The Superior times. [volume] (Superior, Wis.) 1870-1912, 1872-09-14
THE NEW YORK BOURBONS AND THE
GRAIN TRADE

THE NEW fOEh bOOAOONO L1AfO HE
GRAIN TRADE
It has not escaped public attention that
the western grain trade has made the Saint
Lawrence river its ocean outlet during the
past two seasons. New York journals that
made high carnival over the possibility of
such thing two years ago, are now hum
bly, begging on bended knees of the legisla-
tire and merchant princes of New York,
to bring back their commercial supremacy,
by making the Erie canal free, building
new railways, and doing what not, within
the limits and boundaries of the State of
New York. But the Metropolitan press
that can see SO far into the African milestone,
or do so we'll in the statistics Of city manu-
factures or of Saratoga fashion, seem una
BILE to peer through the commercial ladder,
or to read the final summing up of the
waning grain statistics in the ledgers around
New Y ork harbor.
We have been now for about two years,
in our humble way, trying to drill the plain
truth into the Uranium editorial of Gotham,
that New York city has hitherto had mo-
nopoly of American expectation, not because
the natural channels of trade centered
there, but because the immense capital
there invested, reached out in hundred di-
rections to control trade at its fountain
head, and direct its streams to the Hudson
and to New York bay.
hc lopo &c Cbiooro Datroit aod Tolo6n n
merchants were but commission agents for
New York shippers, and mere telers of
New York capital, they could only obey
their masters and ship grain to New York
city The great St. Lawrence was then as
now, the natural channel of western trade !;
but the railways, elevators, lake propellers
and ocean lines were owned in New York
city, and forced trade to and through that
port.
But things have wonderfully changed in
the last decade. The merchants of Chica-
90, Milwaukee, Detroit and Toledo have
become mllionaires have bought or built
their own railways, elevators, lake propel
Ter and ocean steamship lines, and now they
feel at perfect liberty to use the cheapest
route TO the sea, and that they will assur-
edly do, whether it makes or breaks, GER
tain emporiums on the Atlantic coast.
The New York papers seem to appre-
hend but part of the truth. They under
stand indeed that Western trade is now
independent enough in capital and power,
to seek the cheapest channel to the ocean,
but they do not seem to apprehend truth
that ought to be equally evident, namely
that the cheapest channel never will be nor
can be through the State of New Y ork. 1t
is impossible in the nature of things that
such costly artificial routes as canals and
railways, can compete with such broad,
cheap highway as the St Lawrence river,
especially when the cheaper route is also
the more direct, as is certainly the case
here.
A late collection of facts and figures in
tho ST. Paul Press well sots forth the hope
lessness of any attempt to regain this trade
by mere cheapening of New York routes.
Seventeen steam propellers now ply con-
staatly between Chicago and Montreal,
each making the round trip in less than
three weeks at the outside. These propel-
lers carry 1000 or 700 bushels of grain
each, and discharge at Montreal directly
into ocean steamers. This route saves at
least the cost and time Of one transfer, be-
tween Lake Michigan and the ocean, be-
sides enabling shippers to unload cargo
at Liverpool as soon as by the other route,
a cargo could be ansferring at New York
OF course the St Lawrence route is much
the cheaper, as things are now. That it
will continue to be, is plain enough from a
consideration of the case.
Suppose the Erie canal be enlarged.
How much easier to enlarge the short Can
adian canals. And this enlargement In fact
is already proposed, and will when com
pleted permit the passage OF vessels having
three times the carrying capacity OF the
propellers now on that route. These may
be ocean going sailing vessels if need be,
carrying grain from Chicago to Liverpool
without a transfer, and at such rates as to
defy competition. 1t is in vain that New
York will hope to allure Western trade by
trying to cheaper the transit to the ocean,
But if Western capital is now too great to
be forced to trade through New York, and
too wise to be coaxed away from cheaper
route to more costly one, 1t follows that