The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-07-02

OI lne HlNeFS anu of the Alabama Commercial and Indus trial Association submitted by the Chairman ". F. Vandiver, of Mont gomery. to the annual meeting or that body held in Gadsden last week:
 MT. President and Gentlemen or the
 Alabama Commercial and Indus
 trial Association:
 To a body of representative citizens of Alabama such as are here assem- bled, who are connected with, and VI . tally interested in her commercial ana industrial life. 1t is unnecessary, l take it, to consume the time of the Associa- ton by endeavoring to review the many great possibilities of our State which possibilities and opportunities are not confronting us as they have never done before in the history of the South,
 You are all students of the welfare of your State. You are. in general way which our great State possesses, and are also we'll versed as to the enter prise being exhibited. and the progress being made by Alabama in this new era of material prosperity. We all have the utmost confidence in the ulti- mate excellence of Alabama over other States of the Union. because of the Gods given material wealth; the true her ever increasing thrift and energy. However, in our State organization, composed of the various local associa : tions of our progressive cities, the portioned out to various committees These committees have. doubtless, con centrated their efforts along the par ticular lines of work assigned to them, and have not zone minutely into the details of the work of the other com mittees, relying upon their respective reports at our annual meetings. 10 gather information along the different lines of work.
 To your Committee on Rivers and Harbors. of the State Association, has A,,Aw. NA Nlrt af ter the interests of Alabama in that particular respect. We would be pleased to be able to report greater progress than has already been made, but we believe you understand that such matters consume more time than any other character of civic develop ment. because we are largely at the mercy of Congress, upon whose appro- this class of improvement.
 There IS Q movement which is very general throughout the country, to in- duce Congress to look with more favor upon the appropriations for river and harbor improvement To that end, there was held recently a National Rivers and Harbors Cd gress, at most of the States of the Union. and Alabama enjoyed he distinction of having one Of the strongest delegations that Congress were. primarily that of educating. the people of the country to the importance of greatsr Improvement of ou.' ports and waterways. An ad- bile was one of the features of the meeting. This Congress has been of great benefit to the country. and the work 1t has so well begun should be taken up and carried on.
 We have in our National Congress, broadminded and liberal man, who is using every effort in his power to se- cure for the rivers and harbors of our country that due consideration al the hands of the government. to which they are justly entitled: especially is he interested in such improvements In the South. He possesses an absolute knowledge of every condition sur rounding each project submitted, and is absolutely impartial in the consider to the Hon. Theodore E. Burton of Ohio, Chairman of the Rivers and Harbers Committee of the House of Representatives.
 Tn an address before former session of the National Rivers and Harbors Congress. Mir. Burton said:
 The great advance in our trade. and especially in our exports. during the last few years. has been the marvel of the commercial world. For "he main tainirg of this increase 1t is necessary to provide adeouate means to carry tn } products of the farm. the forest, the mine and the factory. and to provide deep and convenient harbors in which these products may be loaded for ship ment to all DdrIS or the WOTlO. NOt to go forward is to go backward. In this era of expanding commerce, when we hope for peace everywhere; the corquerors of the earth are not those merchants the manufacturers and the shippers. who control the great move ments of commerce..
 Nature has been partial to Alabama in the distribution of her gifts. She has been endowed with the magnifi- cent port of Mobile. and with a magnlf- :cent system of water ways. Time was, before the advent of the railways, these streams. penetrating as they do the vital parts of the State. like arter- les of the human system. pulsated with the lifeblood of the community-com- merce. They were the only means Of conveying to the people of the interior the necessities of life. and were also the means of affording transportation for the products of the farms and fac tories of the entire interior. Railroads began to build themselves across the State in all directions, and the water facilities began to be abandoned The streams naturally deteriorated for want of proper attention at the hands of the government. which along has author ity to improve and maintain them. Ir | this time of very close competition in present themselves as very attractive attributes to commerce where such fla | cilities are available. and we find our | selves now turning for relief to our waterways. But. we find them, in the main in a pitiable condition. It re- quires large expenditures of money to reclaim them from the encroachments of the sands of time" We now real- | ize that. in our frenZied rush for de velopment. we have lost sight of the facilities which nature gave us in the | form of our available rivers. We now realize more than ever that the rivers | of this country stand as protectors be- tween the shipper and any excessive or prohi5itive freight rate on the part of | the railroads. Our rivers are, at all times. open to those who wish to avail themselves of that method of transpor- tation. they cannot be monopoliZed. and in very substantial manner do they solve the problem if available and properly aVailed of. of discrimination against persons or localities by the railroads,
 We do not want to be understood as underValuing. or being unappreciatINe of or unfriendly to our great railway systems, for they have besr and are still great develop 9r5. and should be treated fairly and justly on all occa- sions at the s1me time there must be the proper degree of supervision by our Commiss ion. and we should see to 1t that nothing but absolute fair play right anu justice be done the pcolle; we should earnestly advocate this su pervision. but with the idea in view of doing justice to both the railI pads and the people.
 Water transportation has ever besn one of the greatest factors in freight rate cornetttiCn In prd2. tC IcCopt- plish results al1ne the lide of such inn pr0Veme7ts, it is proper that we should all unite ir eadeavorinG to impress upon Congress tn necessity for m4k ing more liberal apor3priatlons fer riv- CTS and harbors
 It has been well said. by Congress man Banxh nad. that "no State in the Union can ofer oha same high meas