The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1875-07-03
THE CANAL.

THE CANAL.
Concerning the present extraordinary de-
} preston of business on the Illinois and Mich
.. igan canal We find the following trenchant
c article in the La Sale Press:
4 WHAT SHALL BE DoNE?-With the excep
ton of the season Of 1861, when there WAS
= extremely low wafer in the Illinois river
" Throughout the year, there has been no nayi
S cation. since the opening of the Illinois and
Michigan canal, so dull as the present. We
are now in the last half of June, and yet the
quantity of corn thus far shipped from La
Sale and Peru during this year aggregates
but few boat loads. What is the cause OF
this remarkable falling off of shipments from
these portsg We remember that last winter
was extraordinary long and cold, and pre-.
sumo that, therefore, an unusual quantity OF
corn was fed out on the farms, which other
wise would have been brought into market
tins spring and summer But is that the only
reason why there are so few shipments of
corn from La Sale and Peru? Boatmen Of
the river and canal assert that large quaint,
ties of corn are being shipped from the upper
river ports to Peoria and thence east by rail,
anG that the reason for this is twofold, name
ly; low rates of transportation on the rail-
roads and high tolls on the canal.
Corn has always constituted the bulk OF
eastward bound freights from La Sale and
Peru, but the granaries Of these two cities
are empty al present, and if the farmers of
this vicinity have no considerable quantity
of corn to spare neither an increase Of freight
rates nor a reduction of tolls would revive
the languishing business of the canal
In ordinary seasons of navigation six cents
per bushel has been the average freight on
corn from La Sale to Chicago, and the rail
| H., hos charoal ~ IN
Now the railroads have so reduced their Ia
riffs that the canal boats are obliged to carry
for 3 cents in order to compete with them
Let US look at the result. The freight on 5000
(one boat load is $3.50. Deduct tolls, 500
and towage, and il economically handled, the
boat will have earned 500 in five days. If a
load of lumber can be procured for the return
trip, and no damaging accident or detention
is encountered, the Boat will have cleared
about $7j in two weeks time.
Most manifestly this is ruinous business,
and if anything can be done to improve it,
the sooner ii is done the better it will be for
everybody, except the railroad companies.
But here, of necessity, we revert to the origin.
al question-What shall be done?
We learn that q movement is in progress
among the canal captains with view to a
general withdrawal from an attempt to do
business. A large number have already
agreed to tie their boats to the bank, and it
is expected that great majority of the re-
mainder will do so also. 1t is expected that
this movement will be cOnsummatcd about
the 1st ofJuly. Will that induce or influence
the canal commissioners to make further
reduction of tolls? ought IT TO have that ef.
fectS
The canal commissioners are landably am
bilious to push forward as rapidly as possible
the construction of the much-needed series of
locks and dams to complete the slack water
navigability of the Illinois river, and, for the
accomplishment of that object, are very
properly disposed to maintain as high rates |
of tolls as the business OF tine canal will war
rant. But what is to be done now that, from
some cause, the business of the canal has tal.
len to so low an ebb as at the present? What
is to be done now that the rates of freight are
but little if any more than sufficient to cover
tolls and tow bills?
. 1t is evident that some sort of reform must
be !naugurated or the canal will soon become
worthless. AS the money OF the people OF
the state of Illinois paid for the construction
ofthe canal and the. hard earnings of the men
engaged in commerce thereon pay for its
maintenance, 1t appears to us that the tolls
ought to be reduced to the lowest rates suffic-
lent for such maintenance, rather than allow |
it to be ruined by railroad monopolies.
Our impression is that the short corn crop
of last year, with the succeeding hard winter,
had more to do with the light shipments OF
corn by the canal this spring than low rail
road freights. Yet if the canal tolls are high
enough to drive any corn to the railroads
while the canal is open, they ought to be re-
duced. The only really useful purpose the
canal ought to be expected to subscrve, at
least until the river improvement is complete
ed, Is to regulate railroad frelghts. The ca
nal has for twenty years been worth million
a year to the people within forty miles Of the
Canal or Illinois river from Alton to Chicago
as regulator of freights, and the people can
well afford to keep it up as such though it
may cost 100000 year to run IT, Whene-
over the railroads, therefore, reduce their
Trcights so as to take such business from the
canal as properly belongs to it-carrying
grain, lumber, coal, stone, &c,-thc tolls
should be reduced SO as to give the canal the
business, though the reduction may go down
% zero. To talk of abandoning the canal is
madness. Such a step would leave half the
people of the state at the mercy of a few rail.
roads and would cost them untold millions
IN the end
One of the biggest conlndrums mortal
man was ever called upon 10 wrestle with is
that encountered by Secretary Bristow to &c
cide what TO do about the Chicago custom
house. About 20 different architects, com
boards, committees &c, have oflici-
ally examined it, and while part of them