, 1907-10-04
PRESIDENTS STEAMER
REACHES DESTINATION

built by a Roosevelt, my g~reat-grand-
fathers brother. in 1911, for the New
Orleans trade, II in hat year made
the trip from Pittsburg to New Or
leans.
Rivers to Become Arteries.
Year by year transportation prob
lems become more acute, and the time
has come when the rivers really fit to
serve as arteries Of trade should be
provided with channels deep enough n
wide enough to make the investment CT
the necessary money profitable to the
public. The national government
should undertake this work. Where
the Immediately abutting land is mark
eddy benefited, and this benefit can be
will be careful Investigation to see
| whether SOME way can be devised by
which the immediate beneticiaries may
pay a portion OF the expenses-as is
now the custom as regards certain
classes OF improvements in Jul munich
| palities; and measures should be TAX
en- to secure from the localities special
ly benefited proper terminal facilities
Guarantee Against Waste.
The expense TO the nation Of entering
upon such a scheme of river improve.
ment as that which l believe it should
undertake. will necessarily be great.
Many cautious and conservative peo'
pie will look askance upon the projecy,
and from every standpoint it is neces
sary, If We wish to make 1t successful.
that we should enter upo it only
under conditions which will guarantee
the nation against waste of its money,
and which will insure us against enter
ing upon any project until after the
most elaborate expert examination
and reliable calculation of the proper
| ton between cost and benefit.
Need Of Definite Policy.
In any project like this there should
be a definite policy, and a ~resolute put
| pose to keep in mind that the only i'm
provements made should be those re-
ally national in their character. We
| should act on the same principle in i'm
proving our rivers that We should fol
low in improving our harbors. The
great harbors are Of consequence not
merely to the immediate localities, but
to immense stretches of country; ana
the game is true of the great rivers. 1t
is these great rivers and great harbors
the improvement Of which is of primary
national interest
Improve Main Streams.
Tbo pno{n cfrooms cbou1d he i'm.
proved to the highest practical de-
gree of efficiency before improvements
are attempted on the branches, and
work should be undertaken only when
completion is in sight within a rea
sonable time, SO that assured results
may be gained and the communities
affected depend upon the improve
ments Moreover, as an incident IN
caring for the river so hat it ma
become an efficient channel of trans
p%ortation, the United States govern
ment should do its full part in levee
building, which, in the reaches Of
the river, will not only give a channel
for commerce, but will also give pro
lection to the adjacent bottom lands.
Homes in Arid Regions.
Another important group of ques-
tions concerns the irrigation Of arid
lands, the prevention of floods, and the
reclamation of swamps. Already many
thousands of homes have been estab-
lished in the arid regions, and the
population and wealth of seventeen
states and territories have been largely
increased through irrigation. Yet this
means of national development Is still
in its infancy, n it will doubtless
long continue to multiply homes n
increase the productiveness and pow
err of the nation.
Double Use Of Water.
Still another fundamentally impor-
tant question is that of water power.
Its significance in the future develop
ment Of our whole country, and espec'
tally of the west, is but just beginning
to be understood. The plan of the
CITY Of Los Angeles, for example, to
bring water for its use a distance Of
nearly $50 miles-perhaps the boldest
project of the kind in modern times
| DTOIIllSSS AOI cHly W AAS w. 80
pose, but in addition to produce a wa
ter power sufficiently valuable to pa,
large interest OH the investment OF
over $23, 0O0, 900.
Water Going to Waste.
Hitherto such opportunities for US
ing water to double purpose have not
always been seized. Thus it has re
Gently been shown that water enough
is flowing unused over government
dams, built to improve navigation, to
produce many hundreds OF thousands
t of horsepower It is computed that
t the annual value Of the available but
? unused water power in the United
, states exceeds the annual value of the
products of all our mines. Further
: more, it is calculated that under u
] ,dicious handling the power OF our
streams may be made to pay for al
the works required for the complete
development and control of our INLAND
waterways.
Forests Prevent Floods.
II Forests are the most effective pre-
ii CONTINUED On page ~