The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-03-17
RIVERS WILL Be
LOOKED AFTER
Inland Waterways Commission
of Nine Members Appoint
ed by the President
PURPOSE FULLY EXPLAINED
CONGRESSMAN BURTON OF OHIO
is CHAIRMAN.

washington. March 16.-Ccmplying
with petitions presented by numerous
commercial organizations of the Mis-
sissippi valley, President Roosevelt has
decided to appoint an inland water
ways commission, whose duty 1t Will
be to prepare and report a cOmprehen-
sive plan for the Improvement and con-
troll Of the river systems OF the United
states Eight public men have been
asked to serve on the commission, and
Representative Theodore Burton OF
Ohio, chairman of the rivers and mar
bors committee in the last congress, is
to be chairman of the commission. IN
a letter which he has addressed to each
of these persons. the president sets out
ne is influenced in appointing the COM
mission by broad consideration of the
national policy. that the railroads are
no longer able to move crops and
manufactures rapidly enough 10 Sc
cure the prompt transaction Of the
business of the nation, and that there
appears to be but one complete rem
edy-the development of complement
tary system of transportation by wa
ter The presidents letter in full fol-
lows:
Letter of the President.
THE White House. Washington,
March II, 19O7.-My Dear Sir: Numer-
Gus commercial organizations of the
Mississippi valley have presented petit
tions asking that I appoint a commits
sion to prepare and report compre-
hensive plan for the Improvement and
control of the river systems of the
United States. l have decided To COM
ply with these requests by appointing
an international waterways commits
sion. and l have asked the following
gentlemen to act upon it. shall be
much gratified if you viii consent to
serve.
Theodore E. Burton. chairman: Sem
ator France g. Newlands, Senator
William Warner, John H. Bankhead,
General Alexander Mackenzie, DIR. w
G.. MCGEE. F. H. Newell, Clifford Pin
chot and Herbert Knox Smith.
Comprehensive Plan Necessary.
in creating this commission am
inspired by broad considerations of ma
tional policy. The cOntrOI of our navi-
gable waterways lies with the federal
government, and carries with it CORE
spending responsibility and obligations
The energy of our people has hitherto
been largely directed toward industrial
development connected with field and
forest, and with coal ana iron, and
some of these sources of material and
power are already largely completed
while our inland waterways as a whole
have thus far received scant atten-
ton. 1t is becoming clear that oul
streams should be considered and con,
served as great natural resources
Works designed % control our water.
ways have thus far usually been un-
deTtaken for a single purpose, such a:
the improvement of navigation. the de
veiOpment of power, the irrigation o.
and lands. the protection of lOwland:
from floods, or to supply water for do
nestle and manufacturing purposes
While the rights of the people to these
and similar uses of water must be re
spected. the time has come for merging
local projects and uses of the inland
waters in a comprehensive plan de
signed for the benefit Of the entire
country. Such a plan should consider
and include all the uses to which
streams may be put. and should bring
together and coordinate the points o
view of all users of water. The tasl
involved in the full and orderly devel
opment and control Of the river systems
of the United States is a great one, We
II is certainly not too great for US t,
approach. The results which il Seems
TO promise are even greater.
Highways of Commerce.
1T is common knowledge that tn
railroads of the United States are n,
longer able to move crops and manu-
features rapidly enough to secure tn
prompt transaction OF the business o
the nation. and there is small prospec
of immediate. relief Representativ,
railroad men pOinesout that the prod
ucts of the. noTth9rn Interior state
have doubled in ten years, while tn
railroads facilities have increased bu
one-eighth. and there is reason Il
doubt whether any railroad develop
ment of the railroads in the near fu
ftire will. suffice To keep transportation
abreast of production. There appear
10. be but one complete remedy-the de
Velopment of a Complementary system
of transportation by water. The pres
ent congestion affects chiefly the PEG
pie of the Mississippi valley and the,
demand relief. When the congestion o
which they complain is relieved tn
whole nation will share the good re
suits.
Flood Dangers.
while rivers are natural resource
of the first rank. they are also labl