The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-07-05
TIE LOUISVILLE CANAL.

From the Chicago Tribune
The Louisville and Portland Canal cost
about So, 900, 600. The United States owns
all the stock save three shares. The canal
ceased many years ago to pay interest upon
its cost. The managers, therefore, proposed
to enlarge it and improve it, with the hope
of increasing its business, and Congress was
induced to vote the entire earnings of the
canal to reimburse the cost of the enlarge
ment. A debt of 81, 900, 600 was incurred by
those engaged in the work; but the business
of the canal continued to decrease, until its
annual earnings are not more than equal
to the cost of repairs and management.
1t will require $1,200,000 to complete
the work, of which $1,000, 900 has already
been handed over by the Secretary of War
for that purpose The cities of Cincinnati
aud Louisville are clamoring to have the
Government complete the enlargement, and,
of course, pay the outstanding debt of
$1,G00,000, with several years accumulated
interest. We see that Mr.. Senator Sherman,
of Ohio, has reported in favor of taking
$250,000 of the revenue collected from ex-
cessive taxation, and sqaundering it on
this canal abortion, and that the House Com
mittee on Commerce has made similar re-
commendation. We hope there is enough in
tegrity in one or the other house to arrest
this waste of money. We do not believe that
this appropriation for this canal could get re-
it stood alone, but it is made an item in
combination of other measures equally un-
justifable, and members, are thus, for
local considerations, induced to vote
this money. The Louisville and Port
land Canal served its purpose until rail
roads carried off the once extensive
commerce of the Ohio river. Enlarging the
canal will not increase the number Of boats
on the river. The trouble is not in the di-
mensions of the canal but in the falling of
of the number of boats requiring it, No
trade is lost on account of the size of the
canal, and no enlargement of it will induce
men to build boats for which there is no
business There is a railroad bridge over the
river, connecting Kentucky and Indiana, and
that tells the whole story why the revenues
of the canal do not pay the expense OF main
tanning it.
The folly of this expenditure is shown in
the fact that Congress has already voted the
entire revenues of the canal to any person
who will improve it and enlarge it, and no
one will take them. The revenues of the
canal, when enlarged, will not pay the inter-
est on the additional expenditure; and when
it was proposed some time ago to make free
grant of the whole work TO the Board of
Trade of Louisville, there was vehement
protest from that body, and from all others
along the river, declaring that the canal was
not and never would be able to reimburse the
cost of improving it. In the face of this
candid acknowledgment Congress is now
asked to vote the money to complete the
work, and, as proprietor, assume the debt of
$1,60O,0 600 already expended and lost.
All the legislation needed is joint resolu-
tion authorizing the Secretary of War to cede
and convey to the State of Kentucky, or to
the city Of Louisville or Cincinnati, or all of
them, all the right, interest,
and property of the United
States in and to that canal, with
authority to levy and collect tolls to reim-
burse whatever sums may be expended in
keeping the same in repair, or in enlarging,
or otherwise improving, said canal If no
one will accept the canal, which cost five
million dollars, on these terms, that fact
ought to satisfy Congress that any further
expenditure of public money on the work
will be wanton waste. Our statesmen seem
to think that the utility of an expenditure is
of no concern, so long as they have the power
to add another tax to raise the means. One
of the best means to reduce taxation is to
vote down every expenditure not indispensa.
bic to meet some national necessity.