The age-herald., 1901-07-28

-F one desires to call out quick sheer or a sarcastic utterance, let
 him venturously predict in this <S town the early completion of the 'van Hoose Canal He will find skeptics on every hand. Some say one thing, some another; but the stand ard argument relates to the scant volume of water in the upper reaches of the Warrior and it's tributaries during the dryer months of the year. '"rllere is not" 30 the popular remark goes, enough water there to float catfish
 It is not proposed to make Village creek an arm of the sea, in which salty tides shall ebb and flow. All that is proposed is slackwater navigation six feet deep the year round, by means of dams and locks. The doubter In this matter should study the Monongahela improvement. not alone in Pennsylvania, but, also in the wilds of West Virginia, which was once no larger than the Warrior above Tuscaloosa-no larger in it's extreme upper branches than Village creek Out of the improved Mo- nongahela of to-day come barges bear ing coal that is carried the length of the Ohio valley and of the lower Mississippi. Slackwater navigation did it. and what slackwater has accomplished in Pennsyl- vania and West Virginia will be accom- plished in Alabama A little more time will be needed in the latter case, not be- cause of any greater natural obstacles, but because Alabama's "pull'' at Wash ington is not equal to Pennsylvania or even that of the state of Eikins and Scott Congressman Underwood and his co-workers in the state do not belong to the dominant party. and they have to ac- cept what their opponents will grant. But all are agreed that the Warrior must be opened, and the work on that river has been placed on the continuing contract basis, and in the course of five years open river up to the switching limits of mines and factories in the Birmingham district Is not only probability, but a practical certainty. Engineers know how to store water for use in dry weather, and the entire water problem of the ex- tension is but a matter of reservoirs. Water falls in sufficient quantities-this is conceded and it's storage in lakes is all that is left for the engineer to work upon. Storage lakes are neither difficult nor very expensive. Modern engineers do not hesitate before such a problem. The government has spent a great sum upon the Warrior and Tombigbee, and the expenditure of as much more will will bring an open stream very close to the heart of the district, Birmingham it. self. The government cannot afford to turn back now, and the needs of the dis trict call for the speedy opening of the river to tugs and barges that draw up to six feet of water-barges made of steel that will carry 800 tons of coal or iron or other weighty product. The river will be opened even to Birmingham. No one need doubt this. and five years from to-day no one will doubt the full com pletion of the great work.
 Slow Growth in the Meanwhile.
 Until this is accomplished, Birmingham msst be content with slow progress-with steps that mean greatness. We can build toward great future. but cannot now share that future. For example, our stores of ore and fuel and Aux cannot be fully utilized-only scratched in order to show the world what they are capable of. This is why only one stack has been add ed in the entire district since the days of the great iron boom-only one, the third ghomas stack. Not another one has been