The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1905-03-09

cost us one-half as much as it does
now, and ships could be coaIed here
at proportionately as great an ad-
vantage. Our canal boats would tap
the greatest iron producing center il
the world. In fact it is only a ques-
ton OF few years when a canal beat
could go right into the heart of Birm-
ingham.
Better Than Another Railroad.
II is hard to conceive the immense
advantages that such a canal would
bring to us. 1t would divert the thou
sands of tons of iron that now goes
by rail from the Birmingham district
to tidewater on the eastern coast down
the waterway by the canal route o
tidewater at Pensacola. Then the i'm
mense amount of iron and other ma
terials that will be used to build the
: Panama canal, and the immense traf-
nc of this kind that will go to the
Panama canal after completion would
seek tidewater through this. canal in
stead of by railroad.
1t is true that Mobile is already on
this waterway but it must be remem-
bered that Mobile is under one ire
mendeOus disadvantage that cannot
be overcome for long period of years,
! if ever. That is, Mobile is forty
miles from deep water She has plen-
ty of water for canal boats but not
enough for large ocean vessels. Such
being the case the canal boats already
loaded could come right over to Pen
sacola bay in a few additional hours,
where ocean steamers may load to full
depth with perfect safety and then
pass out to open sea in less than an
hours time.
There is reason to believe that a
great deal of the cotton from the rich
belt of Alabama, which is traversed
by this inland waterway, would also
be diverted to Pensacola. The advant-
! ages are many. but will not speak
+ Of them further.
Remarkable Natural Advantages.
There are two very remarkable
things about Pensacola. One is the
unsurpassed natural advantages that
surround the place and the other is
that the people have never profited
by them.
Other places have dug canals literal
ly out Of the country from one place
to another, through hills and hollows.
and through forests and blasting
channels in places through beds of
rock, all to get waterway for trans
portation. Here at Pensacola nature
has done nearly all the work neces-
sary for an inland waterway. For the
, dredging of canal for less than five
miles, through a loose formation, the
people of Pensacola can have a canal
route covering over five hundred miles.
Just think of it, Where is there an
other city in the world so blessed ma.
turally? Yet we sit dreaming or
sleeping our lives away by the sea.
How long would such an opportuni.
ty go unimproved if the advantages
were possessed by Mobile? The canal
would be reality within six months.
Not New Subject
Although a great many people know
little of nothing of this matter. yet it
is no new subject. The matter has
been talked of years ago, but like
many of our railroad projects il drop
ped mysteriously into nothingness.
Perhaps the people of Pensacola will
some day learn that if they would
have a canal or another railroad they
must trust the matter of getting them
to people whose hearts are not pain
fully close to the L. & n railroad.
Pull Together.
If the people of Pensacola will stop
pulling against each other and pull
together this canal, at least to Perdido
bay, will be a reality within a year.
Why not? Let the mayor and city
!, council get down to business and call
meeting of the business people and
set the thing to moving. 1t can be
done 1t will be done some day. Why
not do it now?
I, CHAS. H. BLISS.