, 1869-01-26

| YUlcs huu IL uutuCG u ueteht tuC oQpIUs
priations necessary to begin and COM
plete this highly important State i'm
proycmcnt.
TIE ML1Ho1s RIVER 1MpRovEMEHr,
scme OF those members OF the Lects-
lature who oppose an appropriation for
improving the navigation OF the Illinois
RIVER broadly assert that large sections
Of the State have long been gricvously
taxed to construct the Illinois Canal, and
therefore they are opposed to taking any
more OF their constituents money, either
10 enlarge that canal or render the Illinois
River naVigable fur eight months In The
year instesd ct eight weeks, because they
say their counties have never derived auY
cirect or palpable benefit therefrom.
These honorable gentlemen are yery
graveiY mistaken in1hcir premises. Their
constituents haze nerer paid cent Of tares
for the construction Of the Iuinvis Canal,
s we shal! here demonstrate. The taxes
which the people Of Illinois have been
paying on the State debt for the pas.
twenty years, have every dime gone to
pay Tor The magnificent castles in tue air
attempted to be built in Central aud
Southern Illinois between 1926 and 1843
not one OF which was ever completed,
ard if they had been bnilt would to-day
be utterly worthless. It was en- this vast
system Of aboriivc, wild, moonshine
PROTECTS that the State sunk and SQUAD
dcrtd some twenty or more millions OF
itr11s re n oC1H 4 fnr rY7t,S
turc she has not today dollars worth
Of value 10 exhibit. To pay that deb. is
where the TWO mill tax has gone these
long years, and is still going, and will 20
Tor years to come.
We shall now present the readers Of
TUE TnDrSE with some statistical iacts
which may be an eye-opeucr to some
fault-hnding people in SECTIONS Of the
State at a distance from tue Illinois
Canal.
From the Official report for 1867 OF tue
Trustees Of the Illinois Canal, to lle
holders Of registered bonds, which are
the lien hopds on the canal, we take the
following tacts and figures:
Mr.. Gooding's original esltunte for
canal frttn Uhtcngo 10 LsShtIe, Of sfxty
fcet width IN tho surfnco md Six ..ut
dtrll' Of wntcr for navigation, with deep
tut through tho Bummlt lint wpu!d fcu1
The cntlul frnm Thu Chicago 1llYcr direct,
amounted to ~, ,Gb l.3J7.
tttw t,dnA ny thu cbfnan'4a 4alnhrfe, Hhdrf
II" Hrs a In's'. fnf 1hs construction 1t
N. lid j, /" G.4.i tfasian.' ast* '''"'''
lheht ~ ], Itp rJI
o'sleosl Of eans, A.. is,;,: ;;;;.''' 't7''s's''
| lIsr'ip.a fam tsI.s " l4na. usti lat& ia.
lutd ny ths un,hd haata. t!oyrfA.
@sipis trim ealsl ioii. siaes
les. : r.. nsrs Il ma,n,enaacs,,'
Ettairs. halasles, &c.......,. l 1871
Totsl reeep.s from lauds and lots. ..... .ta7latal
A., .o,. .,.c-c $sotolo
add tolls OF !so7-s...................-- i67,95i
| E1cefs Of rccelpte over cost Of carai s01ye8
litlc VT MD that thu Illinois Canal has
ucvtr cost the State cent; but, on the
contrary, that i's net tolls, added to the
lands donated by Uncle Sam for the pur-
pose Of building il, have accomplished
that end, and placed In the Treasury
balance OF three.quartcrs of milli,n Of
do}lars. The $1,6o0,000 borrowed under
the act OF 1913, for the completion OF the
canal, has been repaid long since from
lhe proceeds of tolls aud sales of canal
ls1ds, and siz millions Of olher canal debt
besides.
| In view Ct these facts, what btcomes of
tie reck ess assertions in tile Legislature
about the awful taxes for the coastruc-
tIon Ct the Illinois Canal for the benefit
Of Chicago? The truth is, Chicago has
laid very large sum in taxes toward
lilu:dsting The principal and interest Of
The twcr.y mi1'iors wasted and fooled
away in vain Efforts TO construct public
works in other portions Of the State,
which have tur5ed out to be utter
failurts.
| The present net revenue from the I'LL
nois Canal is about quarter OF a million
per snnum If that sum had been ap-
prcpriated ten years ago and had been
expended in building dam across the
illinois River, rot Tar above Peoria, to
10 overcome shallow place or rapils, 1t
would make the river navIgable from
Peoria to l. sSalle to the mouth Of the
canal, for as much Of the season as the
river is narjgable to Peoria. In other
words, this cne dam would more than
double the commerce Of the river, be-
causcft would enable steamers 10 CONF
up to LaSalie Tor four or five months
each tcuson, instead Of beng limited te
six or eight weeks, as is now the case
and there connect with The canal.
To opprse making such Improvement!
OF the rivcr navigation as will quaIrupls
the net revenue from the canA is ycry
l, olish indeed, as the canal will qu:cklj
reimburse the State, principal and inter
est, Tor such cxps nditure. Here are %:
miles Of river through the heart Of th'
Slate which can be made to furnish cigtl
TO nine months Ct navigation ior steam.
: Its drawing six feet Of water, aud 10
fleets Of canal boats and bargee, at an in
considerable expense and here is a cana
yielding only quarter million pc
annum on account Of the failure Of th
river navigation, which would pour,
rourd million year into the Stat
Treasury il few locks ant dams war
constructed on the river; and yet me
can be found in the Legislature, Of til
: dcg-in-the-manger brrcd, TO snap an
: snart at any proposition to make tn
States property productive, and to pc,
feet the great channel of water commu
nication between Lske Michigan at Chi
!, tago ard the Mississippi at S.. Louis. :,