The Birmingham age-herald., 1903-05-11
WOULD LINE CANAL
 WITH SMOKESTACKS
Van HooSe Project May Yet be
 Carried Through
CONFERENCE WITH MORGAN
Company VIII be Organized to Con struct Canal, and This Will be Used as a Medium to Secure
 Government Aid.

The visit of Senator John T. Morgan to Birmingham promises to revive public in- terest in the Van Hoose canal project to such an extent that some definite action will be taken in the near future.
 A committee will be. appointed to look after the formation of 8 company and this company will seek charter from the state When the charter has been procured and the company is authorized to do business, steps will be taken to get the property along the route which Is necessary in building the canal, and the rights to property so acquired Will be turned over to the federal government, which, 1t is hoped will furnish the funds for the project
 The formation of this company will simply be for convenience in getting mat ters in such tangible shape that they can be laid before congress.
 The federal government will be asked to build the canal, but in cases of this kind the national government does not possess the right of eminent domain. Property can only be condemned for the canal by the legislature of Alabama It is understood that the formation of the company will be in order that the legisla- ture can delegate certain powers to it in connection with the condemnation of property along the route of the proposed canal.
 Company Merely Medium.
 The company will be a medium through
 A I,l,n rxFaxr to the national government certain prop erty, which, after reasonable recompense to the owners, can be used by the gov ernment for building and maintaining a canal
 J. A. VanIIoose, who has been closely identified with the canal project from it's inception, and who was chairman of the delegation which conferred with Senator Morgan at the Hotel Hillman on Satur- day night, will appoint committee short ly which will look after the formation of the canal company. Speaking of the pro- ject last night MT. VanHoose said:
 MT. Van Hoose Talks.
 "Water transportation for the 'Birming- ham district is now nearer realization than ever before. l regard the conference with Senator Morgan on Saturday night by some of our leading men as of more importance for this city. than anything that has happened for many day.
 When the matter Is properly laid be- fore congress there can be no doubt but that that body will make an appropria- ton for its construction.
 t1,n oI,4 that so much money has already been spent for locks in the Warrior river and that the business done on the river has not justified the expenditure, we can an- swer as we have always done, that to get business they must extend the canal to the place where business Is.
 "The route for the canal has been thor oughly surveyed, both by local and gov ernment engineers, and the project is pronounced by them to be so simple that 1t is not even an interesting engineering problem"
 Route from Locust Fork.
 The route for the canal. according to these surveys, is from the Locust Fork of the Warrior river near Swansea, in Blount county, down through North Bir- mingham to the Warrior river again, striking It about twelve miles below where the Locust Fork flows into the Warrior This is near Palos. and is just below Hurd's Shoals
 The route proposed from Birmingham to the Warrior Is down Village creek to g. point below Ensley, then cutting through the ridge to Possum valley strik- ing Valley creek at McAdory's mill, then down that stream to the Warrior.
 It is estimated that by constructing dam across Locust Fork at Swansea, abundant water can be supplied to the canal. both for navigation and manu- featuring purposes. An abundant water supply would mean the location of many more industries One enthusiast expresses 1t by saying it would be 'lined with smokestacks."