The Cairo bulletin., 1905-07-24

"The present plan for improving the
Ohio river contemplates navigable
depth of 6 feet at pool stage, which
depth is insufficient by 21s feet for the
system of boats now In use on the
river in the transportation of freight
20 New Orleans. The pools below
lam No. ] on the Ohio river will
therefore, be useless TO- harbor pur-
loses for the craft now in use. and
T increased harhora1e in the vic'n ty
f Pittsburg is sought down the Ohio
liver il can only be obtained in two
ways Boats must either be so chang
ed as 10 draw only feet, or the syir
tenn of locks and dams be SO changed
rs to accommodate at least the pres
ent boats. -"
after consulting the larger ship
Ders of caal from Ptsburg to New
Orleans. the conclusion is reached
bat tow ng by the wholesale from
Pttsburg 20 New Orleans can be done
IN a profit on foot draught at a
cost of Is cents per ion of freight tow
Cd and at a cost of 81 cents per ton
on a foot draught. This. however,
would not form a proper basis for
comparing this system of transporta-
ton with any other. 1t does not in
clude the cost of the return of the
barges to Pittsburg or the cost of the
cheaply constructed coal boat that is
often not returned Charging to trans
Dortation the cost OF the coal boat
and assuming that il goes with the
cargo, the cost of transporting coal
10 New Orleans on foot draught
Is $167h per ton, and ON 8 foot
draught $1.35h. The net saving
therefore, to the transporter of coal
on . foot draught instead of a G
foot draught is, under any circum.
stances, 321a cents per ton on freight
from Pit,sburg to New Orleans.
'It is confidently believed by the
5oard thar the saving On higher grades
# freight shipped in boats that will
be returned will be at least as much
and probably more than that stated
above There were shipped from
Pittsbnrg south during the last fiscal
wear via The Oaio river 4,G1G.227 tons
With a depth of feet in the Ohio and
Mississippi rivers, and with the 18th
mian canal completed, It is thought
To be safe TO assume that the above
saving viii be affected on at least 10,
| 100000 tons of freight q year. A sav
ng of 321a cents per ton in the trans
| portat'on Of the above amount b
reight would be $3,250, 900 per an
lum, which if capitalized at pc
sent would be $10S,333 1888"
Some OF these statements are sui
ocs to question Why greater dept
sor % miles than for the entir
| length of the river? Should the or
ginal project for GIFT. channel, whicl
II new under way, be carried to CON
pletion, there would be no necessit
for harborage in the Pittsburg distr q
The object of the project for 6f
i channel Is the providing of sufficien
depth of water by means of locks an
dams to permit boats of not exceet
ing GIFT. draught to navigate withou
interruption, except wnen the river
closed by ice, etc. The late Col. Wi
liam E Merrill, who gave the canalizf
/, tion of the Ohio much study and VIII
built its first lock and dam, stated i
: his report Of June 80, 1876 on the oJ
position of the coal shippers to th
construction of the lock and dam q
, Davis Island (known as Dam No.
as follows
f THE truth is that were the Obi
river provided with a perpetual 6-f
. navigation there would be no nee
for the huge fleets thar can only ri
/ dur ng few months Of the year, an
at other times are tied to the bank
The traffic in coal would become reg
lar and constant, but reco
nize the fact that the shipment of Co
is not the only nor even the chief col
merce on the Ohio river; that ho,
- ever, valuable in its effect on oth'
: industries, the total annual value
o the coal thar descends the Ohio
but $4,000, 900, as compared with
general river commerce of about 500
100000.
The harboring of coal and 9th