Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1907-03-22
THE WATERWAYS
COMMISSION
Is APPOINTED BY PRESIDENT
ROOSEVELT
70 IMPROVE RIVER SYSTEM
fho Purpose is to Make Various
Streams Available for Transporta
ton Furposes-Burtcn- of Ohio is
Chairman cf Beard.

ton Furposes-Burtcn of Ohio is
Chairman CT Beard.
Wellington Complying with ne.
tiuons presented by numerous com
n2cTc-al organizations of the Missis-
uippi v@l-ey, President Roosevelt has
tecJ3ad TO appoint an inland water-
ways commission, whose duty 1t viii
Ee to pr.paie a comprehensive plan
Ter 'a.e improvement and control of
tie river systems of the United
States. Eight public men have been
asked ito serve on [he commission and
Representative Theodore E. Burton.
OF Ohio, chairman of the rivers and
h2n5crs committee in the last con-
'Sress, is to be chairman.
in a letter, which he has addressed
to each of THESE persons, the president
sets out that he is influenced, in Great
ing the commission, by considerations
of national policy; that the railways
ere no longer able to move crops and
manufacturers rapidly enough to Sc
cure prompt transaction of business,
and shat there appears but one COM
Flote lo1ledy-the developments of a
complementary system of transporta-
ton 10y wat2r. The president s letter
IN full Is as follows:
Numerous commercial opganiza-
tions cf tde Mississippi valley have
presented petitions csking that I ap-
point a commission to prepare and
present a comprehensive plan for The
improvement ana control of the river
syztens of lie Uaitod Stalks. I have
decided TO comply with ti1.se requests
by c9pointing an inland waterways
commission ard l have cs5ad ble fol
lowing gertlJrcn to aot upon it. I
shall he muel gra:fed if you VIII
consent to serve: Hen. Theodore F
Burton, chairman; Senator Francis
G. Newlands; Senator William War
ner, Hen. John H. Barlzhaad, Gener-
al Alex Mackenzie, DIR. W. J. Ne
Gee, Mr.. F. H. Newell, Mr.. Clifford
Pincflctt and Hon. Herbert Knox
Smith.
In creating this commission, am
Influenced by broad conditions of nj
t;onal policy. The control of our ma
vigable waterways hes with the feder-
al government and carries with it
corresponding responsibility and OBJ
herti0ns.
THE energS Of our people has hi h.
erto been largely directed towards in
dusta;nl development connected with
field and forest and with coal and iron
and some Of these sources of mater
AL and power are largely depleted;
Nliile iar inland waterways as a whole
have thus far reached scant atten-
ton. 1t is becoming clear that our
streams should he considered and
conserved as great natural resources.
Works designed to control cur water
ways have thus far usually been un-
dertaken for a single purpose, such
as the improvement of navigation,
the development of power, the irIiga-
tion Of arid lands, the protection Of
lowlands from foods, or to supply
water fer domestic and manufacture
ing purposes. While the rights of the
people to these and similar uses of
water must be respected, and the
time has come for merging local pro-
jacts and uses Of the inland waters
in a comprehensive plan designed for
the benefit of the entire country
Such a plan should consider and in
clude al tie use to which streams
must be put and should bring togeth-
er and coordinate the points of view
of all users of water. The task in
volved IN tie full and orderdly devel-
opment and coGstrol of the river sys-
TENS Of the United States Il a great
one, yet it is certainly not. too great
for Us to approach. The results
which it seems to promise are even
greater.
cit rs common knowledge That the
roeds of the United States are no don-
ger able to move crops and manufat
tures napidiy CROUCH to secure the
prompt transaction of the business Of
the ns.ion and thare is small prospect
of Immediate relief. Representative
railroad men point out that the pro-
jects of tgle negl.aarn interior states
have doubled II ten years, while the
raaros,l fae-faiies have increased but
one e-cighsfl and thera is reason toI
doubt mi1eth2r any development of
tie railroads, feeegible in the near fa-l
ture will suffice to keep transporta-