New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1873-10-10
Western C6nals.
sFrOm the New York Times Ocfofep I

| deal of influence on its final settlement
We, in New York, for example, have an
| interest common 20 all citizens of the Union
| in procuring cheap carriage to market OF
| the farmers grain As an importing and
mercantile community. We have a special
interest in procuring Tor the farmer a pay
| ing return for his labor, because, in default
OF surplus at the years end, he is likely
to contrive to do without the dry goods and
| other articles, in W nose sales we are vltaiIv
interested But the interest that touches
US most obviously, aud, therefore, most
nearly, is that OF seeing that the products
| Of the West, in finding a cheap route to
| market. find it through our own gates. The
dangerous competition of Montreal will
probably turn out to he more potent in
centive TO the improvement Of the water
routes Of this State than any consideration
based upon the public benefit of cheap and
rapid transportation, or even than the re-
Election that 1t will go hard with an i'm
portant section of our trade if the railroads
are allowed to absorb all the surplus earn
ings of the Western farmers.
The competition between New York and
Montreal as shipping ports of Western
grain has its counterpart in the competition
between Chicago and st. Louis as distrib
uting centres OF this produce, and the one
rivalry is as likely as the other to be more
etfectual than abstract considerations of
general welfarajn giving substantial relief
to the farmerbOWh Whatever route Chicago
may choose fo, sending her grain TO the
Sea, New York is clearly interested in see
ing tina: Chicago has che grain 20 dis
tribute. The proportion that goes TO ST.
Louis or Cairo is irrevocably lost to us,
while it rests mainly with ourselves to get
the lions share Of what goes to Chicago
st. Louis bids against Chicago for the
frop rtot nf tho Hro1uoo of
Southern Minnesota, Western Wisconsin,
Western Illinois and Northern Missouri.
In respect of water transportation from
tho immense and fertile district whose
boundaries we have roughly indicated, the
advantage rests at present with st. Louis,
In other words, the Mississippi presents q
natural water route, gainst which there is
no river or canal communication with Chi
cago that can compete. We assume the
Mississippi to be cheap highway for grain
transportation TO which the products OF the
States Immediately west of it will naturally
tend. If Chicago is TO prevent the wheat
and corn growing section of the Mississippi
valley from becoming more and more tribu-
tary TO her rival. she must find water routes
to divert Mississippi freights into the lakes.
1t takes but eight cents bushel to carry
corn from st. Louis to New Orleans, against
eighteen cents d bushel by water from Chi
GdSo " .NeW IOIhs auo IrdUSatla6tlC
freight 10 about seven cents greater from
New Orleans than from New York, 50 that
the two routes compare as fifteen and eight
cen cents q bushel. We're the mouth of the
Mississippi as navigable for large vessels as
the harbor OF New York, a difference against
us of sixteen and half per cent would
already have diverted much Of cur Euro
pean freigh,s to the gulf. As it is, Chicago
has only 10 make Lake Michigan as cheap
Of access to Western shippers as is the Mis-.
sissippi at st. Louis or Cairo, to bring TO
her harbor very large proportion of the
produce which now finds an cutie: south.
ward.
There are two existing water routes BY
which the waters of the lakes find their way
into the Mississippi. The one is the Fox
and Wisconsin river route, and the other is
the Illinois and Michigan canal. Both need
TO be very extensively improved TO be, com.
mercially, OF much use. The cost is not,
however. Of that very indefinite character
which characterzes some of the vast South.
ern canal schemes. Both have been care
fully surveyed by engineers of the United
States army, and the cost Of rendering them
at once cheap and accessible highways Of
traffic has been accurately ascertained. Con-
gress undertook the dredging of the Fox and
Wisconsin rivers. tho rebuilding Of the
dams and the repairing of the locks, which
have been allowed to fall into state of
neglect. The government estimate for the
work is %, 0,OO0. and after it is completed
there will be water route which can be
used by vessels of 400 tons between the Mis-
sissippi. at point near Prairie du Chier,
and Green Bay, on the western inlet of
Lake Michigan.
Three or four hundred miles south Of the
point where the Wisconsin Joins the Missis-
sippi, that great stream receives the waters
of the Illinois river. During short periods
OF high water, II is possible TO drag barges
some 230 miles mp this river to La Sale,
and thence they can be taken another
ninety seven miles along the illinois and
Michigan cana! 70 Chicago If, instead of
stopping short at La Sale, where il joins
the Illinois river, the canal aforesaid could
be continued due west from Hennepin,
little further down the river. it would reach
the Mississippi at Rock Island, after a course
of about sixty four miles. In this way the
products of Iowa, Minnesota, and Western
Illinois could be carried from the Mississippi
to the lakes over water route not more
than i60 miles long, and on which the tolls
need not exceed SIX mills per ton per mile.
The cost OF the Hennepin and Rock Island
canal scheme, which has been specially
studied by the Senate Transportation Com
mlttee N connection with the proposed i'm.
provements on its natural eastern outlet
the Erie canal--has been estimated az
IS, SOC, ,0Oo. The improvement of the Wis
consin route is now only question Of time.
and when the Illinois river is thoroughly
dredged. and the Illinois and Michigan
G anal sends out another arm toward Rock
Island, Chicago will' practically have tap
ped the traffic of the Mississippi at three
important points, and will. besides adding
20 the volume of her trade, have helped to
place the wholesome check of competition
upon the tariffs OF several Western rail.
roads.