St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1885-08-12
The Convention Called to Consider the In
provement of Northwestern
Waterways.
Quarterly Meeting of the State Board Of
Corrections and Oharities--A
Long Report.
Streets, Sidewalks and Sewers ana
Other Matters Before the
City Council
Preparing for the Fair--Fue1 For the
s--Mahtomedf--Go
ernor's Return.
NO HOSTILITY.

NO HOSTILITY.
River Convention Not AntagOn1stIc
to Lower River Interests.
The press and the people of the South be-
You'd st. Louis having interpreted the call
for the river convention at ST. Paul, Sept
8, as an act of hostility to their interests,
the state river commission has issued cir
cular letter addressed to the editor of the St
Louis Republican and Globe-Democrat, the
Memphis Appeal and Avalanche, the New
Orleans Tmes-Democrat and the Picayune,
which gives in detail the object of indie
pendent action on the part of the nine states
and territories invited to participate in the
proceedings of the convention. The letter
is self-explanatory, and is as follows:
Having observed, with extreme regret, that
q number of the journals OF the lower MIS-
sissippi valley have chosen to regard the re
- cent movement of the Northwest i'll favor OF
waterway improvement as in some way, Oh
rectly or indil ectly, aimed at the interests of
the lower half of the river; we beg leave 10
enter protest against any such far-tetched
inference as this. There is nothing in the
call or in the public mind of the Northwest
which in the slightest degree justities sus-
picion that the great states north and west OF
St Louis will ever be hostile to any proposed
new outlets to the SeabOard. In fact, the
only hope and wish of the great producing
section Of which st. Louis is the southeast
corner feels now as ii has felt for years, that
all its transportation troubles would end
with the proper improvement of the PIPER
Mississippi and Missouri rivers, and enable
them to reach st. Louis. Here we have crops,
but no means of reaching markets except by
rail or via lake to the East. For years the
people of the Missouri and upper Mississippi
valley have been struggling TO get 10 St. Louis
with their products, and while they have
aided in securing the liberal appropriations
made for other sections, have had 10 content
themselves with such infntesimal allowances
as to somewhat dampen their ardor in the
work. On every occasion its representa-
tives have been found working
and voting for the most liberal
allowances for the improvement of all sec
tions of the rivers and all the harbors of the
country. This philanthropic policy has been
pursued so long that it doubtless has been re-
garded as stereotyped by the friends of river
Improvement in other sections of the coun-
try. With us the chief wonder has been that
the example Of the Northwest in this regard
has not been followed by the representatives
Of either the lake, Atlantic, Gulf or Pacific
states. 1t has been sort of "free-for-all'
feast for everybody except the great produc-
ing states of the Northwest. The policy has
apparently been to commence the work of i'm
provement on the outer circle and working
toward the center where the commerce origi-
Mates so that those who stand in the most
need of relief will be the last to be served.
This fact has been apparent on the face of all
the river and harbor bills, and this fact was
the chief inducement to opposition to the
river and harbor bill of last winter on the
part of the representatives of the Northwest
states, and which led to its final defeat.
In order that this broad proposition may not
be disputed, we beg leave TO submit the fol-
lowing summary OF the bill. 1t appropriated
for the
Atlantic coast (north of Delaware
river. Observation-Disclosures. 100000
Atlantic coast (south of Delaware
river ................... 1,6s3, 500
Total. 81, 200, 800
Gulf of Mexico front. ............ ST. 97, 900
Mississippi river (south of Cairo).. 4,027, 900
Mississippi river (north of Carlo, in
Guiding Illinois) Observation-Disclosures. 1913, 600
Missouri river (some $500 miles,. 423, 600
Ohio river system. 1,5I9, 800
Total above Cairo. 81, 296, 400
Total below Cairo. ............... 4,027, 900
Southern tributaries of Ohio .... 1892, 400
Mississippi above Keokuk Q,4O0
miles. 255,5OO
Northern lake system. Loss, 700
Red river of the North. ........... 10000
Hennepin canal. Observation-Disclosures. 100000
1t would be hard to figure out upon what
principle this bill was formulated. If the
purpose was to give relief to dependent CON-
merce it but poorly served the purpose of its
creation, for the bulk of the money was placed
where navigation was plenty and commerce
was exceedingly scarce. But the point at
tempted to be demonstrated is not that some
sections got too much, but that the great
Northwestern producing states, now almost
utterly at the mercy of the railroads, received
too little.
