San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1886-07-21
WATERWAY IMPROVEMENTS.

The present congress shows no more
inclination to take up the question OF
our interior waterways intelligently
than its predecessors. With the largest
territory of any modern nation save
Russia, with the most ample natural
waterways running into the very heart
of our vast inland region and with an
immense inland commerce to be pro-
yided for the United States has done
literally nothing in the way OF imprOv-
ing her internal waterways. France
has spent more on the CherbOurg harbOr
than this country has spent on river and
hsrbor improvement all told. Germany
has spent more on the Elbe river i'm
provement than this country has on the
Mississippi and Missouri and all their
tributaries. The subsidies of this gov
eminent have been paid to railroads and
our natural water channels have been
left unimproved. Schemes, such as the
Hennepin canal improvement which
would open the communication by water
from the upper Mississippi to the great
lakes and thus to the ocean at our
Atlantic seaboard, are proposed again
and again only to be rejected. Europe
is at this present time arranging for
a complete system of river and canal i'm
provement, irrespective Of national boun-
diaries, that will open up all sections Of
the country to inland shipping. The
convention of delegates from all the
prominent European powers recently
held in Vienna have taken the matter
in hand and will present to the various
governments plan whereby a uniform
ity of canal and river improvements will
be insured in which each country shall
share equally, regulating the cost OF
traffic equitably and uniting the con-
tinent as one nation In this work Of in
ternal improvement. With no one to
dispute territory with her, her water
lines all lying within her own bound
aries, the United States haggles over an
appropriation Of a million or two OF dol
lars for river and canal improvements
that would fairly revolutioRize our COM
merce, and decrease the cost OF grain
transportation to the sea board to such
an extent as would enable US to place
the products Of our western grain fields
in the European market at a cost far
below our present ability. The railway
lobbies OF congress have been most &C.
tive In defeating all schemes of in
ternal waterway improvement, as the
successful carrying out Of these proposed
improvements would compel such re-
duction In grain freights as would fairly
paralyze the railway companies. Re-
cent Investigations by the English gov
eminent have shown that the actual
cost ofmoying loaded railway train a
mile is so far below the lowest rate
given by the company tables that rail-
way freights might be reduced to fig
ure generally accepted as ruinous and
yet yield large profits to the railway cor
porations. Our only relief from exorbi-
tant railway charges, and our only hope
Of successful competition in the Liver.
pool grain market, lies in the direction Of
improved waterways. This fact, though
generally accepted as true, has so far
weighed but little in the scale Of our sell
interest; the great benefits to be derived
from inland shipping being subordinat.
ed to the demands Of existing corpora.
tions whose interests lie in the other di.
rection.