The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1880-03-31
A CAIRO POSSIBILITY.
From the New Orleans Times, 9th.

iHOio nave ,icCoutiy Deen very consider
able accumulations of grain at Cairo which
for want OF river tonnage could not readily
be moved.
We are reminded Of this fact, by the fear
recently expressed by prolnlnent citizen
OF st. Louis, of the possibility that Cairo
may yet capture the gram trade which st.
Louis has been so slow in properly patron
izng. There are just grounds for that fear.
Several years ago it was abundantly dem
onstrated in the Times how easily Cairo
might be made to bear the same relation to
the grain trade in its movements by the
Southern river route, that Buffalo does to
the movements by the lakes and canal
route. But the expressed fear of the st.
Louisan was that Cairo might become
more than the Buffalo of the Southern route;
it might take the business out
right. The possibiity-or rather the
practicability of such thlng-fully iusti-
ties the anxiety which this one individual
feels, and which all St. Louisans ought to
feel On this subject. St. Louis has the
advantage OF being large city with large
and increasing commercial facilities; but
Cairo is far more favorably located for DO
avenues of approach to ST. Louis are equally
open to Cairo. There Is not bushel of
grain that finds its way to St. Louis which
could not be delivered with equal facility,
and possibly without any materially in
creased expense, at the mouth of the Ohio.
Shipments of grain on barges, whether
coming out Of the Missouri or from the
upper Mississippi, may never be transferred
either at st. Louis or Cairo; but all men
understand the advantages of the ''long
haul" on all movements by rail.
But Cairo possesses other advantages
which ST. Louis can never have. 1t offers
q convenient outlet to southern Illinois,
southern Indiana, southern Ohio and TO
Kentucky; and in the course Of time it no
doubt would be provided with rail com
munication transversing southern Missouri,
into the Indian territory, into Kansas, and
thus forming connections with the entire
railroad systems of Kansas Nebraska and
Iowa.
Would shipments of grain be
attracted to Cairo from those distant re-
gionsi Certainly With such rail facili-
ties for moving their crops as we have de-
scribed farmers and spectators would give
preference TO Cairo over st. Louis, because
the former is not only below freezing point
in winter but also below the sand-bars that
so often almost totally suspend navigation
between Cairo and st. Louis.
The considerations last mentioned are of
the greatest importance. Below freezing
point. Below shallow water! Below i'm
passable sand-bars! Equally accessible
with st: Louis-or at least might be made
ao-and with an outlet to the SEA the year
round Cairo might well enter the list and
compete with st. Louis for the grain bust
ness.
But Cairo would have other sources of
supply. 1t is the terminus Of one of the
best managed railroads in the United States
the Illinois Central--which traverses the
entire length of the state of Illinois, with
branch to Chicago, and then sweeps in
grand curve across the Mississippi river
| through Iowa until it touches its western
border, with connections that ramify the
entire northwest. That road now carries u
large amount of property-meats-
from Nebraska City, Omaha and other
producing centers in that region;
uLu IL Cuulu uCilNeT lUt gram
of Iowa, Nebraska, and of many por-
tons Of Minnesota, at Cairo quite as cheap
ly as it is now carried to Chicago. The
difference in rail carriage between Omaha
and Chicago, and Omaha and Cairo, would
be inconsiderable; at any rate, whatever
difference there might be could easily be
more than made up if the railroad com
pany would choose to establish line of ex-
elusive grain barges 70 run in connection
with their road. We say exclusive" grain
barges, well understanding that the com
pany could not be expected to compete
with itself in the carrying trade generally
Restricting the barges to grain and such
other property as might not be controlled
for rail carriage there would be no such
competition. Indeed, the barges Offering the
least expensive method of transportation
would enable the rail to outbd competing
roads on through shipments to tdc-water
Nowlt must not be said we are annimat-
ed by any feeling of antagonism to St.
. Louis, We are not. But we wish to stir
up that CITY, as we have often striven TO do
for several years past, to prompt action by
reminding its people that the possibility of
large grain trade by the Southern route
is not wholly dependent on them; but that
well.directcd capital and enterprise, opert-
ing from Cairo as base might soon make
that place something more than the Buffalo
of the Southern route to tide water.