St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1909-11-06
RESOLUTIONS ADOPTED At
WATERWAYS CONVENTION.
determined Stand Made by the People that They
VIII Have Deep Waterways and that They
Will Return No Congressman Who
Is Opposed to the Scheme

! terror must and shall be heard.
? a. In demanding the developmen
= OF our interior waterways we adop
the policy of proceeding both prompt
ly and on broad lines in such name
: as not to obstruct but to promote tn,
general commercial and industria
progress of the country and the gen
eral welfare of our people; and W.
affirm our right as delegates duly en-
powered to represent commercial anC
industrial organizations and the peo
pie generally to form and express
final judgement concerning the com.
mercial needs of the interior and Of
the country as } a whole. Accepting
and indorseing those portions of re.
cent report by special board of sur
vey composed of United States en-
gineers which demonstrate the COM
plete practicabilitY of the Lakes-to-
the-Gulf deep waterway, we repudiate
and condemn that portion of the re-
port declaring against the commercial
expediency of and necessity for the
project, and we affirm our fixed con-
viction that the vast and rapidly ad-
vancing commerce of our interior, al
ready reaching annual transportation
costs of fully billion dollars, abso-
lutely demands the opening of water
way from the great lakes to the sea
not less than fourteen feet deep and
adapted to modern terminal and trans
fer facilities.
S. We deny and condemn the falla-
cious theory that the need for water
way development can be measured
either by the amount or by the ab-
sence of water-borne commerce be-
fore the channels and terminals are
properly developed. We hold, on the
contrary, in accordance with the ex-
perience of all countries, that the ju-
dicious development of transporta-
tion facilities promotes the volume
and diminishes the cost of commerce.
6. We commend the plans and work
of the Mississippi River Commission
looking toward the concurrent de-
yelopment of channels and the ada
cent lands through system of revet-
ments and levees, and approve the ex-
tension of this system to the complete
protection of the overfowed lands,
the drainage of swamp lands, the
abatement of floods, and to control
the waters in such manner as to in
sure the highest utility for navigation
and all related purposes.
7. Holding that the Mississippi and
other waterways should be developed
under broad and comprehensive plan
recognizing all uses of the waters or
benefits to be derived from their con-
troll, we adhere to the principle arise
ing in our constitution and incorpo-
rated in statutes recently enacted in
several States that the waters belong
to the people, and maintain that this
right of the people is inherent and in
defeasible; and while recognizing
the necessity for administering this
Invaluable possession Of the people by
State and Federal agencies, each
within its appropriate jurisdiction, we
deny the right of municipalities or of
State and Federal governments to
ALLEVIATE or convey water by perpetual
FRANCHISE or without just considera-
tion in the interests Of the people.
8. We require more defnate infor-
nation, to be made available through
the Census Bureau or other appropri- |
ate Federal Office, concerning the
uses of our waters in all ways affect
ing navigation including municipal
and domestic supply, irrigation, manu-
featuring and power; and in further
legislation be needful, we demand its
enactment to the end that a complete |
census of our rivers and other water
ways may be made as basis for the |
development of navigation in connec-
tion with the inter-related industries.
9. We affirm our conviction that it
is the duty, and is within the consti- |
tutional power, of the Federal govern
ment to exercise jurisdiction over
terminals and over the connections
with other transportation agencies re-
quired for the development and main |
tenance of water Transportation; and
we hold that the regulation of termi-
nal and transfer facilities is not only
essential to, but is an intergal part of |
any practicable system of commercial
navigation.
40. We commend the actions of |
President Roosevelt in creating, and |
of President Taft in continuing, the
National Conservation Commission
appointed to investigate the natural |
resources of which all are interde- |
pendent with our rivers, and on which |
the future growth Of our people must |
rest; we commend the wise action of |
nearly all of our States in creating
of like purpose; and we |
demand early and effective legislation, !
both State and Federal, for the main
tenance of those agencies for the pub
lie welfare.
'11. We extend the right hand of |
fellowship to all other organizations
and assemblages Of citizens devoted
[Continued on eighth pagel I