East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current, 1909-08-30

one OF wafer.
Washington, d. c., Aug. 3O.-(Spec-
| liaD-Since the passage of the tariff
bill tremendous quickening of inter-
est in national needs is noticed and
this interest is not likely to wane as
time passes. Already there is notice
able changes going on throughout
the country on the subject of i'm
proving the inland waters of the
United States and the utterances OF
those great railway kings, Hartman.
Hill, Yoakun and others, who state
that the railroads cannot transport
more than so per cent of the freight
at the time it should be carried, has
emphasized the needs for a broad
and comprehensive waterway policy
on the part of the Federal government
to the end that the great natural
thorOughfares of the country may be
made to do their share of transpor-
tation.
A much greater interest is being
in congress than ever before in the
subject of waterways and their I'M
provement. Congressman Henry T.
Rainey of the Twelfth Illinois district,
is among the leaders of the house 10
unreservedly favor a bond issue OF
liberal proportion to carry on the
work of improving the inland waters
and canals of continental United
States One of the cardinal planks in
the platform of the National Rivers
and Harbors Congress, whose sixth
annual convention in Washington
next December gives promise of be-
ing the biggest Water Convention ever
held.
THE waterways of the country"
said Mr.. Rainey today. "have fallen
into disuse for two reasons: First,
the railroads have been increasing
their carrying capacity, building larg-
er engines building larger cars, lay
ing heavier rails. and double-track-
ing their lines until now the limit OF
development seems to have been
reached. Nothing has been done for
waterways while this remarkable
railway development has been in pro-
gress. Rivers have not been dredged
to any considerable extent, the banks
of streams have not been regularized,
and as yet no comprehensive system
of waterway development has been
entered upon. In the second place,
railways paraIleling rivers and reach
ing cities along our rivers have pur-
sued the policy of making cheaper
rates to river points, rates often as
cheap or cheaper than river steamers
OF the present capacity can make.
Railways have been carrying freight
to river points at loss in order TO
destroy river traffic, and have been
compelling inland towns and cities to
pay higher freight rates than they
ought to pay in order to make up the
loss There has been for half a CEN
tury a fight of the railroads against
the rivers, with no organizations un-
ii! a comparatively recent period
fighting for the rivers.
"There is only one way to meet the
situation and to restore to railroads
the competition they ought to have,
and that is by improving our rivers
connecting them where necessary with
artificial canals, depending upon the
electric lines reaching our rivers and
extending out now into the interior
of the country to furnish in connec-
ton with the improved rivers, the
competition which a gigantic railway
combination must have. Improve our
rivers and you will have furnished to
every man great free national high
way upon which he can launch his
boat and carry his goods, free of all
charge. to the ocean highways of the
world.
1.-The building of the Panama canal
meets with the approval of the coun-
try, and yet 1t will fail to accomplish
the results for which 1t is intended
unless we improve the $1,000 miles of
navlgable rivers lying within our
mountain ranges; unless we improve
rivers and harbors between our noun
tain ranges and the seas in order to
enable freight to be transported
cheaply from the interior to the
worlds ocean highways. The time,
II seems to me, is here when the
country would approve a bond issue
of large size for the purpose of i'm
proving rivers on a comprehensive
basis. The development of the coun-
try now depends upon it.
"By a majority Of nearly 100000
votes the state Of Illinois has declared
itself for this proposition, and has
voted in favor of bond issue of twen-
ty million dollars in aid of the Lake.
to-the-Gulf deep waterway. The
state of New York has voted one
hundred and one million dollars In
bonds to deepen the Erie canal. The
waterway from the Lakes to the Gulf
is an interstate waterway. The Ohio
river is an interstate waterway. The
Missouri the Tennessee and the Ar
kanas rivers are all great Interstate
waterways. Abe Atlantic Coast Deep
Waterway Is an interstate scheme.
Illinois and New York have done their
part toward creating efficient water
ways within their boundaries connect
inc, our infarfor Iokea with tba son