St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1894-04-26
'Beggared Outcast,
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CANAL SCHEME.

A mania for canals seems to have
seized upon the American people. For
the past decade congress has been be-
sleged With petitions in favor of the
construction of water ways connecting
the Great Lakes with navigable rivers,
and thence to the ocean; asking aid for
digging bitches across the Isthmus of
Panama and the Isthmus of Nicaragua,
and many other schemes more or less
practicable. The Illinois d Michigan
Ship canal was the first to receive ma
tional sanction and an appropriation,
and it is now in process of construction.
with good prospect of successful COM
pletion-not as ship canal. but merely
as an outlet for the sewage OF Chicago.
Another scheme before congress is for
canal connecting Lake Superior with
the Mississippi river. This has its adj
vocates, who are sanguine OF the sue
cess of the project, even though it in
wolves an expenditure of 500. 0OO, 900,
and is undoubtedly the most meritorious
and practical of them ALL
The latest enterprise of this char
acter has its source in Indiana. The
state society of engineers of Hoosier-
dom have just formulated petition to
congress to provide for a preliminary
survey for ship canal to connect Lake
Michigan with the Wabash river, and
to restore such portion of the Wabash
d Erie canal as may be advantageous to
continue said ship canal to Lake Erie,
and also to improve the Wabash, Ohio
and Mississippi rivers for navigation in
connection with the canal; and,
Further, That commission of three
persons of the United States be ap-
pointed by the president to take gen.
eral charge of this survey and the in
vestigations necessary for full report
on the subject 10 congress.
The modesty of this demand is re-
markable. The ''preliminary suryeyo
demanded is of itself matter of more
consequence than most people imagine.
The preliminary survey of the illinois
& Michigan canal has cost the govern
ment nearly a million dollars. The va
rious surveys of the Fox and Wisconsin
river canal, work of comparative in.
significance. has cost almost as much.
The cost of the work asked by the In
diana engineers would be in excess of
both, while the maintenance of the pro-
| posed commission of three-all en-
gineers, of course-would cost not less
than $4,000 year. This, of course, is
a mere bagatelle to government like
ours, rich in resources. Astounding in
surplus wealth.
The GLOBE does not undertake to
pass upon the practicability of these
several canal schemes. Undoubtedly if
they could be carried out we would de-
rive some benefit. But the government
cannot afford to engage in every doubt
| full enterprise of the kind evolved from
| the fertile brain of some modern Col.
| Sellers, who sees millions in IT," No
doubt there are millions in all of them
an opportunity to spend millions, but
littlechance to get them. back.
| 1t is matter of surprise that, if there
is truth in the prospectuses of these
| companies, private capital is not solic-
it'd to carry it forward. Private enter
| prise can accomplish greater results at
less cost than the government. Corpo-
rations employ their workmen because
of their ability to do the work required
of them; the government generally
| favors political adherents without re-
! gard to their efficiency, and as con-
sequence pays more for the same serv-
| ice than the individual or the corpora
| ton.
The truth of the matter is that few of
| these schemes are worthy of cOusidera-
| ton. and the Indiana plan is the least
meritorious of them all. 1t is practically
| a revival of the old Wabash canal enter
prise long since abandoned. which cost
the country millions of dollars in ante
| war times. 1t would furnish remunera-