Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1909-11-25
MISSISSIPPI DEEP WATERWAY
DEAD.

People occasionally build worse
than they know as we'll as better.
Tho presidential Armada, which re-
Gently swept down the Mississippi
river, was organised for the express
purpose Of promoting the project Of a
ship channel from the Great Lakes to
the Cuff OF Mexico. The plan was
we'll formulated and splcndidly exc
cuted, but II miscarried. Instead of
promoting the undertaking the expe-
dition killed tho scheme rs dead as
Mark Antony and Cleopatra combn-
| ed.
Like many another project. the
Mississippi deep waterway looked
we'll on paper. 1t would he magnifl-
cent to load big ships on the Great
Lakes and send them to the utter
most parts Of tho earth without the
necessity Of reloading. The channel
was already dug. or in the process OF
being dug, and nothing remained but
to expend q few millions. said the
promoters. to make Chicago a real sea-
port, with both banks of the Misslss-
ippi river, and the shores Of all the
Great Lakes so many stretches of
seacoast.
Occasionally a candidate for public
| office runs best where he is known
by reputation rather than personally
and a personal visit discloses to sup
ally known to the public. When the
Mississippi deep waterway project
came to be subjected TO the test Of
close personal inspection. it failed to
pass muster and failed miserably.
When President Taft set out upon
his tour down the Mississippi, he was
enthusiastic over the project, or APP
proximately so. When he reached the
metropolis OF Louisiana, he was forced
: in dealing with the subject. He had
not only to reconcile his utterances
. before and after taking the trip with
what he discovered while taking it,
but he also had to be consistently
courteous to his hosts In the region
: which would most profit from the
, contamination OF the project His
!, continuous auditors could not fail
to be impressed, however. with the
ced cooling of the presidential ardor
as the party dropped down the IA
nous river toward its mouth.
The first obtrusve fact confront
ing the party Is that the Mississippi
is already navigable over practically
. all OF the proposed route, but there
, Its expansive waters. For miles upon
. miles no freighters can be seen. show
ing that the competition Of railroads
and not lack Of water for craft OF
considerable size. is largely account
, able for lack OF shipping on that wat
erway.
The second fact which impressed
itself upon visitors is that even II the
federal government were to devote
purpose Of digging a deep channel
from the Great Lakes tc the Gulf OF
MEXICO. nobody could tell how long tho
channel would stay put. The Nissis-
sipp. has a way Of seeking new paths
over night at .!mes, and towns on
its hanks havo not been unknown to
wake up IN the morning and find
themselves considerable distance
, further from the river than when they
retired. Even as the presidential
: party swept down the stream. great
trees would occasionally topple over
into the waters as a result Of the un'
. dermining done by the water; and ono
. of the favorite pastimes OF the stream
q Is the continual shifting OF sands
n from one side to the other.
n Other considerations have also mill
8 tated against the project but the con
i junction of the two named was suffi
|, cient to put quietus on the propo
y | sition. As a result II is doubtful
whether any national legislator direct
10 ly concerned will press the subJec'
upon the attention OF Congress IN c
speech, save for home consumption
by his constituents.
A GREAT TIME SAVER.
l. James Faulkner. the dean. sage. am