The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-07-30
ASKS FOR MEMBERS
HON. JOHN CRAFT WRITES OPEN
 LETTER.
Explains the Scope and Purpose of the Mobile Basin and Tennessee
 River and Improvement As-
 soclation---What is Being


 soclation---What Is Being b Done.
 Montgomerians interested in river improvement are urged to at once send in their membership fee to the Mobile Basin and Tennessee River As- sociation. which has in hand the cam paign for the improvement of streams in this State.
 This association will meet in the near future in Mobile and funds are required to further its objects. Hence the following earnest appeal rom Capt John Craft, president of the As- sociation to ". F. Vandiver, It's sec- ond vice president:
 Mobile. Ala, July 2S. 1908. Hon. W. F. Vandiver, Vice President
 for Alabama of the National Rivers and Harbors Congress Montgomery Ala.
 Dear Sir:
 We read with pleasure your letter to the Senators and Representatives in Congress from Alabama and other representatives which was published recently in the Mobile papers. We are pleased to see the interest shown by yourslf and our Representatives Tn the improvement of the river system of Alabama, but we must remember , that the National Rivers and Harbors Congress cannot consider matter or the streams of our State.
 The National Congress was organ ized for the purpose of impressing the United States Congress with the ne- cessity of making larger improve ments for the rivers and harDors ot our whole country. For instance. IT you. as the Alabama vice president or the National Congress would <lntroduce a resolution in the said Congress ask ing that consideration be given par ticularly to the streams in Alabama and that the United States Congress he asked to make a liberal appropria- ton for such streams, your motion would be tabled. For that reason a meeting was called last fall by the Commercial Club of Birmingham for the purpose of forming an association to look particularly after the im- provements of the Alabama streams. The meeting was largely attended and A permanent association was formed, the name adopted at said meeting be- ing the Mobile Basin and Tennessee River Association. You have the hon. or to be one of the executive conn mittee of the latter Association and its second vice president and will no doubt give your active aid and sup port to it's success.
 The meeting of the members of the executive body was held at Rome. Ga, some months ago and 1t was resolved that a map should be prepared giving a bird's-eye view of the drainage sys- tenn of Alabama and that a memorial be prepared to go with said map. copies of which should be furnished every member of the United States Congress.
 The Executive Committee was ap- pointed to carry out this resolution. We send you a blue print copy of the map which has been prepared that
 Nn1EN care taken in the preparation of the map. Five hundred copies of this map are now being Autographed by house in New Orleans. The manu- script for the memorial is being pre- pared and will be submitted to the next meeting of the Association, which will be held in Mobile in the early fall for adoption with such amend ments as members may approve.
 In order to meet the expenses of this work, the Executive Committee at It's meeting at Rome. adopted a by law assessing members g per annum who cared to join this Association. It will be a cessary for us to raise more money to meet the expenses of this work, and a canvass will be made next week in Mobile for that purpose.
 We have members who have already subscribed from Georgia. Mississippi and various parts of Alabama, and as yet we have not a subscriber from the capital of our State We hope be- fore the next meeting of the Associa- tion in Mobile there will be some members from your city.
 At the next meeting of the United States Congress. a delegation of mem bers from the Mobile Basin and Ten nessee River Association will attend in person at Washington to present the map and memorial of the As- 4.Nn k4 propriations for the Improvements of all worthy streams in our State.
 We hope to have several members of this delegation from our capitol city
 Yours truly.
 John Craft. President. Mobile Basin and Tennessee
 River Association.