, 1874-12-22

1ttN A9VA ADAA10 cI 41z4Ss N[E-0 StAHtA1.
Tho look Island Union is disturbed over
the failure Of THE TngnuNE to appreciate tho
importance Of tho Rock Island II Henuepin
Canal to- Chicago. It says TINT tic onter-
prise ia Of fur greater importance TO Chicago
than to Rock Island, aud is amazed That THE
TR1uuSE does not appreciate tho fact. But
wo do regard tho canal Ms Of very great illl-
portanco to every farmer west Of the Mssis~
sippi, And to some cast Of it, inaBmueh IS it
will cheaper tho cost of transporting their
grim, whether they send it by waterway or
railway, and We nro heartily in fasor of tho
adoption Of any honorabl, and safe method
of digging the needed ditch. Our position
in tho matter hos heon wholly mis-
understood. We have opened our columns
to FREQ discussion Of tho merits
Of tho enterprise, and lanvo given caitorin1
prominence to everything that could bourged
in its favor. We have criticised it, too, be-
cause it seemed To rcquj::o criticism. Whc,lit
VIA proposed rs ono feature of IN "ounib,!s"
subsidy scheme, in com pany withsomo Of tho
most Migrant s,yiudles ever urged At Washing
ton, mud when somo Of its friends proposed
to Dip tho ditch forthwith whether 1t could
! afterwards ba filled with water or not, We
could not partako Of their enthusiasm.
Now, however, Col U7IEY assures us TINT
tho measure is to DO brought bcforo Congress
entirely Oh its own merits, in separate bill,
and in alliance with 40 other scheme what
ever. Ho Say ysthatit is proposed to dig cnnal
20 feet wide and feet deep, 65 miles long,
with gig feet Of locknge, md with Il feeder
10 miles in length, and TINT the whole cs-
penso will not exceol 81, 900 900, since nearly
tho whole work will DO simply earth excava-
tion through level country. Tho canal will
be designed for dos ting barges which will bo
towcd Oh the Mississippi BY steamboats,, and
from Rock island to Chicugo by tugs. Tho
present Congress is to DO asked for 81, ,0o0, 900
to commence the work. The Northwestern
vote III Congress is depended upon to carry
tho measure. If these hopes arc realized,
and Congress is onco committed to tho
scheme, MI annual subsidy Of Sl,o00,o0O for
three or four years is expected. Col. U11Er
assures us that not over onc-tenth Of the
wnter in the Ro'sl1 River will bo required for
tie feeder md cilna1 in The dryest season.
Il this plan III strictly realized III fact; If
the enterprise is kept out Of bud company;
if it is i,ldorsed rejected on its own merits,
--thon TIE TRIBUNE is heartily in favor Of it.
If, however, it is proposed to spend tho
money lavishly and run tho risk Of then hay
ing only dry ditch to show for it; it tho
improvement Of tho Illinois River is to bo
hindered; and, most Of all, If this scheme
is to DO pnrt md parcel Of III omnibus
bill embracing jay CooKE's Northern Pacific
swil,d1o, and Ton GcoEr's Southern Pacific
swinlle, mud HuR1Durs narrow gauge folly,
a,ld the cotton-tax knavcry, and the Southern
War-clains 'jobhcry, and tho james Iliycr
s. lsauawha Mountain Canal iMpossibility,
and tho Tennessee Mountain Canal scheme, and
any or oil the others, big nnd little, then THE
TRIBUNE will heartily oppose it, not because
il loves tito Rock Island l. Henuopin Caunl
less, but because it hates all omnibus subSi-
dos more.