The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-11-11


 Locks 1 to already exist in the upper Coosa and give four-foot navigation nearly all the year round to Rome. Be- tween Lock 4 and Montgomery nothing of moment has yet been done or attempt ed that is of benefit, though s40O000 has been spent; between Montgomery and Mobile the work done has bec1 of a temporising character. The same Is true of work on the Cahaba, which has been trimmed occasionally but latterly all work done has fallen into desuetude through failure of appropriations The work on the main river between Mont gomery and Mobile represents a total expenditure of about $900,0O0 in appro- priations spread over nearly thirty years. To give an idea of what has not been attained 1t is right and proper to mem tion that the steamer "Ouachita' on an up journey in October of this year, loaded light only made Selma after Tightening and capstan work owing to shoals. Con trast this ineffective condition with the majestic proportions of the river itself and a realization of the waste of money through parsimony becomes apparent. At Wetumpka the river at ordinary low water is 400 feet wide, and the width gradually increases to 300 and to 600 feet until the bluff banks disappear between Claiborne and Gainestown.
 As an illustration of the partial eff forts made (and it must not be under stood that these statements reflect on the engineering corps in any manner whatsoever as they are men under au- thority) summary of reports made year after year is here included:
 1S7S-1s79 Logs removed, 320, and work done at cutoff between the Alabama and Tombigbee rivers to remedy the shoal south of the cutoff.
 1S79-1SS0. Cutoff dam finished; several chutes closed or partly closed and 49o snags removed.
 1Ss1-1Ss2 Cutoff dam repaired (showing that it lasted less than one year), work done on several bars and compression dam constructed at Gardner's Island.
 1SS3- 1884 Snags and trees removed.
 1ss4-1Ss5 Snags and tops removed.
 1ss5-1ss6 Snags and logs removed and brush dam constructed at Gardner's Island (showing that previous work lasted less than five years).
 1SS6-1Ss7 Obstacles removed at mouth of the Tallapoosa Out not as part of gen eral river scheme of improvement.
 1ss7-1SSs. Logs and snags removed from channel, 1885, and 533 overhangng trees cut down.
 1Sss-1SS9. Stumps and trees removed from banks, 473O, and 23OO logs and snags and one wreck removed from the channel.
 And in similar fashion the record goes until the report of June, 1906, which has this to say: "On June go, 1906, the maxi mum draft that could be carried to Mont gomery was about BE feet. During the last fiscal year the plant was thoroughly overhauled and materially increased and both dredge and snag boat operated throughout the season. As the benefits to be derived from the improvement of the Alabama river are very great, funds should be provided for the vigorous prose- cution of work, whether a new project is adopted not.
 The commerce of the Alabama river. notwithstanding all difficulties, had grown from Il, ,072 tons in 1896, valued at $6, 4OO 900, to 133 492 tons in 1904, valued at $13,317000. A complete systematic development of the entire river to its head 105 miles be- yond Rome, Ga, would mean an in- crease in tonnage limited only by the flotillas of boats that could reach and discharge at Mobile without causing con gestion. The reasons for speaking thus are based upon agricultural. manufactur ing and mineral facts. First, positive and regular opportunity of the agri- cultural stretches of empty Alabama, particularly in relation to the rich bot tom lands between Mobile and Claiborne. Second, the Alabama river, like the Tom bgbee passes through the cement rock formation, which merely awaits accessi- bility to control the Portland cement prices of the world dust as Birmngham m now controls pig iron prices). Third, the Cahaba, entering the Alabama below Selma, and the Coosa river traverse or render available 2120 square miles of known coal lands of steam and coking varieties. Wherever any developments or investigations have been made at least three seams have been found. each of which will average 4000 tons of coal per acre, or a total of 5,415 POO tons of available coal in one seam. Fourth, brown iron ore exists in a belt 100 miles long paralleling the Coosa and at no point more than 15 or 20 miles away from it. It is probable that this belt contains more brown ore than all the rest of the Appalachian province combined Fifth, bauxite the ore now used in making aluminium, exists in two known locali- ties in the United States. One of these is on the Coosa, extending 50 miles south westward from Rome to Anniston. Sixth, gold bearing veins waiting only cheap transportation to pay for handling. These