IN THE STATES AND TERRITORIES.
An equally interesting view Of the river
and harbor bill is obtained by considering the
net amount appropriated by the bill in each
of the states and territories of the Union:
Maine. ...-... $4,000 Kansas. $4,000
New Hamps're 10000 Dakota ....... 19l, 900
Vermont ...... ZU,OOO Montana ..... $500
connecticut. 13S. 200 Oregon. ISIS, 600
Rhode Island. 62,50O California;. 344, 500
Massachusetts Jag, 600 Wash. Ter. 1900
New York.. ll,000l Maryland 800. 20, 900
New jersey. 200, 600 Yirginia.... 264. 500
Pennsylvania. 140, COG North Carolina IL, 600
Chic. ........ 3O9,9OOISouth Carolina lS7, 600
Indiana ....... 157, 500 Florida ~ POS, 500
Michigan ..... $40, 700 Georgia ... 273,O0O
Illinois. ...... 656,OO0l Alabama. 500, 900
Wisconsin -. 2lS.000l Mississippi. SOC, 500
Iowa. $50 900 Louisiana. 500, GOO
Minnesota.,... 129, 900 Texas. . $50, 600
Nebraska $3.50. 10000 Arkansas ..... 667. 800
Missouri. ..... 375,000IW West Virginia. 345. 900
kentucky..... 96l, 600 Delaware. 800. 1876. 600
Tennessee 80. 633500I Dist. Columbia I50, 900
ANOle--h mere DOfuer more
than one state in the bill, proportionate
part has been charged.) 1t would seem from
the above that the nine Northwestern states
and territories received q total by the pro-
visions of that bill as follows: Illinois. Wis
cOnsin, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri. Kansas
Nebraska, Dakota and Montana, having over
seven thousand miles of nayigable waterway
ana producing the bulk of all the grain ana
meat OF the country, received an aggregate
OF Sl.5UO. OOG-a sum just sufficient to deter
The nope that the present generation or any
OF il would live TO seq Lhese WATERWAYS i'm
proved under the comprehensive and we'll
dlGest"d plans OF the United States engineers.
J.@"cilN wnO ~ or was responsible for the
pee iiHrltica 81 dis bill! il is hardly worth
Nu-c 10 dIscUa" because it is not the purpose
40 iH,.t he ih examinations or retaliations
ine vtao-..t a-c.cG for improving the water
wi'l~ 'suc 49, sac Southwestern territory is
lrsigr!L""'.s Nn"n compared with the bene-
us 20 .'e.H,-' "1 ~ these improvements. Six
1Nrt OF Hsi.o, tI ne Mississippi river above
"a lott. af.. on tae Missouri river 10
Bismarc. i,..us millions Of dollars 10 the pro-
HuCcts %. &c NCrshwcsU every year To
iliusi axe t,is -Vt IL cali your attention to the
pIcsrnl ..i;.on between -. Louis and ST
Paul. Tnp -.ru!ar railroad freight rate when
me aver Is '-..,-'-. j 20 cents. but on the
opening q "a. iig:itiOp the steamers made :;
rate Ga - ,;,..- and rates on merchandise
arc now hcjN cCn the two cities US low as
and 10 cents, which the railroads cannot
meet-this is on a partially improved river.
But for this regulator the rate would still he
40, and we would 90 no business with St
Louis. We hope TO see the time when we win
have rate of cents per bushol on wheat
from St Paul to the Belize, and float our
crop via St. Louis. This we can secure
when our river improvements are com
pleted, at an expense of two or three million
dollars at the utmost. Such cOnsidera-
.lS have lad bG fria dc Of,