The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1909-06-06
THE WARNTNG FROM GEORGIAN
RAY.

The taxpayers OF the Empire State are
spending Sloi 900. 900 for tho CONSTRUCTION
Of a State barge canal that Is to connect
the Great Lakes with the Atlantic by the
general route Of the old Erie Canal and
the Hudson River. This great inland
waterway is designed ostensibly to re.
trieve for the port Of New York is lost
traffic in the grain products OF the middle
West. Its specifications call for a canal
that shall accommodate wheat barges Of
1900 tons burden. drawing from ten to
eleven feet OF water.
No one knows how soon the barss canal
will be completed. Some who are opt.
mistio maintain that the last shovelful
Of earth will have been removed before
fifteen years have rolled by. Others, not
80 optimistic, believe that twenty-five
years will have passed before the first
1 800 ton barge shall have made the trip
from the Great Lakes to the Hudson. At
all events 1t IL safe to say that at least
another generation will have elapsed be-
fore the last section OF the States great
est artificial waterway shall have been
constructed.
Now. look ahead for twenty years and
imagine the canal open for traffic. What
them Those who Gre Responsible for Ito
building say that grain will be shipped BY
the railroads OF the West to distributing
centres on the Great Lakes, where it will DO
loaded upon lake steamers, 30 it is said.
ard conveyed 70 the head Q; the si1i .Oo0.0 90
canal. Here II will be tr~ansshipped to
barges-the canal, remember. Is but
twelve feet deep, far too shallow to ac-
commodate lake steamers-and towed
down through the locks to the Hudson
River. At the New York terminus .
second transshipment will take plaoe,
for canal barges with a draught Of but
ten feet are o suitable for ~ooeangoins
travel. This mean that breaking bulk,
a tedious and expensive performance,
must occur twice between the Great Lake
ports and the Atlantic seaboard.
Turn to the Georgian Bay ship canal.
which the people Of the Dominiou Of
Canada are planning 70 build az soon a.
their transcontnental railway 10 COM
pleted. The route OF this waterway 70
from French River Village on Georgian
Bay, which is an inlet Of Lake Huron.
through the French River, Lake Nipisdns
and the Ottawa River to Montreal on Tie
st. Lawrence River. The total distance
from Montreal to French River Village
is 40 miles. 80
The typographical features along tho
canal, to quote from the Scientific Annsr-
can, are such that $50 miles OF tbs dis
lance will consist OF natural waterways,
upon which no work OF excavation need
be done. ef the ios miles remaining
eighty miles include existing channels
that will require merely the elimination
oil a few rocks and shoals to make them
navigable. This leaves only about
twenty-eight miles of canal In which the
full prism must be excavated in cuts that
vary from 200 to 800 feet IN width. The
estimated total cost would be about N0i.-
900, 900 and the time required for construc-
ton would be not more than ten yeara
Twenty years from now, on the opening
day Of the State barge canal. the Cana
dian waterway will have been IN operation
for at least ten years.
The most striking feature Of the Georg-
ian Bay ship canal is in the dimensious
of its locks. These will be $50 feet longs
feet wide and % feet deep. The Canadian
waterway could accommodate vessels up
to coo feet in length, 60 feet In beam and
81 feet in draught.
Look ahead twenty years at the Gtcr-
gian Bay Canal, in it's turn. What Ia the
natural course OF events will be taking
place? Oceangoing steamships will col.
iect their cargoes Of grain at one end Of
the Great Lakes. sail to the other end and
drop down the Georgian Bay Canal and
the st. Lawrence River to the ocean,
whence they will shape their course toward
any or all the ports in the eastern and
western henispheres. T~ransshipment
from lake vessel to canal barge and from
canal barge again to o~ceangoins craft vii
be entirely eliminated.
The Georgian Bay route to London
soS miles shorter than the barge canal
route to the same destination. 1t Ii The
cheaper as we'll as the moro direct routs
OF the two. It will be ready for kahc Tn
years before the barge canal 10 open.
Is there any doubt as TO which channs
the grain trade will follow?
What Of the ono hundred millions and
more that the taxpayers Of this STATE
will have sunk into the twelve foot 0Nno
that is termed the New York barge csnAl
lAA