Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1906-01-20
nIscallANHous aEooAn
MisrepressntinR tho situation.


Those thoughtless and uniformed ad-
vocates Of what is called a river front"
for Wilmington-who believe that all that
Il necessary for the commercial greatness
Of the city is 10 build wharves along the
Delaware River and connect them by a
good roadway with this city, regardless
Of the actual conditions of trade-are con-
tinually putting forth presumed argl-
ments which at times misrepresent the
real situation. Thus, we arc solemnly
abiured by one Of the most persistent Of
these misiniormed and ignorant advo-
oates-one whose particular grievance is
that the men who have made Wilmington
what it is today are -criminally blind to
the oity's real interests-that "by the time
Wilmington rounds out It's first century
as a city there will be wharyes along the
Delaware River shore"
In this Wild clamor about "wharvesl
wharvcsl wharvesp the real situation is
lost sight of. The natural inference Of
any uniformed person after reading the
expression Of despair above quoted would
be that there Is not a single wharf along
the entire length Of the Delaware River
with which the business interests Of Will
mington have the slightest connection.
Now, the fact is that there is, and has
been for years, a commodious and sub
stantial wharf on the Delaware River, just
outside the southeastern limits Of the city
Il is practically Wilmington wharf. II
was built more than twenty years ago, by
the Wilmington 4 Northern Railroad
which is now operated by the Philadel
phia 4 Reading Railroad. Il has direct
rail connection, over which trains rur
daily, with the city Of Wilmington anc
with the general railroad system of THU
city. Boats touch at this wharf, to un
load and take on freight, and the traffic il
considerable. For several seasons tn,
Philadelphia-Cape May steamboat stoppeC
at this wharf, going and returning, to TAX,
on and let off passengers. That whar
has not had an idle day since Il was pu
into commission.
So long as that wharf remains without
an associate or a competitor, II will b,
reasonable to presume that It Is nficien
for all the business needs Of tho city o
[ Wilmington. Whom business shall de
mand additional wharf facilities, they vii
be forthcoming So, also, will there b
the means Of speedy communication be
tween other wharves that may be con
structed, and the city proper, whenove
the demands Of business are sufficient 4
authorize their construction.
While the for cingprocess might brin
about wharves and roads, the latter vii
not bring business il the needs Of bushes
do not require them The city Of WI
mington has tried tho forcing process
The quid nuncs who assume that our cit
Gems are blind 10 the advantages Of thei
river front and have made no attempts {
utilize them merely display their ignc
rance. The city Of Wilmington expende
thousands Of dollars-probably S5OO0C
at conservative estimate-on the cor
struction Of a road 70 the river. and fnall
did construct a river road in South Wi
mington, by way Of Christiana River an
G street, more than twenty years ago.
committee Of City Council, which had Ii
work in charge, took the first trip over IN
road, from the City Hall 70 the river banl
and found il good driving the entire di
tanoe. But the road wasted into a Gov
path through disuse, and later the nv,
end Of it was vacated by an act Of Iegi
lature, mainly to relieve the city Of n
responsibility for damage by floods hreal
ing through the sluice that met the roa
at the river bank There was no deman
for the road, and its construction was
sseless expenditure Of money.
So much for the forcing process. As
legitimate ends, they will be met as the
arlse. Our people are progressive, an
when another wharf on the Delaware ar
another road to the river-steam, trolls
OF driving shall be necessary, they vi
provide them. Meanwhile, they will nj
shut their ewes to the fact that thore
already wharf on the Delaware. close
and firmly connected with this city. Z
ignore this fact is to decry an importai
advantage which the city now enjoys.
= -. a. ~.