Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1895-04-03
rnr caNAL rRoaEcr RooMINe.

( lated and viii undoubtedly be made
one. The one being largely dependent
upon the other for success, and vice
versa. whatever move is made in the
I matter viii embrace both schemes,
which is a highly commendable posi-
ton 10 assume at the start, and a mat
ter for congratulatiOn.
The best evidence Of the practicable
nature and feasibility Of the canal
project is the sudden alarm the Regis
I ter's publication of the.proposition has
created in Pitsburg. The Dispatch of
that city says:
3 The proposition is 10 follow the mooted
I Ohio canal from Cleveland LOT "" HllLes,
] thence as the Wheeling Register reports
D fr 10 come 10 Wheeling by a boat railway
\ and a canal connection Win "heeHhs
\ creek.
I THE project is significant as showing
I the effect Of the Ohio river ana Lake Erie
/ shin canal agitation as stimulating Otner
I ur6uositions But when Wheeling and
{ the surrounding country considers the
1 advantages TO her Of the wheeling cree
/ route compared with those offered by me
I Ohio river and Lake Erie project. II Will
/ perceive that an its interests lie in unit
/ Ing IT'S efforts with Western Pennsyl-
yania and Eastern Ohio for the latter.
The Dispatch adds:
The ship canal offers Wheeling direct
/ route 20 the lake. by which vessels car
I rying 300 tons can carry her freight.
/ The other canal offers al best possible
I water route for boats carrying 100 10 500
/ tons. The difference 10 Wheeling VIII be
/ simply that between great waterway
| carrying freight al a cheapness rivalled
I only by the river movement Of coal and
I a small one Offering cheapnesS only a
/ little better than that OF railway freights
al present.
It viii strike most people at all IA
miliar with the projects that the Dis
patch either is a trife ignorant of the
subject or. in its natural desire to
make the best showing possible for its
own local project, is a wee bit disin-
genuous.
The Western Pennsylvania project
is to build a ship canal, which would
practically make Pittsburg lake port.
Undoubtedly this would be a magnifi-
/ cent thing for Pittsburg. but wherein
Wheeling would be the gamer by the
arrangement is not at all apparent.
/ The Ohio river is not navigable to
lake craft, and for nearly half the
year is not navigable TO even the light
est draught vessels. With the Pitts
burg canal Wheeling would be in ex-
actly the same relative position TO
/ Pittsburg as she is at present; she
would be at the same disadvantages,
and would, as Of yore, have to pay toll
to her big rival above on her manufac-
turing materials. Nor would the
Pittsburg project develop our local coal
territory or build the railroad to Con-
nellsville In addition to this, our
contemporary appears to be ignorant
of the fact that a ship canal would be
Of no advantage TO Wheeling or West
Virginia over a waterway for small
craft, since it would be much cheaper
to transfer cargoes from the lake YES
sells to a trolley canal system than TO
bring the big lake vessels themselves
inland. This, also, is point which
Pittsburg would do well to study be-
fore sinking its millions in a great ship
canal project.
And as to cost, there is absolutely no
comparison to be made between the
two plans. The outside estimate at
which Pittsburg hopes to be able to
build the Western Pennsylvania canal
is S25.000,0O0. But the most competent
engineers estimate that the work could
not be done for less than double that
sum, at the lowest figure. On the
other hand, while we have no estimate
as yet Of the cost of the proposed
Wheeling and Erie canal, Col. Ker-
wiese, who is one of the oldest and
most competent and experienced en-
gineers in the world, estimates that it
would cost but a small sum, or, in
comparison with the Pittsburg scheme,
a mere bagatelle. Wheeling would
have but to look out for her own end
Of the route; Cleveland, which is
equally interested, and the other towns
along the proposed waterway, would
pay for the rest of the work More
over, two-thirds or more of the canal
is already built in the present Ohio
canal, and Nature has provided for an
other section of the work in Wheeling
creek. A small boat railway and a
short stretch of canal is the only work
that would have TO be done, besides
widening the Ohio canal and dredging
out Wheeling creek. This would cost
a comparatively trifing sum in all. If
the State of Ohio in its early days
could build 500 miles of canal, divid-
ing the State from end to end, with
our present wealth and density of pop
ulation in this and our neighboring
State. we surely ought TO have no
trouble in raising funds for the con-
struction of a few dozen miles of
waterway particularly when we con-
template the great revolution in our
trade and commerce and industrial life
it would mean.
The public anxiously awaits the re-
turns from Hon. Hinky Drinks district