The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1908-12-10
RIVER USES
Should be the Highways Of the Ma
tion's Commerce

Washington, Dec. 10.-"The Utility
OF Waterways as a Factor in Trans
portation." was the subject of an ad-
dress by j. A. Oskerson of st. Louis,
member of the Mississippi river
commission. He emphasized the fact
that the development of the material
resources of the country had SO fully
occupied the attention of the people
that little heed had been given to
economy in the cost of transportation.
In the transition from wilderness and
barren plains to cultivated fields and
populous cities west of the Alleghen-
les which occurred in so brief time
that no parallel is found in the his
tory of the world, Mr., Ockerson gives
to railroad extension the credit Of
having been the most potent influence
Commenting upon the fact that ex-
travagant inroads were made upon
the resources of the country without
taking into account such trivial
matter as the cost Of transportation,
Mr.. Ockerson said:
1--WE have reached a time where
radical changes are necessary. Our
natural resources of minerals and for
ests have been SO depleted that meas
ures for economy must be substituted
for extravagant wastefulness. We
face condition which older countries
long since came to realize and which
we never thought Of during our fluor-
ishing period of development We
must content ourselves with smaller
profits and economy in all lines Of
production and transportation as we'll
must be the watchword.--
| "The greatest practical use of wa
terways for purposes Of transporta-
J tion, the development of power and
the irrigation Of lands, will do far
more to insure to us continued pros
perity than great fleet of battleships
or a large standing army" Mr.. Ock-
favor of both of these. "Give us the
he said, "and the sinews of war will
speaker said:
"The demand for shipping facilities
continued to increase to such an ex-
tent that by 1906 the railways, supple
mented by such waterways as were
available, were wholly unable to meet
the requirements of transportation.
"There were in effective operation
at that time 100000 miles of railways,
on which were employed $4,000 loco
motives and 1,750,000 freight cars. It
is said by the interstate commerce
commission that in ten years, ending
in 1907, the trackage had increased
24.7 per cent, while the volume Of tar
if increased 1887 per cent.
"Under these conditions, 1t was es-
timated that an increase of at least
25 per cent in trackage, terminals and
equipment, would be necessary in the
next five years in order to satisfactor-
lily handle the commerce of the coun-
try.
"As the average cost per mile Of
railway and equipment is 81 1888. the
investment in such increase would
reach enormous proportions.
"The day of great extensions Of rail-
ways is past. They are no longer
possible, owing to the increased cost
Of right of way, and the cost of new
terminals In great shipping centres
would be so great as to be practically
prohibitive.
"The day of land grants and gov
ernmental bond issues in aid of rail-
way construction are also things of
the past.
"This situation has brought about
a lively public interest in the general
improvement Of available waterways,
which had been largely overlooked
and neglected during the period Of ac-
tive railway development"
Mr.. Ockerson reviewing what has
been done by the government in i'm
proving waterways, commented upon
the abandonment Of some 2,75O miles
Of canal, built prior to 1880, the cost
Of which was about $73,O0O,O00. Ac-
lcording TO the speaker, "the chief rea-