Evening journal., 1908-06-27
Saturday, June a7, 1908.
INLAND WATERWAYS.

O ARIICOLAR attention has been called 10
Il the Rivers and Harbors Congress through
the appointment of Congressman Joseph +. Rams
dell, of Louisiana, TO place on the Inland Water-
WAYS Commission President Roosevelt, IN
making the appointment Of Mr.. Ransdell, who is
the president of the Rivers and Harbors Con-
gress said to friends thatst the selection OF Con-
gresham Ransdell was the result of careful
canvass of those who have been pioneers for the
development of the waterways OF the country
The Rivers and Harbors Congress stands for
the general proposition OF fifty millions a year
for the internal development of the waterways OF
the United States 10 be distributed as wisely as
possible on the various projects approved by the
engineers of the army in all parts OF the country
including rivers, lakes and canals
The Rivers and darbors Congress was founded
in Baltimore in October, 1901, at which some 600
delegates were present. AT the last convention
of the congress, held in Washington, there were
nearly 1000 delegates present, duly appointed and
authorized TO represent 46I cities and towns
coming from thirty-three States, appointed by
twenty-three governors, hfty-one mayors and
183 commercial manufacturing, waterway and
kindred associations. and therefore very property
called Congress, for this great body of earnest
thoughtful, enthusiastic men stands for broad
liberal and generous policy on the part OF the
government toward all the water courses.
Secretary of State Root, speaking OF the move
ment toward a fixed yearly sum for the improve
ments of the waterways of the United States, said
that the question of transportation was no longer
a question of the rate OF freights 1--WE have
come to point he said, where the railroads of
the country are unable to perform that function
which is necessary to continued progress in the
increase of our national wealth. There is no
human possibility that railroads can keep pace
with the necessities of our natural production for
the transportation of our products and the one
avenue that is open for us TO keep up our progress
is the avenue of water transportation"
Since the foundation of the government, and
including the last river and harbor BILL there has
been spent on all the interior waterways of the
country, ncludinS lakes and canals, but FIVE hun
dred millions of dollars in round numbers. Con-
trast that amounr of money spent in the I32 years
of our history with the freight tonnage carried in
the year 1906 alone The census report for that
year shows that there were 265,54s,6o4 tons of
freight carried on vessels of the United States,
and which did not include freight loaded at
United States ports and transported in foreign
bottoms. This vast tonnage does not include the
freight carried on ferry boats, but does include
the freight carried barges, but not the freight
lightered in the harbors of the Great Lakes
The transportation of this immense freight ton
mage in single year has cost carriers but frac-
ton of cent when compared with the amount of
money spent by the government upon the water
ways of the United States since the Declaration
of independence. In the year 1906 there was
moved by the Atlantic coast and gulf waters
I4osI2o43 tons of freight. BY Pacific coast
waterways, I7,622,S tons; by the Great Lakes,
7s,ooo64o tons; by the Mississippi and its tribu-
taries, 2785oo4I, and l.y all other inland waters
including canaN 3,o44,o55 tons.
When it is remembered that the waterways of
our country-rivers, canals, lakes and coastal
channels-have an aggregate length of between
$1,000 and 10000 miles and only about half of the
entire mileage is now used for navigation, the
possibilities of vastly increasing the opportunities
Tor water transportation are apparent