The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1882-01-24
WHAT THE JETTIEs HAVE DONE

w AAAA hAiiJ LINZ LA " OO1N
St. Louis Republican.
1t is a common practice with certain
newspapers at Cincinnati and Chicago to
misrepresent and attempt to deride the
jetty constructions at the mouth of the Mis-
sissippi river as work which, costing So
100000, has not yielded any result to show
for the money. Let us see if there be any
shadow of truth in this.
Since the jetties were made, the export of
grain and other western produce through
the mouth Of the river has materially in
creased, and larger vessels now come to
New Orleans than could come before. This
is the direct effect of the improvements.
But it is trifling compared with the in
direct effect in lowering the carrying rates
by rail on western produce. The jetties,
by inviting grain to pass through them,
cheapened the river rate, augmented the
power of the river as freight regulator,
and compelled the railroads running east
and west to compete with it by lowering
their rates to the river standard. Three
results have followed: First, western pro-
duce which went by rail to the Atlantic for
export before the jetties, still goes that way,
but at greatly reduced carrying rates; Sec
ond, large bulk of western produce from
Kansas, Nebraska and western Iowa goes
to the Atlantic now, which did not 60 be-
fore because it could not afford to pay the
cost Of transportation; third, the settlement
OF the remote western states and territories
Kansas, Nebraska and Dakota-has been
largely stimulated by cheapening of
frcights, which makes grain-growing and
hog packing almost as profitable in them
as in Illinois and Wisconsin. Before the
jetties were constructed it cost thirty
to thirty-five cents bushel to
carry grain from the Mississippi
to the Atlantic; now it costs only half those
rates-a saving Of Is cents bushel, which
on 200,000,000 bushels of western grain, is
$4,000 0O-enough to pay for the jettes
six times over; and this is for one year, on
grain alone. Let the reduction of rates be
extended to all western produce that goes
east by rail and south by river, for export
for series Of ten years and We get some
idea of the value of the jetties at the distant
mouth of the Mississippi to Chicago and
Cincinnati, as well as st. Louis and New
Orleans--to the farmers of Nebraska and
Dakota, as well as to the planters of Missis-
sippi and Louisiana. .
1t may be replied that it is too much to
claim for the jetties that they have brought
about the whole reduction in rail rates that
We have seen in the last four or five years.
But there are many reasons for believing
that they have been very important factor
in that reduction. If the jetties were re.
moved tomorrow, and the bar replaced at
the mouth of the river, we should probably
see the rail rates on grain advanced 5 to 10
cents bushel, every cent of which, calcu-
lated on the grain crop Of the west, would
come out of the pockets Of the western
farmers. The reference to the growing
influence of the Mississippi route Of transit
in the message of the governor Of New
York; the manifest uneasiness it causes in
the boards of trade of eastern cities; and the
known effect it has had and is having upon
railroad companies prove that the jetties
have had much to do with the marked de-
cline in carrying rates OF the last few years.
The jetties when paid for, will have cost
$5,200,000. The west could not afford to
do without them for 50,0O0,0OO.