New-York tribune., 1903-06-30
LAKE ONTARIO AND CANAL ROUTE
Statements Show Feasibility of Taking Lake
Vessels to the Hudson.
the Editor Of The Tribune.

To the Editor of The Tribune
| Sir. The State Canal Committee has issued
statement TO the effect that the Lake Ontario route
and ship canal ere both iclpractcable' whlcn you
have editorially noticed. Your position mas peei
Thar +be canal referendum would bring out the
facts I helped make the platform OF the C4eVe-
land Deep Waterway Convention. ana was Hdlieu
vice-presdent Of the association for this State and
have been in constant communication with Inc Ine
| of all the States interested. and have taken all
matter published this State on roads and water
ways the last decade Our excellent state deputy
Engineer William Pierson Judson, formerly gov
ernruent engineer at Oswego. states tnat the OTl~
tario route is practicable and points out the seven
harbors of refuge No with common sense
can assert that il IS not pracucaple lor VesSeiS
navigating the upper lakes.
The committee says that nobody has investigated
a 35foot channel That Is true. but it avoids the
fact that through efforts Presidents Cleveland
and Mckinley appointed commission ana poaro oL
survey which with the expenditure Of seven years
tine and S5000, have carefully surveyed deeP
z-atar1-ays through the lakes to the Hudson sea-
board On the basis OF q and 80 feet, and tnat the
estimate for 80 feet Of $3o00oO0o0 includes the con-
strlction Of harbors and channels on the lakes 10
correspond By the last River and Harbor bill we
bava affected with canal and lock to Tonawanda
and the regulation of the lake levels, tuIl q ieet
to that point on the Niagara River This Is peing
done by the United States.
The deem waterway around Niagara uniting On
+ario commercially with the other lakes involves
only twelve miles of canal with nine locks on
21-foot basis. passing 90o ton VeSsei III nine
hours; having ample water supply and no excaVa-
ZION except for prism and locks These locks oVo
nv SO feet will pass vessels OF They are not
tnpracticable, as the Poe lock at ST. Mary ano
the lock at Yrnuiden the North Sea Canal which
I have personally inspected, are larger and more
difrcrIt of construction. There are only thrty-s&
looks in thg entire route to New-York. half the
number on the Erie Canal or barge route Ihls
Niagara ship canal will cost only $4S00o0O0 and Will
bring 4 5000 ton vessel to Oswego and along our
15n nv7iIpE y
The deep waterway from Oswego to Oneida Lake
another natural body Of water. has only SIX LOCKS
and only twenty-seven miles, Only ha!t OF Wflch Is
canal and will cost S2oooOOOO A spur OF Tess tnap
e. ,oiIee and costing about Sc, 100000 will connect
Orondag ga Lake with this, or for about So9,Vt0VUo
we bring 21-foot way and the Great Lakes haV1-
CATION system into Onondaga and Onelda lakes ana
central New-York. Is not this better than the
barea Uav over the interior route OF over one hun
creG ana fifty Iniles, which Will cost quite as lItIc
and only bring 1U00 ton barge? FROM OAelds 70
Herkiner the deep waterway carries the level o.
Mohawk which is canalzed by dams naEtns SACK SACK
water navigation. As the board oL SurEty Louao'
iIg Gloss section, as readily done on A-ioot or
8o-foot basis as lefTaipbt cut from the Mohawk
into the Hudson. on the whole route there are ohy
l02 miles canal against more thah douoIe that oh
In fhs the vessels viii make 80 miles an hour
fi55 in Inc barge canal wherein the barges can
f6d 3y 52aace ak Of cahaiized rivers and
the vessels will be able TO make tweive aLG NJ one @
on T ne cross section is fifth greater than other
World canals wherein SIS miles or six miles an
hoIr is allowed and made, such canals being about
Suusz -Raieer Wilhelm St Marys, North Sea. Man
cteSter and Chicago. As shown, the canal sections
LII he NIAGARA Il miles. Oswego-Oneida, 13
rriiae. 0re Mohawk 46 miles; Mona wK- Hudson.
H. rast This is nothing comparable 10 Suez, 1e0
rniiea ehout 60 miles canal: Kaiser Wilhelm. 81
miles and Chicago, IS miles built by single cltes
w sav nothing OF St. Mary or some or our
So-Sor york ractically ship canals and the ship
c@neIs lust constructed in Buffalo by steel com
s,1nn~ior and Niagara Of like dimensions.
T,he only canal comparable in cross section IS
the St Clair Flats. where observation on speed
eF lnnp,n Vessels of the lakes has been made (see
o-rer6v rated states Board Of Survey reportl OF
ih+ ~ aftaen miles The cost of the vessel does
elsht 70 ~ Teen TIE cheapest vehicle the
I.-.-e3,,e carrier else the wheelbarrow were best
IT, @rafobt ra+s on deep waterway as found is
- ~ Mil ton mile or throush rate a lon,
S,,,Tth ~ chicago TO New York of 80 cents. The
bsrga canal only offers 80 cents ron from BuHAto
20 Tevryork and rate OF .ss OF 2 mill or as some
I.jro - ~ a Mill ton mile. The shin canal will
oiIou toll of % Of mill raising s4oVJvoo on us
$zs ooo 0ao annual traffic. same as 500 canal had
80. ,,ssr arS vet have transportation rate OF
nrlr 81 of a mill or less than barge rate with no
OILY % ~ i1'' nscitv This 21-foot deep
NV will bring the whole trafhc o. the treat Lakes
ar5a-ican ard Canadian. to NeW-fork ana make
- ~ 5e f,,nneI Of the continental basin pro-
r,a+inp ;rcn ara steel industries both primary
| Iv-bich barge wav canDot) and stcohoafN ahu 49,
hi,ft,,I1irr sn4 carroes will be transferred to
- s-a.r o.a@t carriers. which the canal COM
Llf..aa k.t,r t-dfcstes are distinct tyne Why
HtavtS Naug p @-tr oppose this desirable result or
c-,- q ou~ as iu1practtcahle. when the Farmers
National Congress and the National Board OF Iraos