The Washington herald., 1909-03-14

John F. Stevens. president of the New
York. New Haven and Hartford Rail
road. does not take an optimistic view OF
The development Of waterways as
means OF general inland navigation. He
holds 10 the view that the cost IS so
great as 70 make the task impracticable.
if not impossible.
In an address delivered before the At
lantie Deep Waterways Association, he
points out mat the work Is at once re-
moved from tie domain OF State OF muni-
cipai effort and must be undertaken by
! the national government, 10 be accom-
plished at all.
Owing % this fact he does not expect
in the future % see and marked develop
ment Of waterways beyond the improve
ment Of few natural rivers and the con
struction OF some miles Of canal here and
there. II the general canalization Of riv-
ers and the union Of such streams by
crOss-cOuntry canals could be brought
about, Mr. Stevens believes IL would bene-
( NJ the railroads more than anybody else.
and his belief in the accomplishment OF
the work Is not based upon any alarms
incident 10 his position as a railway
manager.
Why Canals Faded Away.
/ Following is a part of Mr.. Stevens ad-
dress:
The reason for decadencs Of canal
and natural waterway traffic Is not hard
I 10 understand. As population and wealth
/ decreased. 50 did the aggregate wants and
the eomplexity Of the needs OF the people
multiply The Introduction OF the tele-
/ graph, by bringing business and social
/ relations so much closer in thought.
made IL Necessary TO shorten the bridge
that spanned the gap of actual contact.
7 In other words. as life began 10 be lived
/ faster and faster. quicker and more fire.
quent transportation facilities became an
/ imperative demand. which neither canals
+ nor natural waterways could satisfy: and
so railways supplanted them. until now.
Win few notable exceptions. the for
mer exist only as memories
( But the gigantic strides our internal
commerce has made. has demonstrated
that while railways serve purpose
which waterways can never do. they. need
10 be supplemented By a cheaper. If a
slower carrier. There are immense vol
\ Umes OF low-grade traffic. which. 10 be
moved al all. require very low rates
such traffic IS nov being handled by the
railways 70 the detriment OF their Other
and faster-moving business resulting in
q loss 10 themselves and 70 the pc5lic
Railroads Do Not Oppose.
There seems 70 be a general impress
sion that the railways are opposed 10 tie
exploitation and construction OF canals.
That there is good ground for such opin-
ION, the writer does not believe The con-
:sensUs Of opinion among our ablest. most
fsr-sighted railway owners and execu-
Uves. i undoubtedly that canals. properly
planned honestly financed and con
lstructed. viii not only aid the develop
ment Of the country, but viii create new
business. and from other and potent
causes, be Of assistance and value 20 the
railways themselves. Beyond a doubt.
they VIII take from the railways some
part Of certain class Of traffic. but such
loss viii be reCOuped by the fact that the
railways viii be- enabled 70 better and
more economically handle the higher-
priced trafic. which the waterways cam
never satisfactorily DO. and 50 the net re-
results wiz be for their benefit
so u VIII be that the railroads. BY
collaboration WIKI waterways. natural
and artificial. and by establishing CO.
ordinate relations with them. viii solve
the great transportation problem which
presents itself. and which must be set
tied. and settled right. unless the hand Of
commercial progress is net only stopped.
but set back
should Move slowly.
Admitting the above as general prin-
cipal does not imply that the construc-
tion Of canals and the improvement %
rivers should al once be entered into
Iindiscrlmately and without consideration.
with the idea that We cannot have too
much Of a good thing The handling OF
transportation is yearly getting 10 Be
more and more Of an exact science. and
nowhere IS Il more true that certain
causes are bound 20 produce certain re-
suits.
The old days when. 70 some extent.
railways were built 70 sell. and not be-
cause there was a legitimate demand for
them. have passed away-~It Is certain
that II to-day there we're no railways in
existence a system could be planned
which would better serve our needs. az
b a tnwer cost. with many thousand less
track miles. So Il viii be with water
ways unless We take heed OF the past.
and 20 carefully and judiciously about
their location and construction How
shall this be done. and what are the
. mistakes which we must avoid2
Tt is very improbable that private
capital can be found 20 finance, except
! ing. possibly. a few unimpOrtant Instances
= such systems Of canals as the public
{ needs may find necessary; and II the de-
mand-which is already insistent-that
Z the national government take Up the
matter IS granted. then il clear
iIy devolves upon the national authorities
20 see 10 II that such systems are 50
planned and the work IS so executed.
Z that the greatest good 20 the greatest
o. number viii result And such work viii
, naturally divide itself iQto three classes:
The improvement Of harbor facilities. the
enlargement and control OF rivers. and
. the creation OF new. and the rebuilding
: upon more generous lines. OF existing
canals
HarbOr work Important.
The Improvement Of harbors and the
fitting OF such OF them as may be most
! available, in connection with interior
transportation lines. 10 become suitable
terminals for foreign business. is in it.
self a great and important work. and .hs
Z mistake OF spending millions for deep
B water, for ample room with safe anchor
e age, and negiecting 20 provide means for
p cheap and quick exchange between ships
and interior lines, must De avoided BY
- the lack Of such foresight, New TovS
/ Continued On Page 3, Column &