Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1870-06-07
THE CANAL IMPROVEMENT.
Remarks Of Gov. FaIrchIld before the Boston
Board Of Trade.

tween Lake Champlain and the St.
Lawrence river, and between Lake
Michigan and the Mississippi river.
Hon. A. H. Rice presided.
Hon. Lucius Fairchild was then in
troduced. He would not, be said,
appear before the Board did he not
know that the question of cheap
/ transportation between the East and
/ tho West was OF as much interest to
the East as to the West. The plan
as proposed was not new one. 1t
was the Improvement Of the Fox
and Wisconsin rivers. The Wiscon-
sin river, he said, empties into the
Mississippi at Prairie du Chen from
Prairie du il Chen passes northeast
| erly, whore now is situated Portage
City, a distance of 118 miles, and
then comes to the northwest the
Fox river empties into Lake Mich
gan at Green Bay from thence it
passes southwesterly until it comes
within mile and half of the Wis
consin river, when it takes a north
erly direction. Thus nature has al
most completed this water route be-
tween the NJ ssissippi river and the
lake. The Fox river is already
navigable up to Portage City. Some
years ago it was put into the possess
sion OF private corporation, the
Green Bay and Mississippi Canal
Company that corporation owns
the franchise Of the river. 1t is now
used by boats drawing from five to
eight feet of water up to the city of
Portage. 1t is proposed that the
Government of the United States
shall take this company out of the
way by giving to it sum which
may be found in justice due for it's
rights and franchises. The length of
river way now navigable is one hun
dred and sixty miles the length of
the improvement by widening and
deepening of the Wisconsin would be
one hundred and eighteen miles.
The width Of the canal is proposed
to be eighty feet at the top and sew
enty at the bottom, with locks one
hundred and sixty by thirty feet.
This will connect Lake Michigan
with the Mississippi by canal and
and river way capable Of accommo-
dating steamers and barges. The
cost Of the canal from Prairie du
Chen to Portage City will be about
s4,0O0,00O. TO put the Upper Fox
in condition to give four feet at low
water, will cost about $500, 900 thus
the whole cost Of the water route be-
tween Prairie du Chen and Green
Bay, connecting the Mississippi with
Lake Michigan, will be $4,000
To that sum must be added the sum
which may be found in Justice TO be
due the Green Bay and Mississippi
Canal Company. The highest esti-
mate on this item had been 5000, 600.
This company is perfectly willing
to take any just sum. The question
has been asked why the Government
OF the United States should take
charge Of this work. 1t was because
it was as purely national work as
any in the country. 1t would con-
meet more than three quarters of the
nGvigable waters Of the Union. 1t
was not desired that the State of
Wisconsin should own this route. 1t
was desired that it should be free
water route the State of Wisconsin
did not want the right to fix the tolls
for freight. The Northwestern
States were no more interested in the
matter of cheap transportation than
the State Of Massachusetts,, and.those
OF Ohio, or New York, or Vermont.
The argument in favor of the canal
was the fact that the receipts and
costs of transportation by rail were
each about three times as great as by
canal, and about eight times as great
as by river. The plan now before
| Congress was not 70 ask it for an APP
propfIStior, but 10 take The first
stop TO ii q out how much it would
cost TO take the Green Bay and Mis-
sissippi Canal Company out of the
way Gov. Fairchild believed that
the bill would pass, and when that
should be done the people of the
West, and he hoped the people of
the East, would all 60 to Congress
and ask it to invest $4,000 in
the completion of this water route !;
TO loan il to the people for term
not exceeding five years. This con-
nection between the Mississippi and
Lake Michigan would have given the
people upon their crops for the last
three years a saving of not less than
SIS, 100000.
On motion of ex-Mayor Lincoln,
a vote of thanks was rendered Gov
Fairchild for his statements, and the
following resolution passed by the
Board
RESOLVED, Tha, The Boston Board of Trade
has heard with pleasure the statement Of Gov
Fairchild Of Wisconsin, in reference 10 con-
Meeting the waters of the Mississippi with
Lake Michigan by the improvement of the
Fox and Wisconsin rivers, and il hereby ex-
presses its hearty sympathy in this and every
other measure by which it is proposed to
cheaper and 10 increase the means of commu-
nicatlon between the Northwestern and the
Atlantic States.