The Princeton union. [volume] (Princeton, Minn.) 1876-1976, 1878-05-15
THE FATHER OF WATERS

Report Of the House Committee ON Lcyees
and Improvement Of the Mississippi
B notwithstanding Reviewer Facts Con-
corning the National Highway.
The government printer has now In his
hands report of the House committee on
levees and improvement of the Mississippi
river. The report and the accompanying bill
refer particularly to tho lower Mississippi, be-
tween St. Louis and the gulf; but, as this por-
ton of the river is the grand trunk line, or
concentration of the whole Mississippi river
system of our fourteen thousand miles of navi-
cation, the committee wisely prepared COM
prehensive report, giving q descriptive and
statistical review of the whole system. Such
q review was greatly needed in the interests of
commerce, and intelligent legislation for it is q
subject which is not generally understood or
appreciated. Accompanying the report is an
outline map showing the point on the main
stream and each one of the thirty-two navi-
gable tributaries which is the head of present
navigation. 1t also shows by suitable shading
the area of alluvial lands. The report first
gives historical notes. showing the import
ance Of the river under French and Spanish
and com merce, and how it was finally eclipsed
by the advance of railways through the valley.
1t next gives descriptive notes. Under this
head is q table showing the miles of navigation
of each one of the thirty-three rivers, in the
order of length, and making total of 14,OS6
miles. -.
Under the third head,
"a NATIONAL HIGHWAY
ia table showing how many miles of naviga-
inn Off ton f<,n nn><> A. ~
and two territories which are intersected or
bordered by and consequently have business
interest in this great river system. The COM
parison OF the leading products of those eight
cen states with similar products of the remain
ing states of the Union is truly aston
ishing, and proves how national is the
river highway. 1t shows that in 1876 they pro-
duced 81 per cent. of the corn, SO per cent. of
the wheat, II per cent. of the rye, 20 per cent
of the tobacco and "a per cent. of the cotton of
the whole United States Also that they pos
sessed II per cent. in value of the estimated
value of live hogs. 1t shows that in the pres
ent Congress those States and territories have
III OF the total 3Ol representatives. of the peo-
pie. 1t also states the law as declared by the
supreme court of the United States, showing
that the river highway is national in law as
we'll as in fact, being highway under control
OF the general government, and open to free
and unrestrained use of the people. Under
the fourth head,
--' ITS INTERNATIONAL FEATURES,
it shows how the various tributaries converge
unite, and finally terminate at the gulf
Spanish-American nations of South
America, Mexico, the West Indies
and Brazil, and gives statistics showing
how most of those nations patronize the distant
markets of Europe instead of the great valley
which produces what they need, and extensively
purchase elsewhere iDctanco. SS 90 I'M
per cent. of the annual imports of Brazil are
from Europe, and only 67-1OO per cent. from
the United States. During the year ending
June 80. 1878, Mexico, whose chief harbor,
Vera Cruz, is near the mouth Of the Mississippi
river system, and consequently near the best
cotton producing States of the world, imported
from Europe cotton stuffs to the value of $lO,-
53l ,97O and from the United States only $685.
1873 worth. 1t maintains that the commercial
exchanges between the valley and those great
nations at the South should be as continuous
as are the waters of this inland highway with
the gulf and the ocean.
After treating of the Mississippi as San Geo.
nomical highway" the report considers the
water system as
I'LL. J. "A NEGLECTED HIGHWAY
and, to illustrate this view. shows that in 1876
st. Louis, the great central city of the whole
system, sent rs per cent. of her freights by
rail- and only ~ per cent. by river. It also
alluvial lands along the lower Mississippi, or
trunk line, as it is called, from neglect to keep
the river highway fenced in by levees or in
sorae other manner so as to protect adjoining
fields from overflow.
But the most noticeable feature of this re-
port is under the concluding head, the "Ques-
ton of Repairs" It gives a review or brief
showing how in the States of this country and
of the civilized world, there is some provision
of law requiring public highways to be kept in
repair and providing compensation in the ma
ture of damages for failure to do SO. That the
great government of the United States should
observe the general and universal spirit of the
her river highway, is very apparent after pc
rusing this very instructive portion of the
report.
COMPARISON OF EXPENDITURES.
The report closes with statement of the
amount of appropriations from the formation
of the government to 1878, for the improve
ment of the 14,086 miles of river highways in
this great river system, and gives certain
comparisons and conclusions. 1t is SO concise
ly and forcibly stated that we will quote it in
full: The amount is in round numbers only
$18, 100000 Sum only one-ffth the amount Of
bonds issued with interest added) by the
United States in favor of the Pacific railroads
It is an amount less than one-third the sum
spent by New York State alone on her canals.
1t is also less than one-half the sum appropri-
ated by Congress for the improvement Of rivers
and harbors in other portions of the United
States. further comparison shows that the
single State of New York has received from the
general government for the improvement of its
rivers and harbors the sum of S., 1894, 6O3 an
amount considerably over one-third the appro-
priations for the whole Mississippi system in
which 18 States and two territories have bus
mess interest. There is wide t#Z@.#
DIFFERENCE IN PRINCIPLE @
between the granting of government aid in the
construction of railways owned by private cor
porations, and simply keeping in repair river
highways controlled by the Uiited States, and
which nature built for her without expense. If
presidents show that the general government
has pursued very liberal policy in the first in
stance, it is certainly apparent that the policy
should be liberal in regard to navigable rivers,
the ways which furnish cheap and free trans
portation, and, therefore, the ways of greatest
Importance to the producers and the people
who pay the taxes. According to the United
States bureau of statistics, the amount of pub
lie lands granted in aid of the construction of
railways is, up to the present time, 1877 1856, $50
acres. The amount of bonds issued by the
general government to Pacific railways, with in
terest accumulated, was, ut the beginning of
last year, 1871 ,637, 1928. The single State of New
York has, we have already shown, expended
over 1854, O0O 900 in the construction of artificial
water ways. -,
THE AVERAGE COST
per mile of those 1908 miles of canal was $49,-
L ILL., II - 4