The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1873-01-27
WAsHINGT0S, JANUARY 90. 1873.

!
Tue first effort in bchaii Of the great Wa
tcr-iincs which are 10 connect the .Iissi>-
sippi river with the Atlantic ocean, and 10
which the attention Of the country has been
80 prominently called by the President in
his late annual message. was made some DAYS
since on the floor Of the House of Repre-
sentntvcs by the Hon. Dudley VI. Dubosr.
representing the Augusta district Of Georgia,
on what is known rs the Atlantic and Great
Western canal, connecting the Mississippi
system of waters with the Atlantic ocean
through the States Of Georgia and Alabama.
In presenting this enterprise General Du-
bose argued that The constitutional power Of
the General Government TO aid such works
"was full ard compete" He said:
at seems to ne if within the wholcrangc
Of powers, expressed or implied embraced
within tho Constitution, there be one which,
by uniform line Of preccdents, stretching
through long series Of years, had received
the deliberate and solemn sanction of the
Government, that one is the power to make
appropriations to great public works Of this
description"
As early as 1900 he showed that Mr. Madi-
sou, during his administration, sanctioned 4
direct appropriation from the Treasury to
construct a canal through Lake P0nchartrair
to the Gulf of Mexico.
Well may this gallant Gcor2ian, though
educated politically at the feet of those Ga
maliels Of States rights Alexander Stephens
and Robert Toombs, consent to plant him
self OH that constitutional construction in r.
spect TO this subject which received the en-
phatic sanction OF james Madison.
Well may be be content to stand on this
itb hin, yr,bo tvapfp-onn ponr, m
fore, in the convention which framed TIE
Federal Constitution, had been the most
prominent advocate for the surrender Of this
great commercial power of the States to the
Federal Government, and who knew, per-
haps, at that day, more Of the extent Of the
porer and the purposes Of the trainers OF
that instrument than any other man OF lis
period.
But the peculiar significance Of General
Dubosc's speech is that Georgia, whose po-
litical position heretofore has not been re-
garded friendly TO such works by the Fedc-
raj Government, has thus broken ground on
this the most important subject which has or
can engage the attention OF Congrcss-yiz +,
the connection Of this great inland system 0.
waters, happily termed by Mr.. Calhoun the
Mediterranean OF America, with the Atlantic
TO General Dubose will attach the credit Of
being among the first, if not the first, who s
attempted 10 chain the representative power
of this great Empire State OF the South to
the magnificent schemes of Interstate con.
nections by continuous water-lines, which
are now demanded in the interests of COM
mcrce, the wants of the great West, and the
general welfare OF q common country.
hn l,St ty-fjy n
tory has been characterized as the iron age
by reason Of the demand for railroads, the
next twenty-five will be equally character
lied rs the water age OF the country.
There is now no want which is so griey-
ously felt in the twelve great grain-pro-
ducing States Of the West and Northwest as
cheap transportation for their vast cereal
productions to the seaboard; and it is
conceded fact that there Is annually lost to
the farmers Of the West for The want Of
cheap water transportation during the en-
tire year for these grain crops an amount
which would be more than necessary TO
build the three most prominent water-iines
now before Congress-yiz., The James
River and kanawha canal, the Atlantic and
Mississippi, and Niagara ship-canal.
General Dubose proceeds to trace the Geor.
ga work as follows: Beginning at the mouth
of the Ohio, up that river to the Tennessee,
passing Muscle shcal., to Short creek, two
and half miles below Guntersyile, Ala.
bana; from Short creek by canal and slack
water navigation across Sand mountain, and
thence down the valley Of Weiss creek to its
junction with the Coosa river two and half
miles below Gadsden mp the Coosa to Rome,
Ca; from Rome by canal and siaek-water
navigation up the valley OF Etewah and Lit.
tie rivers, across the Chattahoocbee plateau,
down the Yellow and Ocmulgee rivers to
Macon thence down the Ocmulgee to Alta
lnaha; thence to ocean-total, 1,333 miles;
] ,oSS being open navigation and 900 by
slack-WateF and canal. 10
By this route, General Dubose contends,
the Vest possessing $1,000 miles Of inland