The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-02-10
Field, SchIick Go,
CROKER SEES DISASTER.
Thinks buffalo nnd New York Have
Few Cards Up Their

A. l.. Crocker of the Minneapolis
beard Of trade. spoke yesterday earn
e$tly about what he terms d movement
which threatens the life and prosperity
of the entire Northwest. He says it is
engineered by Buffalo and New York
elevators and the Erie canal with the
view of Obstructing and making more
expensive the outlet by way Of the
great lakes. He says these institutions
for local and personal advantage seem
to be attempting to seal up the Eastern
outlet Of the great lakes system with
an utter disregard of the damage il
would tnfict on the vast Northwest
He quotes from the Detroit Tribune
which says
"A gentleman familiar with the ma
rine interests of the great lakes and
with matters in Washington as well.
said to the Tribune yesterday that
lot OF people representing large inter
ests in Buffalo and in other parts of
New York state are hustling TO fore
stan the report CT the deep waterways
commission as to the best way OF Sc
curing an allwater route to the sea
from the great lakes, and to get the
rational government irrevocably com
mitted to the Improvement of the Erie
canal.
1t is feared said he, that the com
mission will favor a deep canal channel
that will permit lake steamers to go to
New York city without breaking bulk
at Buffalo. TonaWanda or some point
on the Niagara river will be the termi-
nus of such a waterway and not Buff
falo.
Maj Symons in command OF the
government engineers of the Buffalo
district advocates the expenditure of
$20,OOO0GO in deepening the Erie canal.
making it large enough to accommo-
date barge Of much larger capacity
than the present type of canal boat
but still too small for use on the lakes.
Buffalo will then still remain the pOr;
for the transfer of grain from lake tC
canal That is what Buffalo is aftei
exactly"
An article recently appeared in thu
Cleveland Leader from the pen of the
DISTINGUISHED marine architect, JOSEPH
X. Oldham, from which Mr.. Crockel
takes brief extracts, as follows:
Maj. Symons overlooked the possibility.
nay, should say the probability, Of this
lake a. region being capable of producing
steamships for ocean service cheaper and
better than they can be produced in
Europe.
The fact is we could even today ex-
port steamers to Europe at a profit to
our shipbuiIders, If out steel makers would
sell their steel to US at export prices
Then what are our opportunities if we get
our steamships to the ocean? Why simply
this: The 100 large British ship yards turn
out about 1250,OjG tens of shipping per
annum, worth about SIS Gee OO). and l verify
believe that if could float steamers OF
10000 tons each to the ocean. which could
easily be done on twenty feet CT water. it
would not be many years before we would
nave more than 100 large Snipbuildng yards
on these lakes which would give employ
ment to hundreds OF thousands Of mechanics
and augment our exports ION ships, at any
ratel by many millions per annum.
What we require most IS a twenty-fO0t
channel, so that the largest steamers could
float intact to the Atlantic. Il seems to
me almost like waste of time arguing on
this subject, for. without vast resources in
this lake district, it amounts to a moral
certainty that a large ship canal win be
constructed long before the end of the
present generation.
IF We do not construct it. some more
will certainly do so.
Joseph R. Oldham"