The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1907-03-19
THF eToRY OF H INLAND WATERWAY.

and all the large sections of the @t@te
tributary - these waters. and the
Whole thereof are land-rcked from
the ocean. From none % THESE was-
ers could one reach Beaufort inlet.
because the only waterway leading
thereto Was Core sound. which had q
dsrtn ~ ONLY about FIVE feet. and 2
most tortuous channel The only pos
sible exit from ans 81 these waters
vas northwardly through one ~ the
two private canals: Dismal swamp
canal and tie .Albemarle & Chesapeake
Pay. Every ton of products shipped
IN and out Of the state must pass
through one OF these canals and must
pay toll. Is it a wonder that the water
Of Eastern North Carolina
had languished? IN addition. even if
Ocracoke inlet had remained open 70
navigation. all shipping bound north
must pass around only the less danger
Gus Cape Lookout. This condition inn
posed another restriction.
AS stated, these were the conditions
at the time Of MIR. SmalFs election, ana
he had written much about them and
dreamed about il. The files Of the
News and Observer viii show that
sometime in 1896 ne wrote an article
for the News and Observer on this
subject which attracted attention.
Therefore, upon his election Mr.. Small
resolved to undertake, through ON
gressional legislation. to remedy this
dcplorabfe condition and unlock the
1ratarc Of I1aStat,n North carolina At
that time he had only a Slight know
ledge Of the legislative mill" and
might have hosjtatcd ii he could lave
anticipated all of the difficulties and
all the disappointments and some of
the home discouragements which have
been met. In pursuance Of his plan,
he made an effort on the converting Of
the first Congress to WhLlf-he was ad-
mitted in December. 1899, to secure
IN appointment on the Committee
Of Rivers and Harbors, but failed. BY
the way, that effort has been renew
ed at each successive Congress, the
18th, 58th and 59th, With the same
failure, but there is no doubt that he
would have been appointed to some
vacancy during the last two terms OF
Congress, except for his persistent adj
Oca OF this project and the neces-
sary ~antagonism TO Hon. L. T.. Bur
ton, who has been Chairman Of the
House Committee on Rivers and Har-
bors during his entire term of service.
The first River and HarDor bill af-
ter his election passed in 1900, and
contained a provision authorizing d
survey of the water way from South
Mills (Which is the southern end of
the Dismal Swamp canal). thence
SOuth through P~aSQuotank river
through .tlbemarle Sound and Croa-
tan Sound and Pamlico inlet. The
engineers in their report, While com-
mending entirely the project FOR the
inland waterway, stated that it should
start lot from the end of one of these
canals, but from Elizabeth river on
which Norfolk is situated, so that there
might be a free waterway from Nor
folk southWardly and they recommend
ed that the proper southern terminus
should be Beaufort inlet and not Ocra-
coke. Mr.. Small realized that he had
made a mistake. as the result of the
insistance of some friends, and that the
engineers We're right.
The next River and Harbor act pass
ed in June. 1902, which contained a
provision for the appointment of three
engineers to survey and select a route
for the inland waterway. 16 feet
deep, extending from Norfolk, Va, to
Beaufort inlet. Now that they had Sc
lected q prope terminus, Mr.. small
realized that a great deal depended up
on getting the proper kind of report,
With complete and reliable commercial
data. One of the objections which its
opponents had urged, was that 1t would
affect very little and that
the project would be local to North
Carolina, and that it would have no
effect in promoting the coast-Wise
trade between southern and northern
ports. He knew they were wrong and
was confident that intelligent people
could be convinced to the contrary.
After conference with the Board of
Engineers appointed, they strongly
emphasized the importance of getting
commercial statistics showing the value
of his waterway to the cOaSt-WiSe
trade. He appeared before the Mer-
chants and Manufacturers Association
of Baltimore and also the Chamber Of
Commerce of Norfolk. and at his re
quest thew GENEROUSLY agreed to each
send q representative and pay his eX-
penSeS on a visit TO the principal ports
between Baltimore and Jacksonville.
This was very important. IN order to
impress the cities visited that il was
no personal project of Mr.. Small, but
a broad and comprehensive undertake
ing. At his expense and with the , gen
tlemen from Baltimore and Norfolk,
they visited Baltimore, Norfolk, Will
mington. Georgetown, Charleston,
Beaufort, S. c.. Savannah and Bruins
wick. Ga, Fernandina ana Jackson
Vile, Fla. At every one OF these cities
they were courteously received and
were given a hearing by their CONNER
cial organizations, and the project was
given a cordial and earnest approval,
aycant at lack 0pyitie. and at n sec