Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1881-01-24
THE RESERVOIR SYSTEM.


j. w. McClung Exposes the Crookedness
of the Minneapolis Pioneer Press-A
Strong Argument In Favor of River I'm
provement and Against the Reservoir
SwindIe.
The Pioneer Press having published col
umn after column of matter in the last
few days disappearing the attitude of
the chamber of commerce on the reser-
veir system. Mr. McClung handed that
paper a short communication showing
that the memorial was exactly what the
public sentiment of St. Paul has driven
that Minneapolis concern to adopt as its
platform, and with characteristic unfair
ness it pretends that the article was two
column article, and it had no room for it
Leaving out the extracts of the memorial,
and the p. p. which are both familiar to
the public, we give the article below in
justice to the committee, and to show the
sort of articles for river improvement the
u. p. has no room for:
The committee on the Mississippi river con-
ssts of Messrs. H. NJ. Rice, John B. Sanborn,
James Smith, Jr., William Rhodes, William
Lee, d. r. Moves, Conrad Gotzian, c. d.
I.
majority was present when the memorial
was read to them, and the portion relating to the
reservoir system was not in the memorial
first, but 1raS ordered to be added by the COM
mittcc. 1t was then read before full meet
ing Of the chamber, and adopted without
dissenting vote and with applause. The in
terviews published by the Pioneer show
that seven out of the ten members of the COM
mittee endorse the memorial with Messrs
Cot zio nd fO
This is not the first time the chamber has
taken this position, mot against the reservoir
spstem, per Se), but in favor of poStpOning it,
until the main channel of the river was first
improved, and not allowing to crowd out and
defeat the improvement of the river proper
The surveys and estimates for improving
the Mississippi river from st. Paul to st. Louis
so as to give 4 u feet of water, show that about
S617, 900 will do it. The reservoir system calls
for S1,500,000. The State of Minnesota is
losing 100000 every year this improvement
is delayed. While the great river is anguish
ing in its bed, disabled and useless" as the
Pioneer Press admits, because our Congress
men do not hurry up the appropriations to
complete the works already in progress, they
are bending all their efforts and wasting all their
energies TO procure appropriations for the
reservoir system. They are asking nothing
for the rircr proper. 1t is not only allowed
to ''languish in its bed, disabled and useless
bat Thad. Pound, William d. Washburn and
Platt Walker are moving heaven and earth to
choke it to death with saw dust, and cause it
TO go on "languishing in its bed, disabled and
useless" And when we ask that
their skylarking schemes may wait
till the sober and legitimate works of
improvement he first attended to, Mr.. Pound
cries out that Kit is an outrage" "Thc log
| men of Wisconsin lost one million of dollars
last year because the government had built no
dams for Them
The fact that the farmers and all the people
of Minnesota lost S., 0o0, 900, and those of Wis
consln almost as large sum, and are losing
the same amount every year, counts nothing
with Mcssrs. Pound Walker and Washburn
They are working for the lumber men and for
no one else.
Now this very side-show policy of our
Congressman accounts for the fact that we
are cursed $1,000, 600 every year. While about
600 had been squandered and lost on the
Fox and Wisconsin river canal up to 1877,
less than 100000 had been expended for the
Mississippi river above Rock Island. And
while $500, 900 was all that had been obtained
for the river proper, 100000 had been OBJ
tanned to improve the water power at st. An
thony falls.
Is the State of Minnesota to stand still and
see its influence frittered away in Congress by
such work as this, and to see this great river
postponed and made to play second fiddle to
the huXtering schemes which have so long
absorbed all the appropriations?
1t is time to postpone such schemes, wheth-
er they be mill dams at st. Anthony Falls, or
in Wisconsin, reservoir systems or Fox river
canals, until the grand trunk line is lifted from
its ''languishing bed and its useless and dis
abed condition" and made available for the
use of the two million people who live in
Minnesota, Wisconsin and Dakota
! am not opposed TO the reservoir system. /
am opposed to postponing the 100000 i'm
provements of the-river proper, and asking all
we are to get for the reservoir system
If the same work and energy was put in by
Washburn, Pound and Walker to get this $780,
coo, we could have it and have the river i'm
proved at once. If they get what they ask for
the reservoirs, we shall get nothing for the river
proper. They are asking nothing, and it will
not be pressed on us. After the work already
projected is done, and not before, shall be
glad to try the reservoir system, if it promises
any good results. But engineers now differ
about it, and if Gen. Warren recommended it,
so did he recommend the Fox river scheme.
Major Allen does not claim it as 'tany pet of
his" Engineers are not only not infallible,
buf they are human also. j. w. MCCIUNG