The Washington herald., 1907-12-05

C'tA peOple are IN earnest about perfectlng
system Of inland waterways and har-
Dors in this country. Representatives OF
every State and city In the Union will
meet in Washington this week 10 urge
upon Congress not only the Importance
but the actual necessity of getting down
TO thorough and comprehensive scheme
Of improving the waterways OF the
United States. The National River and
Harbor Congress plays no favorites and
backs no particular movement To Il
the great Mississippi River scheme her
aided under the striking slogan, Fourteen
feet through the valley looks the same
rs deepening MOchOdoc Creek, in Virginia.
Its constitution prohibits il from looking
With favor on one proposition and with
disiaYer on another. 1t seeks only the
general Improvement OF the waterways OF
the country
Prophets Of hope sec the day when
ships Will load at Chicago and carry their
eargoes directly into the innermost ports
Of Central Asia, and into the very heart
Of Europe. They see the time when
American war vessels Will ascend the
Mississippi and maneuver around Ch5 5cago
as freely as they now go 70 New York
ships may get their cargoes at Chicago
call at New York after passing through
the Erie Canal and the Hudson and un-
load at Liverpool. In their visions they
see Toledo connected with Cincinnati by
deep waterway. and regard the project
OF cutting the canal from Pittsburg TO
Lake Erie as all but ready for fulhllment
And TO them there is a possibility, If not
a probability. that some day there viii be
an ali-American canal from New York
20 Puget Sound Most Of this seems like
dreaming. but except for the latter under
taking they have all had the approval OF
Congress in that it has voted appropria-
tons for making surveys to establish the
feasibility Of the projects And it is prob
able that long before the last of the liv-
ing generation passes away all Of these
hopes will be realized.
The United States has the finest system
of natural waterways on earth. 1t has
1900 miles Of navgable inland water
ways. with the great ocean highways
on every side but one. This means 1900
miles Of opportunity To promote cheap
and advantageous communication be-
tween the various sections of the ccun-
try. Already these waterways, with only
S5J0,000,OOO spent on their improvement
carry more freight than the 5000 miles
Of perfected canals Of continental Eu-
rope, which cost ten times as much
No less an authority than James J. Hill
asserts that the business Of the country
has increased 10 per cent in single
decade, while the traffic facilities tor
handling IL have increased only 10 per
cent Though statistics show that the
cost Of water transportation is only one
o of frf
the country has almost lost sight of its
waters In the building Of its railroads.
Mr.. Hill estimates that il would take To-
90 miles Of new railroad to meet the traf-
fic conditions to-day, costing over $780,
G9oo0o.
Far-seeing statesmen Of the past were
prompt to realize the Importance OF .n-
ternal water communication. Washing
ton, himself. was the father OF the idea
OF the canal from the Potomac To the
Ohio. He also secured the charter for
and was the first president OF what after
ward became the Erie Canal England
was opposed TO waterway improvements
in the colonies. in that it would tend 10
cement them together against the mother
country. Madison urged channel for
light draft war vessels from the Gulf OF
Mexico TO Lake Michigan thus being the
father of the "fOurteen-feet-throug
valley idea Calhoun planned a canal
between Pittsburg and Lake Erie. along
the identical route now being proposed
for such a canal Henry Clay was not
much of a canal advocate. When they
were planning 10 build the 500 Canal
he used all the force of his eloquence
against II. saying that it would be
squandering the public money on CHI
meras beyond the domain of civilization or
the moon. To-day that canal carries a
freight the weight of which is more than
double that Of all our vast export trade
1t does the work Of fifteen railroads at
the cost Of one. The railroad rates on the
freight that passes through the 500 Canal
would amount TO S156.000O0O more than
the water rates are.
The saving of cost by water transporta-
tlon is little short Of wonderful. With the
Ohio River improvements far from com
pleted. the rate on coal from Pittsburg TO
Louisville by water is only one-tenth as
much as the rail rate. From Louisville
10 New Orleans it is only one-eleventh as
much. A single powerful steamer, like
the Sprague. will now tow $1,000 tons of
freight from Pittsburg TO New Orleans I'm
fifteen days Ii would take 100 railroad
trains 70 carry the same coal This load
would be enough 10 furnish a cargo for
three big coal-carrying steamers.
There are now projects for the improve
ment of waterways in the United States.
the total cost OF which will be half n bill
lion dollars. All Of these have been ap-
proved by the board OF engineers, and the
surveys for them have been made by
Congressional authorization. But the mills
Of waterway improvement ike those Of
the gods. grind slowly. The improvement
Of the Harlem River. under the very
shadow Of Wall street, was undertaken in
1S7S the total cost Of which was to be
less than 100000. The project is now
just about half done In 1875 1t was de-
cided to give the Ohio a slack water navi-
gable depth Of six feet In all these in
tervening years the work has gone on.
and finally Il was decided to give a nine
fdot stage instead Of six feet. At the rate
the work has progressed from the inceD-
ton Of the project il VIII be a hundred
years before It will be completed. How
ever. they have been making better nro-
gress in the last few years. and If The
work is continued at the same rate NJ
progress. the Ohio will have a nine-foot
navigable depth fifty years hence. The
total cost of the work is estimated al
S63, 100000.
But the country seems TO be awakening
TO the necessities Of the hour. and under
the stimulus of the River and Harbor