Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1872-08-07
BETWEEN THE LAKES
AND THE MISSISSIPPI.
sin River Roy1tc-Compara Eff
cheney with the Eric. Cana1-A Work
of Great National Imp rta nce.

PracticabiIity of the Fox and WiscOn-
sin River Rosrtc-Compurati tive Eff
cheney with the Erie. Canal-A Work
of Great National Imp rance.
From the Oshkosh Times.
The great Importance of the Fox
and Wisconsin River Route, as link
in the claim of water communication
between the great lakes and the Mis-
sissippi river cannot be over estimated
Tt Will be to Wisconsin, and the els
Mississippi, what the Erie canal has
been to New York. Under the touch
of improvement its capacity for public
service will greatly exceed the palmiest
days of Clinton's ditch.'' It Dos
sesses all the elements of an ADEQUATE
inter-water communication for. many
decades to come, the adverse g opin-
ions " of croakers out of its range, not
withstanding. a
The Wisconsin river, so long feared
from it's treacherous sand bars, and
truant channel, is no longer barrier
to tie hopes of those whose interests
it is proved capable of serving.
Capt John Nader, under Col. Hons
ton (both practical and skillful- engi-
neers) has so far brought the t1lreid
Wisconsin into the family of steam
bearing rivers, that surprise takes the
place of doubt, and no longer a cues
ton exists as to the feasibility of max
ing the Wisconsin navigabIe stream
at the lowest stages of water. a-.
! The wing dams put in last wear. in
stead of yielding before the floods and
sands, as predicted by enemies of the
improvement, have not been injured
in the least by ice gorges or spring
freshets, and fair channel is assured
from Portage to the Mississippi.
The steamer Winneconne, boat well
known in Oshkosh, drawing three feet
three inches of water, will be able to
pass from Lone Rock to the mouth q
the river. in the very lowest summer
stage of water, this season. Also, that
the boat now at work near Portage, will
be able at the same time to reach Lone
Rock from Portage, SO that our people
need not be surprised if, during the
present year, (and the work is not vet
completed we have reliable channel
of three feet of water in the Wisconsin
River, during the dryest season, from
Portage to the mouth. ,..t ... ua
With three feet water land it is now
estimated that half million of dollars
will give good fve feet under our sys
tenn of navigation, and with our class
of boats, the channel hence to the
Mississippi will be as efficient, in q cjm
mercial point of view, when we take
into account the carrying power of oul
boats, as the Erie canal, with six fee
of water. aaa e-.
The movement on the Erie Canal is
but one-and- a-half miles per hour
while our river movement, including
Lockage, is over sic miles per hour.
There are ~ locks on the Erie Canal
while between Green Bay and Prairie
du Chen, there are but %.
The whole distance from Green Bay
to the Mississippi is 275 miles, while
the Erie Canal is $50 miles long.
So, that it will take but As hours tC
make the trip from Green Bay tc
Prairie du CHEN, whereas it takes %;
hours to pass a boat from Buffalo tc
Albany, or little over five times as
long as it does from Green Bay to the
mouth of the Wisconsin
And, besides, though the present
style of our boats are of less capacity
than the locks will warrant, they vii
carry 800 tons, while 200 tons is the
maximum of the Erie Canal.
Our locks are 35x160 The Erie locks
are 17S110, giving ours nearly double
the capacity.
The great point of efficiency in cana
navigation is to have plenty of water al
the summit level, to supply the waste
of lockage. At our summit level We
have the Wisconsin River, with a vol
ume of water twenty times greater thar
is needed for all lockage purposes
The summit level of the Erie Canal
is the long 55 miles level, between
Syracuse and Utica, which, for thu
greater part of the way, is nearly TWEEN
ty feet above the level of the surround
ing country. .aI
There are to that level ten feeders
which cost the State of New York $11,
900, 900, or about twenty-five times thu
entire cost of procuring five fee
channel to the Mississippi.