, 1874-12-05
THE KANhWU a CANAL FOLLY.

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THE KANAWH a CANAL FOLLY.
The Richmond Cheap Transportation Con-
yontion hna shown readiness to spend the
money mud pledge the credit Of the nation
which Congress-, in tho pal1niest days of
subsidy -legislntion, hna never nppsonched.
1t Illus adopted, apparently by n bit Of sharp
parliamentary practice, the report Of tho
Senate Committed on Inland Transportation.
This Committee WIS appointed during the
heat Of tho Grnngor excitement. 1t won't to
work with sound mud fury, aud recommended
the digging OF every possible md impossible
ditch which imaginary national interests or
local greed could demand. If thoir scheme,
with its estimated expenditure Of $3oo, ,o0o,-
600 to 5000, ,000,000, wero ever carried ont,
the average inhabitant would lnvo moro
cana1s to the right aud tho left aud before
aud behind than the nix hundred at Balak-
lava had cannon. The prepostorous report
foil fiat. Now the Richmond Convention has
adopted this stllboln child and is trying to
breathe tho breath Of life into it. The rem
son for this is plnin. Tho Convention is
controlled by tho Virginiu delegates. a
component part Of tllo omnibus scheme it has
Endorsed is the completion of the James River
j. Knnnwha Canal. This ditch is now dug
from the James to point in tho mountains.
Virginia, speaking through tho Richmond
Convention, asks tho National Government to
enlarge the part already dug and dig another
part through ono or two hundred miles Of
mountains to tho Kanawla, including enor-
nous mountain tunnels. Then she would
like 10 hayo that stream locked, damned, aud
decponed from the mountains to tho Ohio
River. When all this has been douo, at M
estimated cost Of 500, 100000 aud n real
cost Of twice that amount, tho work will still
be only begun. Tho Ohio River is "flcldo
MS woman To-day it would float the
Great Eastern and tomorrow tho mythical
Missouri steamboat, which can run OH heavy
dew, would run aground in its sand-bars. It
is idle to spend millions Of money in locks
and dan,s for such stream. Tho first food
would pour down such resistless torrent of
water as would deposit every dam aud lock
on sand-bars butween Cairo mud New
man must perforco respect. When size
has thrown a triple range of moun-
taina ncross the route Of proposed
canal, and when sho makes river alternately
u roaring torrent and a moantloring brook,
tho best possible advice to persons about to
dig tlousand-lnilo ditch by mountain mud
river is-Don't The case would DO somo-
what different if tho projectors proposed to
uso their own money, but they do not. They
wish to tax every man, woman, and child in
this country for II century or two, md pour
the money thus wrung from the nation into
hole in tito ground. Gen. 1mboden, of
Richmond, said in tho Convention Thursday,
that, If ho were in Congress, llo would vote
for an appropriation Of S20o,000,00o for
ditch-digging. The party TINT votes such m
appropriation need mover trouble itself to run
any candidates thereafter, except in tho local
tiles whore the money is spent. Politicians
neod to understand, with tho greatest dis
tinctncss, that the pooplo pay too many taxes
already. There is limit to all things, saya
the greed Of tax-eators Digging tho canals
demanded by the Richmond Conyon-
ton would be parallel folly to that
Of the Car who Lad railroad constructed on
I'M absolute air-lino from st. Petersburg to
Moscow. Ho argued that tie best way to 60
from one place to another must bo the short
est way, and he therefore hnd his road 20
built that il cost twice w1nt it should, and
left tho towns it slonld hayo touched miles
away to tho right aud left. The mild maniacs
/ of Kich1noud draw q straight line from that
city to tho Olio, md propose to chango the
H.. :..4~ 81 Tou+1,u;+t,
tho A1leghnnieH, they reply thnt money will
| Lowell them. And so, indeed, it would, bui
| they cannot got it. II ono sketch the rea
| state of tllo Ohio River, they Hllut their cars
Even money, though produced by the sale Of
| tho prettiest bonds or the greenest legnl
| touderu III the world, will not mako t.ai
| clnngcablo stream a nntiona1 waterway.
Perpetual motion will be IN old invention
before tho James River g. Kanawha Cana
fnltils tho hope so frooly expressed
! ot 1iiohmoutl. Tie modern Methusaleh
whose other name is Il. III. T.. Huntor
Inns signalizcd himself during the Convention
by delivering III elaborate argument to tht
oifoct that tho Federal Government had III
limited powers to dis waterways, but non'
to build railways, betwoon tho States. Thi
seems to bo q fair Hamplo Of tho iltolligeno,
displayed by tho delegates. Tho representa-
tiyos OF tho Northwest, although outnum
| lerod aud outyotod, have, however, 1natlo
good record. Thcy sccurod tho defoat OF Ton
| Scott's subsidy schemes by II heavy majority
mud tlloy have fought manfully for tho tw'
informal improvements most urgently neode.
,,ow,-tho completion Of work on tho 1llinoi
River md Tho execution Of tho Rock 1slau
t. Hennepiu canal.
Tho ollicf trouble with the Convention la
been that it lsaa represented Virginia an
Richmond muoh more than It haa the milton
The people want oheap transportation for til
aakc Of tho whole country, not Of any singl
city, 4 convention like this ouly harlns til
oa,lao 1t assumes to champion BY allowing X
oal interests to drive 1t into making wildly Q,
travagent demands, Tho noxt sosgson Is to
hold In Chirago, We trust TINT the proooot