New-York tribune., 1900-11-19
BETTER PIERS FOR THIS PORT.

The plans of the Dock Department to con-
struct a number of new wharves In the East
River deserve commendation. NeW-Iork
waterfront has not yet been developed and
! looked after as it should have been. There is
no need to enlarge upon the marvellous natural
advantages of this port, which may well bear
comparison with those Of any other. The Lower
Bay, the Upper Bay, the Hudson River and
Long Island Sound, with the arm of the sea
which divides Manhattan and Long Island
could welcome the vessels of every nation and
provide for them the safest and most secure
anchorage. Other famous cities on the edges
of the oceans have spent and are spending enor-
nous sums to overcome the obstacles which
nature has put in the way Of their assuming
places in the foremost rank of commercial
centres. There is Antwerp, for instance. 1t
has been decided to use a sum equivalent to
SIP 600 900 in our money for harbor and water
front improvements in the Belgian city. The
wealth and resources of Belgium incon-
siderable when reviewed in relation to the
riches and capacities of this Republic, and the
taxable value Of the property in Antwerp is so
far below that of New-York that the two ports
cannot be looked upon as rivals. But New-York
has been too self-satisfed and has been back
ward in making the best use OF its opportuni-
ties Moreover its Representatives in Con-
gress have too often been sluggish or incompe-
tent, and the metropolis has not been enter
prIsing and persistent enough in the mighty
struggle for business supremacy. The appro-
priations for improvements in this harbor
should be bigger every year than they have been
at any time, and our merchants should exert
themselves with constant effort TO influence the
legislature and the municipal government to do
more than they have been doing for the enlarge
ment of the commercial facilities Of this city.
1t is proposed in the Dock Department to
take up a changed policy of construction with
certain number of new piers. Most of the
wharves on each side of Manhattan Island are
reared on piles In such manner that 1t will be
necessary to make them over entirely in half
century or less. 1t is intended to adopt engi-
neering methods which will not compel the de-
struction within forty or fifty years of such
spacious and costly buildings as the Cunard
Line and other steamship companies have set
up on the Hudson River side Of Manhattan.
This is certainly step in the right direction.
The companies which control the foreign COM
merce of New-York evince liberal disposition.
They are always willing to pay generous rentals
for piers and waterfront privileges and most of
them are broad minded and far sighted In the
addition of steamships Of the highest class and
embodying the noblest examples of marine
architecture and engineering to their already
magnificent fleets. Our public spirited citizens
cannot fail to regret that in the great majority
of cases the superb vessels which cross the At
lantic are not owned, commanded and manned
by Americans, although Americans contribute
extensively to the profits of the stockholders of
the Atlantic lines. Present conditions, how
ever, will not always endure. This country is
now so rich that European peoples are anxious
to negotiate loans here 1t is inevitable that
within reasonable time Americans will take
an effective part in the control and ownership
of the splendid ships which enter this harbor
/ NewYork's waterfront has been exceedingly
busy. populous and crowded in 1900. 1t will be
even more so with the coming of the twentieth
century.