The daily sentinel., 1907-12-03
WILL CONGRESS GIVE
$5O,OOO,OOO YEARLY
men OF MANY STATES WILL
Ask for Vast Appropriation for the Improve
ment Of Rivers and Harbors-Thiry-
three States are Interested and Wig
orous Campaign is Certain to be Waged
tspeciai TO me Daily sentinei)

(special TO rne Daily sentInel)
Washington, Dec. 3.-For the pur-
pose of demanding from congress an
annual appropriation of not less than
S5O,000,000 for rivers and harbors
improvements. influential citizens
from all over the country are arriv-
ing in Washington today to attend
the annual meeting of the National
Rivers and Harbors Congress.
The convention will open in the
assembly hall of the New Willard
hotel at 10 o'clock tomorrow morn
ing. The president of the congress
is Hon. Joseph e. Ransdell, member
of congress from Louisiana and
member of the river and harbor COM
mittee of the house of representa-
tives. The list of directors includes
the names of prominent men from
Boston and New York to San Fran
cisco and Portland. Ore.
Among the speakers on the pro-
gram of the coming congress are Bar
on II. VonSternberg, ambassador
from Germany; Congressman John
| Dalzell of Pennsylvania. President
w. II. Finley of the Southern rail-
way, President James \. Hill of the
Great Northern railway, John Bar
rett. director of the bureau of Amer
lean Republics, Governor Albert
Cummlns of Iowa, Martin A. Knapp,
member of the Interstate Commerce
Commission. Governor Edwin War
field of Maryland, Governor Charles
S. Deneen of Illinois, Hon. Charles
Emory Smith of Philadelphia, Mayor
Henry NJ. Beardsley of Kansas City,
Albert Bettinger of Cincinnati, repre-
senting the Ohio Valley Improvement
Association, and President John X.
Stahl of the National Farmers Con-
gress.
The membership of the congress
extends to thirty-three states and is
composed of commercial, manufac-
turing and kindred associations, wat
erway Improvement associations, cor
porations and public-spirlted citizens
who believe that the waterways of
the nation should be improved.
Particular emphasis is given to
the fact that the congress advocates
policy and not project; that 1t
does not favor specifically any sec
ton or waterway improvement pro-
ject In the entire United States, and
that its demand is solely for In
creased appropriations to be eNpeni-
ed as the congress of the United
States may instruct. through proper
channels, upon such rivers and har-
bors as have been examined by and
have received the official indorse-
ment of the United States engineer
corps and by 1t reported upon favor
ably to congress.
The German ambassador, Baron Won
Sternberg, is expected to give the
congress valuable information apper-
tanning to the development and i'm
provement of the rivers. and harbors
of Germany. IL is possible, also that
NJ. Jusserand, the French ambassa-
dor, will speak before the congress.
From all indications the meeting
of the congress will be far more
largely attended than any of Its pre-
decessors, the subject of inland wat
erway Improvement having forced 1t
self upon the attention of congress-
and of the trade and commercial In
terest of the country as an absolute
necessity In furnishing additional and
continuous means of transportation.