New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1897-01-15
SLOW WORK ON THE HARLEM CANAL.
AN UNAVOIDABLE COMPARISON WITH SIMILAR
WORKS ABROAD.


AN UNFAvoRABLE COMPARISON WITH SIMILAR
WORKS ABROAD.
To the Editor Of The Tribune.
Sir: 1t will be remembered that DE witt Clinton,
October 2s. 1926. opened the Erie Canal. which
had been constructed at cost Of To00.0Oo TO con-
meet the lakes with tidewater for transporting the
products Of the West to the seaboard. This canal
363 miles In length. with " locks. had been buiit IN
eight years at a time when power appliances ior
such work were almost unknown.
The Suez Canal. ninety miles In length. with us
two harbors was built by NJ de Lcsseps In only
eleven years at expenditure OF 100000 although
a commission OF engineers-English. French ana
Austrian-pro1ounced the work impractcabe be-
fore 1t taken up by De Lesseps
The Mount Cents Tunnel through the Alps. eight
miles In length was built In thirteen years; and
the ST. Gothard Tunnel. nine and a quarter miles
long also through the Alps. was built In eight
years at cost OF 100000.
The Hoosac Tunnel. four and three-quarters miles
In length. was built in twelve years a. a cost OF
100000
The Manchester Ship Canal. extending some
thirty -four miles along the river Mersey above
tidewater, commenced and finished within
reasonable time at a cost OF 100000
And. last Of ALL the Kiel Canal, connecting the
Baltic and North Seas. begun. promptly fin
shcd and put into the service OF commerce. which
Is quick to make Of 1t. no less than 1864 vessels
having paid their toll pass through It In the last
year.
These are sufficiently well-known examples OF
great public improvements which have. for the
most part been undertaken by Private enterprise,
begun, carried on, finished and been put Into use.
while public works of equal importance Intimately
affecting the interests OF commerce In the waters
around this city, suffered, in this busy age, 10
drag for twenty years more. causing energetic
men smile at such incomprehensible methods OF
progress.
No one. certainly will claim that the traffic OF
the Manchester the Kiel Canal is enough greater
than that OF the Hudson River and the Long Island
Sound to account for the expeditions construction
of them. compared with the slothfulness In con-
structing the Harlem River and the Harlem Kills
canals These latter. when put in service will con-
meet the Hudson River directly with the spacious
deep-water harbor OF Long Island Sound at Port
Morris. forming entirely route for the
lake and river craft and the coasting service by
this short cut through the centre Of the Greater
City, saving by this direct aad safe route nearly
twenty miles of the present crowded navigation
around the city and through Hell Gate.
IL is well known that on the completion OF the
Erie Canal De Witt Clinton intended It's eastern
outlet be this very route through the Harlem
River and the Kills from the Hudson to the Sound
and that he formulated legislation for this pur-
pose during the winter of 1926. These well-con-
ceived plans interrupted by his death In 1928,
but during the succeeding fifty years legislation
various charters were granted for it, only to lapse
or be annulled
In 1874 the Harlem River surveyed by the
General Government but not dollar had been
appropriated by the State or Government for doing
the work until the writer took the matter up, i'm
PEELED by the unaterable conviction that the great
commerce from the West passing forward through
the Hudson required increased facilities in THIS mar
bor which was becoming Inadequate twenty years
ago. - 40, ...u, elena,
ture October H. 1870. propounding the question 10
the commercial men of the Eastern and Western
States and of the city and State OF New York.
whether they desired to have the HUDSON on, River
Port Morris connected by canal formed by tne
Harlem River and the Harlem Kills. leading thus
directly through the centre OF the city. me an
swer In the affirmative was prompt ana emphatlc;
and the constituencies above indicated requested
rSnsysss to make lor ne ;
ooc condition that the right OF way be furnished
The United States engineer in charge here could
no. thus obtain the right OF way, and IN conse.
present laid aside all work relating to the i'm
provement. Being requested by his constituents 10
negotiated for the right Of way, and on October
% 1878 rendered 1t as gift to the Government
lem River Canal according to the engineei sur
vey and report for the sum {. Of sSVO9 the ens,
was strongly supported in this measure; ana me
importance to commerce OF the work which miSht
tho favorable considera ton of such a proposal.
especially the act was mandatory for its COM con.
The proposition was not however. accepted. and
after eighteen years the main canal remains UNI
completed and the Harlem Kills section Is not
even begun. n may infer anything from thls.
II Is that our American enterprise Is no matcn
FOR the official routine Of n Government bureau:
The Harlem Kills section or the canal. Whlch Is
IN connect the Harlem River section with the
waters of Long Island Sound by an almost straight
channel 400 feet long was surveyed and mapped
in ISL by the United States engineer, who estab-
lished the lines with width OF 800 feet and depth
OF IL or IS feet at mean low water The bottom ~
rocky and the exposed situation and strong tidal
currents through the present channel render IL DE-
srabe also that II be begun ana competed "ithih
q reasonable time. oo-
II is worthy of note that in the election or 1885
the citizens OF the State were summoned to vote
as to whether State bonds should be issued TO the
amount of s9O0OCCO for the improvement or the |
state canals principally the Erie The vote was
in the affirmative and the work * now being car
riod on i'm some places day and night. An addi-
tional amount OF $4,000 for lock attendance and
Incidental repairs was also appropriated last year
the steel canalboats now In experimental service
are demonstrating their ability to visit the various
lake ports for cargoes. which would imply that
they could pass through the city or New-Iork ana
Wew.Uaver Hartford or further East-compeing |
successfullv with the railroads.
With the example of Europe before us and with |
~uch a decided advance all along the line Of the |
state canal system should not the Genera GOV. |
arnn,ent he expected to direct the completion of
the Harlem Kills Canal In the most expeditions |
way-rnder one contract. II necessary?
""' CHARLES STOUGHTON.
New-York Jan. q 1897.
GOVERNOR BLACK ON USELESS LAWS.
TO the Editor Of The Tribune.
Sir. From the concluding paragraph OF Gov |
or,or HACKS message touching useless and |