New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1872-12-15
Produce and Transport.tio,
From the St. Louis RepubIiean : =


From the st. Louis Republican
tbs beginning to be generally reco.,.
and conceded that the produce of the leu leu
try, especially of the West, has on mt Gooh-
the means of transportation, The StboWh
the case, the productive energy of the 10y
cultural region becomes to that exton+ @sll-
alyzed, and the surplus of produce daol
weight. A fruitful field is little better tbaH
barren one, if the fruits can NOT raoo oI"n
profitable market In buying land for far,,, q
ing purposes, one of the first things 70 ~
looked after is the accessibility of fbo - w
to some public highway, and its nearne &C. ID
rem0teness from market more than anvtI;e W
else regulates the value of the land T',fss
principle holds good for great sections anS
States as well as small farms, DN
The government of the country. then H..
very important part to act in the de- r'ls'
opment of its agricultural resources ana
one which it has been slow to recooniza
The subject is now forcing itself unon 10
attention of our national Legislature and
there IS some prospect that decisive stems
will be taken to provide the amount al
ease of transportation which our exnanF'
ing agricultural and other productive intar
ests demand. The fact is patent that MO
ductive fields and rich mines are of l;t+io
avail to our domestic prosperity unless tbo
product of the fields and mines can find
ready and natural market. The fact il irs+
as plain that our productive capacity bos
far Out8tripped the means to move pr9droo
and make it available as thrift aud wealth
Something must shortly be done to balance
these accounts of commerce and indnstrY
and provide a just administration Of The
law of supply and demand.
The President, in his late message. urges
the early attention OF Congress to this all.
important subject, and introduces men+imn.
of contaminated and
routes to facilitate the cheap and exnedi-
tious transportation of the produce of the
Mississippi valley and the Southern States
to the sea. He also notices the feasibility
of a continuous land-lOcfled nayigat7o6
from Maine to the Gulf Of Mexico, and saws
such route along our coast would be Of
great value at all times, and of inestimable
value in case of foreign war. Nature has
provided the greater part Of this route, and
the obstacles will easily yield TO engineer
ing skill. 1t is evident that there will soon
be great activity in the direction of develop
ing means of inland transportation com
mensurate with the vital i'm Dortance of the
work, and in obedience to the command Of
necessity.
Heretofore, we have been fooling away
little money every year for the improve
ment of navigation in its natural channels,
which money was so applied as to accom-
pilSu uO pCGI1dIl6nU SOGus w . h1N0 b5sn
working around the obstacles which we
ought by this time to have overcome and
are no nearer solution of the transp0rta-
ton problem than when the improvement
of the Western rivers was commenced. In
the interest Of Eastern capitalists the
routes Of transportation have been directed
across the continent with the deliberate
intention of abolishing the natural routes.
The trans continental railroads are and
~
demand. The manufacturing interests can
maintain supreme control no longer. Agri-
culture is about to come to the front and
press its claims with power of argu-
ment and a strength of purpose which
must accomplish their logical result.
The agricultural interests of the West and
South demand an unobstructed outlet TO
sea by water channels natural and artificial,
They are contendipg for the right OF way
granted and partially provided by nature,
and they will get it. They are pressing
and the time has come when these claims
must be duly considered, or agriculture, the
very foundation of national prosperity, VIII
languish. The nation cannot afford to
permit such disaster as this would prove,
and thus it is compelled to speedily provide
means of transportation to foster and ex-
pand that department Of industry 'apVn
which its life chiefly depends.
The mouth of the Mississippi river must
be deepened and kept deep, for one thing,
or some means must be adopted to 0bTiage
the necessity for deep water. In whatever
way it iR done, the improvement must be
and substantial. The sand bars
and other natural distinctions at the mouth
Of our great river are barriers to the pros
perity and development of by far the
largest and richest portion of the continent
The Mississippi river is the natural outlet
of the Mississippi valley. It's population,
enterprise and activity demand that the
intention Of nature be carried out as tie
development of industry goes on.
Among the plans submitted for the II
progement Of navigation at the mouth Of
the Mississippi is one by Captain w p
Walker, which is regarded with favor by
those who are acquainted with it. It's PHI.
osophy is based on the difference between
The weight of air and water. 1t is a marine
camel, or lighter, and is said to be a perfect
machine for the purposes proposed. Il is
claimed for it that it will take two of the
argest ships, one on either side, and lift
mem over the shadows, and send them full
into the oceans depths. II this
marine camel will work and do the thing
'equired, there would be no need of a great
,hip canal The camel lies down in Ito
tesert OF the deep, rises up with It's ire
nendous burden of ships dashed to its sides,
md moves steadily away toward the great
narts of the worlds trade. Let us have
either great ship canal or the marine,
,amel, whichever will do the work cheap
st and best, for the time is past Tor de-