The Indianapolis journal., 1898-01-26
CHICAGO'S HARBOR.
An Artificial River Planned to Give
Access from Lake for Big Boats.

Chicago Letter in New York Post.
We must certainly give Chicago the credit
for having the courage to undertake great
things. No expense alarms her when OBJ
ject is in view that is manifestly for the
general benefit of the city. Just now Chi
cago people are worrying about their bad
increase in the receipts of wheat at Duluth
and the interesting fact that the movement
of corn and other coarse grains which used
to be almost wholly controlled here, is seek
ing the head of Lake Superior more and
more every year. The cost of loading YES
sci with grain at Duluth and getting her
started on her voyage for Buffalo is now
considerably less than at Chicago. The ves-
sci captains all prefer to go to Duluth be-
cause of the narrow, tortuous and shallow
channel that forms the harbor of Chicago.
Just at the time when the tendency to-
wards larger size for lake craft began this
city committed the folly OF practically
blcckading her river near it's mouth against
deep-draught craft by building huge walls
across it to accommodate by tunnels the
street cars that run 10 the North Side and
the West Side. The tunnels have become a
very serious barrier to the navigation of the
stream Large vessels cannot take a full
load at the elevators and get out to the lake
without knocking and scraping their bot
toms against the tunnel roofs. Unless a
remedy can be found Chicago must cease to
be a first-class port. At present all of the
large lake steamers must find landing
commodations in the short stretch of river
that lies below the Clark-street tunnel.
Several years ago, when the harbor prob
lem began to look serious, an effort was
begun TO transfer all the u6dNY lake DuSl-
ness to new harbor at South Chicago, ten
miles or more away from the present busi-
ness center. A good deal of money was
spent upon the scheme, but it has proven 10
be weak, from the fact that to make it "a
complete success would involve the removal
from their old quarters of nearly all the
existing heavy transportation and storage
plants-the grain elevators, the lumber
yards, the coal and ore docks and the
wharves for merchandise The inconveni-
ence of handling freight at such distance
from the business center is too great. In
fact, it is question whether, If this Were
done, the business center itself would not
go with the main commodities in which
it deals. At present. two methods of i'm
proving the old harbor are under discus
sion. The first is to lower the tunnels and
to force the street-railway companies TO
pay the cost. This would no doubt require
legislation and a long fight, in which the
city might at least be beaten. Meanwhile.
the engineers of the drainage canal, flushed
with their success in making great arti-
fcial water channel, come forward with 2
magnificent plan for cutting river channel
right across the South Side from the old
river to the lake 1t is proposed that the
city shall condemn and pay for a strip of
land of the width of an entire city block,
running for nearly two miles across one of
the best-built business and residence dis
tricts tear down the buildings, dig broad
channel and border it with embankments
like the Thames embankment In London
Ihis would give WharI IacllleS on DOth
sides Of the waterway and would open TO
free access the old river above the tunnels
The plan is magnificent but what about
the cost? Perhaps this does not matter to a
city that is successful graphing with the
problem of making Lake Michigan run into
the Mississippi river. Tae great drainage
canal is nearly finished aad Chicago is evil
IDENTIFY ready for some pig new thing No
bigger thing is in sight than the creation of
a harbor adequate Cor the lake commerce
Of the city Chicago has been so proud of
late years of her position as the greatest
railway center of the country that she has
not given much attention 10 her lake COM
raerce but She has not forgotten that it
was lake commerce that first started a
town around the walls of old Fort Dear
born. The small lake vessels OF fifty or
sixty years ago could put into the mouth of
tho stagnant little creek called Chicago
river: consequently the city of the West
grew up here Railroads came TO confirm
and enlarge what the lake trade had
founded Dredging along the original creek
and its two branches made an interior