The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-08-23
OF WATERWAY
SENATOR SCOTT OF WEST, VIRGINIA
 ENTHUSIASIC.
Declares That Holland Has Done More in Way of Development Than Any Country in the
 World.

Washington. Aug. 22.--(SpeciaL)- Among the men of the Senate of the United States who have made water way improvements a close study Sena- tor Nathan Bay Scott, of West Virginia, easily takes first rank.
 Senator Scott, in his years of busi- ness life, has had time enough to make several trips to the older countries of the world and as a result of these wis., its he has been a keen observer of the way in which not only Europe, but the countries in the far East use their wa terways. for purposes of freight trans portation, but for passenger transpor tation as we'll.
 Holland to my mind presents the of any country know in Europe" said Senator Scott 'Low-lying as it does and facing the sea its canals are not only @ subject of wonderment to the visitor, but a source of endless profit to It's people. Small as Holland Is, smaller than many of our own States. the waterway problem seems to have been solved in Holland much more ef- fectively and much more advantageous ly than in countries vaster in extent and with more natural rivers to aid in the solution of the transportation prob lem.
 "Fxom whatever point of view one sees-the great natural water highways of the United States there comes the sense of unaccomplished things in re- lation to our own rivers and canals, Nature has been most prodigal in not only giving us a magnificent coast line, but she has placed within our dominion rivers that are not rivaled anywhere on earth, and 1t behoovus us to make them our servants to carry our pro- ducts to the sea, thereby relieving rail- way freight congestion and tighten the cost of transportation. rhe railroad has no more reason to feal or to oppose the steamboat than the trolley car Both have their uses aad both their Limitations. Both are necessary to serve the people who tive along the river or along the line of crack, for the business done by river or by trolley will never be sufficient m volume to interfere with the railroads no matter how much the rivers may be improved or how cheaply they carry freight.
 'In this connection let me say that good public roads and Inland water ways will solve the problem of cheap freight rates and they go hand in hand together. I am firmly convinced that our waterway Improvement ought to be carried on In a comprehensive and systematic manner as urged by the National Rivers and Harbors Congress. Piece-meal appropriations for streams. that will never, in the very nature of things, contribute to the upbuilding or communities should be abandoned. What we need most is wisdom behind our Legislation for water ways and by that mean that the future should bear its proportion in the development of our water courses as the present.
 If current revenues are not su7fi- cient to provide for yearly expendit- ures of money to develop our great natural highways. then l, for one, will vote for a bond issue of sufficient amount to make possible the harness ing of the Ohio, the control of the Mis- sissippi and the opening up of a water route from Lake Erie to the Gulf. The Ohio River Is being improved too slow ly and 1t is discouraging to the .busi- ness man who figures upon the earning, power of every penny to see his rel ceipts dwindle' because of the lack of water transportation for bulkier freight.
 What would like to see Is inland navigation from the Lakes to the pen insula, and when the steamboats come back again upon our rivers then the high tide of our prosperity will be reached"