northern railroads tending east, enricning
them beyond all precedent. Commerce on
Of the rebellion, the navigation interest made
efforts to regain and enlarge their share Of
transportation. Necessity, the mother OF IN
vention. drove them to action; apathy VA
shnken from its slumber; it was evident tha{
\ continuous water route must, II undef
proper management, be infinitely the cheap
eat. These facts became evident: That elet
waiting grain in bulk was much cheaper thaf
the primitive mode Of handling it in sacks OF
the shoulders of men whose labor could be
nut to infinitely better pursuits that handling
| Il in sacks by wastage, deterioration OF SACKS,
| and labor involved cost net less on the av-
| erage than twelve cents per bushei, ~ adds
| ton to dearer carriage. The immense coai
trade of Pittsburg proved another great facJ;
| That a tow boat with barges on an uno4
strncted river could take cargo OF froh
| 225, 600 to AZ 600 bushels OF grain IN ouK
| at one and the same trip. with consumption
| OF from 500 to 900 bushels of coal per diem,
| carried in one of the barges of her deet-tbe
whole manned by twenty to twenty-five hands
all told. That bulk grain can becarried from
ST. Paul to New Orleans for seven cents per
bushel with the river unobstructed, and from
| 81, Paul 70 New York for abouttuenty cents.
| Mark, reader, this is not information of tP.
| day the sum OF it was published December
| 18th, 1865, and was publicly discussed Long
before. Let any Of the railroad agents pr
superintendents demonstrate the rates At
/ which bulk wheat can be carried from ST.
Paul, Wnona, Cassville, Dubuque, Musca-
tine and keithsburg to New York by lake,
&c. and then by through rail route, that the
public may be fully enlightened, and the
value OF the product Of their farms made
known to agricuiturists. We want figures
and facts, not gratultons assertions.
h.
| Both modes should beimproved to their high
est limit of perfection, yet neither be per
mltted to unnecessarily impair the public
usefulness of the other. So far as the rail
roads west of and those between the Missis-
| ippi and the lakes are concerned, the local
| rates Of bulky freight may be made to yield
greater per centage by working to the river
| than by sharing with the combination Of
| routes tending east.
The tables compiled from the public statis
| tics of commerce, prepared for the river con-
vention, will show that seventy seven per
cent OF grain arrives at Chicago by rail, and
| but twenty three per cent. by water; but in
| leaving that city but nine per cent. is trans
ported by rail- whilst ninety>one per cent.
| departs thence by water. We must bear in
| mind that the lakes are closed. say four
months out of the twelve, and again that OF
| the forty eight million and a half bushels of
grain received at Chicago, about fifteen mil
| lion bushels came from the Mississippi river.
| The fact that our Mississippi, when i'm
proved, affords infinitely cheaper carriage
| for the products of the agriculturist, necessi-
tates the preservation of the free and unob
structed navigation of that noble stream, es
pecially as bridges need not necessarily be
| obstructive.
The navigation interest pointedly and en-
phaticalIy deny any charge Of being opposed
to unobsiructive bridges, such as have been
and cah again be constructed, and maintain
that bridges unobstructive in their features,
and serving fully all legitimate purposes
are now in successful operation but all
bridges should be forced to fulfill euch con
dtions.
The sole aim of railroads is to reach water
| Carnage on the lakes. Block our navigation
here, and our trade is driven north, almost
wholly taken from US, to the no small detr.
ment of the whole agricultural community
north and west of this point, as well as of
ourselves. a suicidal policy! We are la.
boring to reduce freights from st. Paul and
Dubuque 10 Atlantic ports, more than one
half. Railroad partisans are striving to so
hamper the river navigation that they virtu-
ally will have monopoly, TO form such COM
binations that the price of carriage will be
that which they choose to impose. Is the
public willing to wholly rely on their dictum
as to what is the just and equitable rate Of
carriagef
/ is Ill not the solemn duty of the public and
their servants-the legislators-to keep both
routes open TO their fullest capacity-river
and rail--to enforce such conditions as will
Insure the least possible injury to either party,
and that without regard to their want Of
means, and at least to enforce the conditions
acquiesced in by bridge projectors and owners
/ ~, tho 0h,o7