Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-10-04
NAVAL VALUE OF THE CANAL

The question of naval defense on the
great lakes forms the subject of a recent
editorial in the New York EUeRing Post,
which touches upon project of great in
terest to Western Pennsylvania Under
the treaty of 1918 but one armed vessel
can be maintained by either power on the
lakes. But Great Britain by the Canadian
ship canals would have the ability in case
of war to send large number of effective
armed vessels into the lakes at few days
notice. The result is that the immense
lake commerce of the United States
would, if war should ever occur between
this country and Great Britain, be wholly
at the mercy of the enemy, unless we
could seize and hold the canals before the
hostile ships had passed through.
The Post very pertinently points out
| that there are but two ways remedying
this inequality. One is to notify Great
Britain of the abrogation of this treaty
restriction; the other is to construct canals
which will furnish the same facility of ap-
proach to the lakes that Great Britain has.
The first would at once set both govern
ments to large expenditures in fortifica-
tions and naval construction, which is un-
necessary if the object can be attained the
other way. The second would be far
preferable, because, although the outlay
would be greater, the commercial value of
the canals would fully repay the cost Of
construction The Post designates the
Hennepin and the. Ohio River and Lake
Erie projects as especially designed to
%o Al hn
ernment to transfer armed vessels draw
ing Is feet or less, to the lakes in case of
war.
THE DISPATCH has referred to this fac
tor of the problem in discussing the canal
project. But the immense commercial
value of the canal is so much more imme-
diate in its results that its Importance as a
naval route is likely to be overlooked.
Every one perceives that a decrease of the
cost of transportation between the lakes
and the Ohio river by an average of rs
cents per ton would be an immense gain;
while the remote contingency of needing
these water routes for naval uses is lost
sight Of But the latter is a very impor-
tant consideration and should not be over
looked.
The New York Press, which is acting as
the special organ of that cool proposition
for the Government to loan S1OO, 1000, 900 of
its credit to the Nicaragua Canal Com
pany when its estimates of cost are S70,-
600, 900, makes use of the same argument
in favor of that scheme. But there is a
double reason why the canals to the lakes
should have priority. First the naval
necessity is greater. Our interests on the
lakes are greater than on. the Pacific,
while there is nothing to prevent the es-
tablishment of naval force there by the
United States at present Second, the
canals to the lakes will be within our own
territory and can be used, while the Mica
ragua ditch, if built, would fall prey to
the biggest naval power within two weeks
of the outbreak of hoStilities. We should
construct our internal water ways before
going thousand miles away from the
United States frontier to do it for other
nations
Both for the sake of commercial ad-
vantage to be secured at once, and for the
naval defense of all the lake cities in all
time to come both these canals should be
urged forward to an early completion.