The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1871-09-07
Hoard OF Trsde---Cheap Transportation
81 from the " est.

from the W est. %
| special meeting of the Board of Trade wa
| held yesterday forenoon to enable Colonel i
A. Thomas of Dubuque. Iowa, to present t.
the merchants of Portland the subject of chea,
transportation from the West. Mr.. Woodbur,
s. Dana, the President, called the meeting t,
order, stated the object OF the meeting, ane
introduced the speaker.
Col. Thomas said he was not the agent of an,
organization, but came to present as an indi
vidual the question of cheap transportation
between the West and the East The grain
| growing States of the West, with Is OOO OO(
people, furnishes nearly all the grain of the
country and two-thirds of the beef and pork
| consumed in the world. Notwithstanding a
vast trade which had grown up between the
West and Brazil, it was inadequate to carry
| away the surplus products of the West, and
last year the State of Iowa had an excess of 80,
100000 bushels of grains and other products in
ike proportion. Wheat was fed to cattle and
horses because no market could be found for
ID. The West is dependent upon the railway
combination for way to market The North
ern Pacific Railroad is opening up the finest
grain-growing region in the world-now the
abode of wild animals. Nine-tenths of the
emigrants who go to the West are farmers,
who are constantly adding to the products of
the country. Though adding to the popula-
ton, the West is not gaining in wealth, because
there is no home market for their crops. Eng
land demands 100000 bushels of wheat per
annum more than is produced on her own
SOIL The Baltic now supplies the defcieLcy;
why may we not do it. Cheap transportation
between the West and East win enable us to
do this. The people of the West is a unit on
this subject Routes to the great lakes have
been opened, but they do not furnish the re-
CURED facilities and we propose to abandon
them and open route to the Atlantic via the
foot of Lake Erie. The great difficulty is at
Niagara. If government will build the ship
canal then the rest can be done by private capi-
tai because it will offer the best-paying invest
ment ever offered to the people. A convention
at Detroit has been recommended sometime in
November in which the Governors of the sew
eral States and members of Congress will take
apart. New York is urging the expansion Of
the Erie Canal for this purpose, but it can new
er supply the demand for transportation. The
opening of the proposed water route will re-
lieve the West from the exactions of middle
men in New York, in the purchase of the
manufacture of New England, and at the same
time furnish New England with provisions at
lower rate. The West is fighting mad and de-
termined to open this water route. oe3.g,.Tl
Collector Murphy showed that the proposed
route would not be very expensive, inasmuch
as the general government appropriates money
for clearing out rivers, removing snags from
the Mississippi and Tor harbor Improvement
from which not SO much benefit comes to the
country as would accrue from the Niagara
Canal, and the Caughnawaga from the St
Lawrence to Lake Champlain. When vessels
come into Lake Champlain as they will come
when the route is opened, there must be
transhipment. For many months in the year
We can bring freight from there to Port
land cheaper than it could be carried to any
other place.
hon. John, B. Brown thought the proposed
route would greatly increase the manufactures
of New England inasmuch as it would re-
duc3 the price of provisions and therefore re-
duce' the price of labor, but suggested that
the proposed convention be delayed until the
meeting of the National Board of Trade
L. G.. Hersey, Esq, said the business OF
Portland was suffering greatly from the fact
that we SO much depend ON railroads for our
transportation. In order to prosper we must
have more water communications.
p Collector Washburn offered the following
resolutions which were unanimously adopted |
Resolued, That this Board renew the expires.
sion OF It's sense of the vast Importance to the
agricultural, manufacturing, and CONNER.
cal interests of this country of shir canal |
OF large capacity, connecting Lake Erie and
the lakes and waters above and beyond it
with Lakes Ontario and Champlain, that in
It's judgment it is alike the interest and the
duty OF the national government to take
measures for the early construction of such
work SO tar as it lies within its Jurisdiction
and that it learns with pleasure of the pro. |
posed convention to be held in October or
November next for the consideration of this |
subject, and that it will be represented there
in.
RESOLVED, That the Board approves of the |
plan that has been suggested for calling this |
Convention by the Governors of the Western |
States and recommends that its deliberations /
be confined to the subject above named.
ReSOtUed, That the thanks of this meeting |
are due aud are hereby rendered to Colonel |
Thomas for his able and interesting remarks
upon or,ojooto of suUh importance to our own
city and state. /
The meeting then adjourned.