New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1874-05-03
ALLIGATOR CITY,

ALLIGATOR CITY.
The Picayune while protesting to be
only anxious for thf success of some i'm
provement of outlet navigation, continues
to put in all interview with the practical
pilots" copied into the Eads journals as an
ind orsement of his wing dams. 1t has
also seized upon anothe! idea Of Eads. 1t
is that certain PROMINENT citizens of New
Orleans are actuated ih their advocacy of
the canal "by selfish and speculative mo-
tives," And the Pic calls on the individ-
uals referred to for "a prompt and Salts
factory refutation.
We made a similar remark when the
Governor alleged that parties connected
with the New Orleans press had been in
scribed on the list of holders Of ''the
frau dulent and tainted bonds. So We
wish to see any connection between the
metropolis of all the mosquitoes and the
ad vocacy of the canal on which it is to be
founded exploded and exposed. But
though the Picayune leaves it to be in
ferred this has has been corrupting in
fuence here, even to the extent of insinu-
ating that the engineer who surveyed the
Alligatorsburg lots has been sent by the
mere hants to advocate the canal, we have
no where seen the same paper I'M
pugn the motives of Eads and his
staff of engineers, editors and CORES
pondents. Let us grant all that is
i'm puted, and of which we know nothing;
that the ground over which the canal is
to be built was vacant and has been en-
tered and patented. The appropriation,
then, will be paid to these grantees Of the
cover nment or their assignees.
But does the Picayuue mean to say that
the Chamber Of Commerce and the insur-
ance companies, that the Legislature and
the United States board of engineers, have
been for the past forty years the holders
of the land, and that all their advocacy
of the canal then and now has been to
better the value of their own possessions?
And yet, if the intimation of interest
means anything it must intend to counter
act the advocacy of Buisson and Charles
Briggs by the alleged interest of the
mud ring
Suppose upon a Judicial investigation it
should appear that & European corpora
ton or a ring Of Eastern railroads
had engaged an adverturer to obstruct
the Mississippi outlet by wing dams
or otherwise; suppose it should be
demonstrated that the stock of this
Credit Mobilier had been distributed
among the press correspondents and en-
gineers, and even among the members Of
Congress who advocated it. Would this
invalidate the merits of the wing dam?
Not at all. The scientific proposition
would be examined, and if the government
should deem it best to destroy New Or
leans and overflow Louisiana for the ben
eft of general commerce, it would not
regard the particular advantage of the
ring which got up the wing dam plot to
do it.
The only point in this st. Louis bugaboo
is that Eads admits the ground will bear
city, where he lately swore duck would
have to belt on a life preserver.
If this ground will bear Fort st. Philip
and Fort jackson. If city can be laid
out along the canal which will bid fair to
supersede New Orleans, there can be no
doubt about the foundation for the canal
and its river locks.
There are couple of up-river reports
which we will here correct: The one
that the gulf anchorage is shifting The
soundings have not changed for century.
The other-that there is no good holding
OF harbor at the gulf port. This is con-
tradicted by photography, and, as for the
harbor, the canal is but the entrance into
the best harbor of refuge in the world
the Mississippi river.
It is very hard, almost single handed,
to correct these Misrepresentation before
Congress. Fortunately, the journals
which circulate them have very little po-
itical sredence in Congress, yet to have
our own journals publishing limitations
of corrupt motives of our own citizens,
while it has made no such objections to
their Credit Mobilier opponent, renders
our task little more difficult. Still, the
REPUBLICAN, has reason to congratulate
itself on the defeat Of the wing dams,
chiefly upon the testimony cited BY the
REpusI1cAss that the wing dams would