Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-01-13
MONDAY MORNING TALK.

MONDAY MORNING TALK.
The Chamber of Commerce Discusses Saw
dust Bars, River Improvements, Falls
Preservation, Tree Planting, &c.-A Sam
pie OF Fond du Lac Building Stone.
The principal subject of discussion at the
Chamber of Commerce meeting yesterday
morning was
sAwDUsT AND MILL DRIFT,
as with reference to our river navigation, but
the discussion had q wide range, embracing
several other topics. The discussion was
based on report from Messrs Sanborn and
James Smith, Jr., appointed at the last previ-
GUS meeting to draft memorial to Congress,
asking the enactment of law prohibiting
the discourage of saw mill refuse into uavi-
gable waters.
Mr.. McClung thought the report was de-
ficient in not showing that the river was OBJ
structed below as we'll as above st. Paul by
deposits of sawdust, and called on Capt.
Rhodes to state what steamboatmen have
observed.
Capt. Rhodes said that the observations of
6t6aIuDOdGIucu COuuIm WudL AkdJOI dl4ud-
har stated-that in every river bar above
Lake Pepin there is large proportion of
sawdust.
Mr.. McClung called upon Mr.. Hodges for
corroborotive evidence, and the latter stated
his experience when, having before seen mil
lions Of young cottonwoods growing on
the bars and low islands of the river, he went
down last season to gather them for plant
ing on the prairies and found them nearly
all killed by deep deposits of sawdust over
and about them. When the sawdust from
the mills was thus destroying young trees by
the million he thought it was time the Sec
rotary of the State Forestry association
should say something.
Mr.. James Smith, Jr., thought it was suf-
ficisnt to show that the deposits of sawdust
and mill drift are distractions to navigation
between st. Paul and Fort Smelling.
Mr.. Banning argued that the government
to protect its appropriations for river i'm
provement must come in and stop this saw
dust nuisance. ALI the country nas direct
interest in preventing the river from being
INSTRUCTED. But matter of such impor-
lance would be belittled by association with a
proposition for local improvement and the
latter would give the enemies of the bill a
help to defeat it. He submitted that the
two propositions should be separated.
Mr.. Smith, Jr.. explained that the bill
prepared by the committee did not include
the lesser object, the improvement of the
channel at st. Paul, although both were ask
ed for by the accompanying memorial.
Mr.. McClung moved to recommit the mat
ter to the special committee, with instruc-
tions to separate the two objects, which mo-
ton prevailed, and the discussion was then
continued Informally.
Mr.. Smith held that the proposed channel
INVOLVEMENT AT ST. PAUL
was proper matter for Congressional action
and that st. Paul men should ut least mani
fest as much interest in it as they did in the
falls preservation improvement at Minueapo-
lis, in which they were SO active that 1t was
| thought to be st. Paul measure and when
the appropriation bill passed telegraphic
messages of congratulation were sent to
st. Paul by members of Congress who
| thought 80.
Capt. Blakely thought there should not
be two memorials. The local improvement
would help antagonism to the general i'm
provement.
MIR. Murray thought the local improve.
ment ought to be had. He had always seen
that when that matter came up that
there was an under-ourrent of opposition
bat he did not believe the local
proposition was a weak one. He did be-
lieve that with the same zeal which st. Pau
men had shown for other localities, any man
in Congress could get the appropriation
needed if he would try for it.
| Capt. Blakely said that ever since the
sawmills were started, steamboat wheels
have turned up the sunken sawdust all the
way to Lake Pepin. There could be no
question but that the sawdust was an OBJ
struction to navigation and that therefore
its deposit in the river should be prohibit
ed. But he Questioned whether the proposed
local work would agree with the general plan
for improvement of the river.
Mr.. Smith, Jr., remembered that years
| ago this same chamber had memorialized
Congress in favor of the Fox and Wisconsin
| mythical improvement and that q Senator
of Minnesota has year after year got large
appropriations for that fraud, neglecting his
own State, but sustained in his course in
respect by the st. Paul chamber of COM
merce. He thought it was time st. Paul
should do something for itself.
EI-Gov. Marshall in response to the re:
| Elections of several speeches, spoke of the
FOX AND WISCONSIN IMPROVEMENT
as practical work of utility, of national
Importance, intended to give the Northwest
water way equal to the Erie canal in its
benefits He also spoke of the origin of the
st. Anthony Falls preservation work; that
its necessity was fastened by the tunnel op-
srations OF st, Paul capitalists, and that its
legitimacy was based on there being a navi
gable channel above the falls for which the
preservation Of the falls was necessary.
Mr.. McClung was added to the special
| committee.
On motion of Mr.. Murray the committee
was instructed to modify its memorial in &C.
cordance with the prevailing opinion of the
chamber and also to prepare another me-
mortal relating to the local improvement.
MANUFACTURING BONUS.
Mr.. McClung, referring to the former lib
erality of the chamber in voting that the
committee on manufactures should raise q
bonus of 81 900, wanted to know whether
that vote had exhausted the liberality of the
chamber. The committee had raised about
$3.50, but if they were to raise the whole
sum contemplated would need assistance.
On his motion Capt. Blakeley and Messrs.