The Cairo bulletin., 1906-11-19
THE LAKE no GULF WATERWAY.

The meeting Of the Lakes-to-the-
lGulf Deep Water Association adjourn.
ed yesterday with a banquet, after a
two days session. 1t was called for
the purpose OF organizing the asso.
citation TO promate the deepening Of
I the channel from Chicago To the Gulf
and maintaining ii AT n depth of four,
teen feet Little was done by the CON
| yention except TO perfect the organiza.
/ ton of the association and to listen TO
1 a number Of speeches in support Of its
object. As to the cost of such an un-
deraking, the views OF It's promoters
vary with Il very wide margin BY
some Ii is claimed that the object can
be obtained for the sum of $50,000.000
but his Is misleading, being far below
| the estimates. crude as they are, of
competent engineers who have given
their opinion on the subject
| Ii is claimed by some of its advo-
Gates that the channel from Chicago
to ST. Louis can be made of that depth
for s31 100000. but This is palpably an
error The Chicago drainage canal
which empties into the Illinois river
cost s50,000,000 and unless this is util-
lied as part of the waterway, another
adequate for the purpose could not be
constructed with necessary approach
es for much less sum. Then there
will have TO be locks and dams on the
Illinois river for the greater part of
800 miles, which, at current cost of |
construction. would amount to han rs |
much more.
But, having reached the Mississippi |
the problem would be far from solu
ton. Despite the great size of the
river and volume water IL dis.
charges. navigation for a good part of
It's channel between ST. Louis and the
Gull Is very uncertain for large boa s
OF not half the draught of those pro
posed TO be provided for, and is quite
lmpraeticable for six months in the
year. The cost, therefore. Of provid
ing a fourteenfoot channel would be
very heavy, and for maintaining il
world involve an annual expense bui
lltffe Tess than the first cost. Locks
aud dams would be wholly impractic.
able. and the vast quantities of sand
and earthly matter carried in suspen.
sion by the stream would be constant.
ly Filling up the channel and requiring
its reopening, All of this expense Is
lost sight OF in the estimates.
Some idea of the expense of such
may be arrived AT by the
estimates just given out by Gen Nc.
Kenzie, Chief of the Army Engineers.
OF the ANIMAL appropriations neces.
sary for maintaining the present chan
mel embracing the following: For the
jetties at the mouth of the river. ST.
500 900; for the mississippi from Cairo
10 the head of the passes. ST.. 900 900.
and from the mouth Of the Ohio TO the
month of the Missouri. $G50.000. The
latter is for maintaining an eight-foot
channel for distance of bur little
over 200 miles. II is well. therefore.
In view OF these facts, not 10 under
estimate the cost Of making. in the
first instance, much less OF maintain.
ing. fourteen-fOot channel for a dis.
lance OF 500 miles more
In calling attention to these facts. II
is In no spirit Of hostility or opposl. /
tion 10 the great object had in view by
the friends of the Lake-to-Gulf water. {
way scheme Bat the character of
work required. chief of which is a
canal or artificial waterway between |
Lake Michigan and the headwaters oil I
the Mississippi, does not place II with.
IN the same sphere as the improve.
ment OF national waterways already
available for navigation much Of the
year. That feature of the scheme /
should be considered by itself. separai
and aDari from and not chargable to
the annual appropriations for rivers
and harbors. The maintenance ~ 4
steamboat navigation for the Miss
issippi from the mouth Of the Mis-. ]
souri, or even higher is another thing {
and comes properly under the head of
rivers and harbors appropriations a
But If the cost OF a ship canal II
Chicago is to be pro rated with all
pending and future river improve 9
ments the completion Of any of those $
projected or now under way will be
50 far retarded as TO amount almost I
10 an indefinite postpOnement.
The fact that the convention at s;
Louis was limited In It's action Chiefly
TO matters Of organization may he ex
planned by the announcement from
that on the twenty-sev.
snth of this month another convention.
having similar object. will be held iE
81. Louis. when details Of the pro
posed work will be more fully dis
,nssed. -Courial-Iournal