The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1878-06-20
THE RTTER IBfPRO TENENT.

cause Its benevolent lnteluoAS to"aioo
the people of the northwest IN general,
are not duly appreciated Appleton has
grown prosperous because of its "im-
proved water power and low freights,
and it blesses the means through which
those were secured. OF course the low
freights are mythical as far as they are
produced by the competition offered by
the Fox River The Post thinks some
Midas bathed in the Fox and that it flows
with sands Of gold, that the government
should be indissolubly bound to the fol-
ly Of improvement and that all are ours
who have the audacity to question the
correctness of conclusions favorable to
the improvement.
The power given by the constitution
to congress to make appropriations for
internal improvements, does not author
ize that body to squander money in in
effectual attempts at an improvement
which reason and experience reject as
unnecessary, useless, and impracticable.
This improvement was deemed a neces-
sity when the only communication be-
tween the infant settlements of Green
Bay and Prairie iu Chen was through
the waters of those rivers. 4 persistent
demand for this primitive mode of COM
munication, when difficult of realization,
is about as utterly foolish as would be
the revival of the water clocks of the
ancients in this advanced age.
The Post in order to preserve the
semblance of consistency virtually admits
that the estimate Of the engineers for the
completion Of the improvement, will
only so far improve the route to the
Mississippi as to make it navigable in
an equal degree with the lower Fox. 1t
is farcical to compute any advantages, in
the way of reduced freights to the in
dustrial classes whose interests are said
to lie IN the improvement of those rivers,
from such insignificant facilities for
water transportation as Appleton enjoys.
We venture the opinion that not one per
cent of the produce marketed at Apple
ton, or of the manufactured articles ex-
ported from that city, are shipped by
water. We know that freight trains
laden with lumber for Chicago frequent
ly pass through Appleton on the G. {, n.
w. II. r. Why is not this lumber ship
ped by water? Why does the Two Riv-
ers Manufacturing company, having a
pier of its own, daily line of steamers,
and all he'facilities which could be Of
fered for transportation by water, trans
port all its wares by rail? 4 good wagon
road would contribute more to the pros
perity of Appleton than what is at pres
ent derived from the navigation of the
Fox. Truly, most benign "blessing'
the Post would extend to other less ia
yored sections at the expense of the
government.
The permanent advantage which has
accrued to Appleton in the Improvement
OF It's water power through its being {
Tho Vno Improve
ment is rich mine of commercial pros.
perlty. 1t Is prodigal of figures and
lavish IN It's estimates, making the annual
returns In saving of freights about 2,OOC
per cent. of the cost of improvement.
The Congressional Transportation Com
pany is credited with having placed the
annual saving in transportation from the
perfected Improvement, at 100000, OO0
The gross earnings of all the roads oper
ated IN Wisconsin for the year ending
September 30, 1877, as per commission
er's report are so, no, 427 Sc; the pro
portion for Wisconsin being so, 1G5. 1866.
%, or of the actual saving through the
navlgability of the Fox. The Post cal
culates a saving in freights to the people
OF the valley of the Fox of 81 900, 600 an
nually. The earnings of the NJ. L.. S. &
". Ii. X. for the year referred to, was
S2l3, 93O,Si. In the light of all these
facts the saving as given by the Post i,
absndly high. Beside with the Fox and
Wisconsin in high state of improve
ment, bulky commodities are all that will
be transported. Fully ! of the earnings
OF roads are from passengers, express
and mail matter. This, the Fox and
Wisconsin having every quality with
which fancy paints them, could not hope
for. How the saving in freight could be
five times greater than the gross earnings
OF road penetrating the same valley, it
is for the superior wisdom of the Post
to explain.
As political economist the Post is
decidedly original, we might even say SUI
premely ridiculous. We are told that
even If pound of freight is not shipped
from one seasons end to another. still
the latent capacity for competition would
operate rs restraint on the roads. It is
TO be sort of inactive regulator, a rail
road scare-crow. Its ralue is not depend
ent on the business actually done upon
1t. 1t Is sort of neutralizing substance
In commerce.
Mastery inactivity, never succeeded
III doing anything. If the Posts con-
ceptlon OF value is the amount of labor
expended on that, which in consequence
has value, then the Fox and Wisconsin
will be highly valuable. If utility be a
factor IN value then are they lacking in
this quality. The amount of business
done by this water course, We are told can
not yet be determined, but the Post
doubts not that when the result becomes
known 1t viii Justify all the OUTLAWS re-
quired to complete the work. We claim
the same privilege to express a doubt
and we insist that our doubts are sus-
tanned by experience and sound judg-
ment.
We We're not disposed to be finical in
correcting the Post when it gave the APP
preparations made by the general gov
eminent. But 1t catches up an error in
dates made by the Fond du Lac Com,
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