The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1880-10-07

The increase Of grain transportation on
the Mississippi river. this year. il beyond
precedent. Even on this upper Mississip-
| ri the steam boat lines are conveying more
grain southwark than ever before, while
| from St. Louis the business has nearly
trebled This shows that the Mississippi
grain route is becoming more and more
appreciated and ere long the east and
west railroads will have formidable rival
iu our great river. Within the past few
weeks the st. Louis and New Orleans
Transportation Company and the Missis-
sippi Valley Transportation Company have
been in the market as purchasers for
steamers and bsrges. The latter are the
model" barge. in eontradistinction to the
coal or square barge. Theee craft are
built to model. and those recently con :
trscted for are ofthe following dimensions.
9 feet, The cargo box" or recentaele
for grain has a capacity for $4,000
bushels or about 500 tons. At present
forty such barges are being built ut differ
ent yards along the Ohio river. and the
total number of barges will soon find em
ployment in the grain carrying trade
between the points named is placed by
good authority at 1870. A tow" of such
barges consists, under favorable circum
stances. of Eve. loaded barge drawing
about eight feet. To make this round
trip between st. Louis aud New Orleans
requires twenty days, aud the freight on
wheat averages cents bushei. The
lack of return cargoes prevents this rate
| trom beng as great bonanza" as would
appear from 40 income of $24 900 for 9
three weeks Job. Nevertheless it is a
good thing Tor those engaged in this
L. g a q h.
Father of Waters" AS fair sample Of
the am tunt of merchandise carried by one
tow" u! 5arges of less size than those de
scribed a5ov., the follow ng is appended
The steamer JnI Gilm,res barges ar
rived at New Orleans within the past
week. from ST Louis. with the following
cargo: go bbis, and 3l5 half bhs. four.
1873 bbls. meal, 10 bbts. grist, 4.25S SKIS
corn. 200 SKIS. malt. IS bbls. oil. 10 bbis.
apples, $50 paks sundries, l0l .499 bushel
wheat, and $4,000 bushels corn 10 bulk.
And commenting upon the great i'm
pOrtauce Of these water lines. exchange
saws that Pi,tsbure sometimes ships b!
The Ohio river in QUO day more coal hal
would fill a train OF cars 300 miles il
l,rgth All the cuai used within tort,
miles OF the river trom Pittsburg to New
ORA Aus, is shipped out Of the Alleghen!
and MouoHgaheia rivers IN barges, ant
low water in the tall. followed by a irpzsg
river, sends coal w several hundred pei
cent. even 10 those Ohio river and Missis
sippi river cities that have coal nine
within fifty miles of them by rail s.
much cheaper is transportation by waite
than By rail. that the savings on the Goa
shipped from Pittsburg in the last ter
years would have paid for the building Of
a railroad on the bank of the river all thu
way from Pittsburg to New Orleans. Poo
as the navigation OF the Ohio river is, il
permanent suspension would destroy Fits
burg, and infiiet upon lithe Ohio rive
towns a damage that could not be repaired
by a hundred million dollars worth o
railroads. France is peDinsuIar with thu
isea on both sides and not far away from
her center, yet she finds her island waite
ways Indispensable to her prosperity, ant
lcapable OF saving her more money ever
year than all her railways. She is pre-
pairing to extend her island waterways q
a vast expense, as measure OF economy
because they carry at q profit shipment
which railroads cannot carry at oil.
And the West should see to it that he
waterways are properly cared for by th,
government.-Dd Democrat.