San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1892-01-22
THE NICARAGUA CANAL.

with Chill invests the work of the
Nicaragua canal with unusual inter
est. When the state committee or
foreign relations called on Mr.. Blaine
few days since, hoping to hear some.
thing from him as to the Chilian mat.
ter, he entertained them with a dis
QUESTION on Nicaragua canal instead,
pointing out the extreme importance
OF the work and the necessity of gov
eminent aid in its prosecution. AS
early as 1S49 Commodore Maury, OF
the U. s. navy, called the attention
of the U. s. government to the impor-
lance and economy of this work,
showing that it would decrease the
distance from New York to Lima,
Peru, then the most important port in
the South Americas, from Is, 900 to
300 miles. The arguments of Lieut..
Maury were directed to demonst trait.
ing the economizing of expense in our
trans. continental traffic that would
follow the canals completion, there
being no rail road communication
at that time between our Atlantic
and Pacific seaboards. The estab.
lishment of several lines OF rail com.
munication between New York and
the Pacific slope has not negatived
the necessity for shorter water
route, which nearly half century ago
was so apparent to this observing OF.
fl ,er. In fact the wonderful growth
of the Pacific coast, its large increase
in population and the extensive COM
msrce born of that increase, are all
additional reasons for shortening the
ocean route between New York and
San Francisco by every mile practical
b g. Now that our commercial rela-
tons with the South Americas are
growing into greater Importance year
By year, and destined in the near fU-
ture to form q very considerable por-
ton of our foreign trade; and particU-
larly now that trouble is brewing
between this country and Chilli, rem
dering 1t every way desira bile that rap
id water communication should be es-
tablished between our eastern from
tier and the north and south Pacific
coast, the construction of this
canal assumes an Importance with
which it has not hitherto
been invested. The suggestion of
Secretary Blaine, that congressional
aid should be given to this important
work, is ON a line with those of Pres
ident Harrison conveyed in his De-
csmber message. While it is true
that the work as undertaken is pri-
vate enterprise, it is also true that 1t
is WORK of great national importance,
that its completion will save hun
dreds of thousands of dollars annually
to this government, and on the score
Of economy alone should receive not
olly the moral but the material sup
port of the national congress. With
this canal completed and free water
way opened between the Atlantic and
Pacific the whole western coast Of this
ontinent is placed within practicable
re lch OF New York and the national
capital, and the whole stretch of our
own sea"coast from Alaska to San
Diego brought fifteen thousand miles
nearer to New York. The long,
porilous and expensive trip
round the Cape Is avoided,
and the resultant economy even in
the case of sailing ships is q matter
of no little Importance to commerce,
while the saving in steam navigation
amounts to more than the difference
between profitable and an unprofit.
able voyage. The saving of from 15,-
900 to 20 900 miles in an ocean voyage
from our eastern to our western ports,
is OF sufficient Importance to warrant
the federal government in viewing
this canal as national project, and
backing 1t up with all the financial
aid it requires to carry it to a success
full conclusion. The interest taken
in this work leaves ground for the
hope that the support of congress will
not be denied, and that the compile
tlon OF this canal will round out the
noble engineering schemes of this
century, browning its last decade
with a work no W hit inferior to that
accomplished by de Lesseps at Susz