The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1909-09-01
IMPROVEMENT OF WATERWAYS.

| ndtlOnal needs is noticed and this in
terest is not likely to wane as time
passes. Already there is noticeable
changes going on throughout the
country on the subject of improving
the inland waters of the United States
and the utterances of those great
railway kings, Hartman, Hill, Yoa-
KUN and others, who state that the
railroads cannot transport more than
SO per cent of the freight at the time
it should be carried, has emphasized
the needs for a broad and compre-
hensive waterway policy on the part
of the Federal government, to the
end that the great natural thorough
fares of the country may be made to
do their share of transportation.
| A much greater interest is
shown by Senators and Representa-
| tives in Congress than ever before in
the subject of waterways and their
1 .provement. Congressman Henry T.
Rainey of the Twentieth Illinois dis
trict, is among the leaders of the
House to unreservedly favor a bond
issue of liberal proportion to carry on
the work of improving the inland
waters and canals of continental
| United States, one of the cardiaI
rlanks in the platform Of the
National Rivers and Harbors Con-
gress, whose Sixth Annual Convention
| in Washington next December, gives
| promise of being the biggest water
| way Convention ever held.
THE Waterways of the country"
| said Mr.. Rainey today. shave fallen
| railroads have been increasing their
/ carrying capacity, building larger
| engines, building larger cars. laying
heavier rails. and double-tracking
their lines until now the limit Of de-
veIopment seems to have been reach
ed. Nothing has been done for water
ways while this remarkable railway
development has been in progress.
Rivers have not been dredged to any
| considerable extent. the banks Of
streams have not been regularized,
| of waterway development has been
| entered upon. In the second place,
| railways paralleling rivers and reach
ing cities along our rivers have pur-
sued the policy of making cheaper
| rates to river points, rates often as
cheap or cheaper than river steamers
Of the present capacity can make.
| Railways have been carrying freight to
| river points at a loss in order to de-
| stroy river traffic. and have been COM
| pelling inland towns and cities to
pay higher freight rates than they
ought to pay in order to make up for
loss. There has been for half a CEN
tury a fight of the railroads against
the rivers, with no organizations until
a comparatively recent period fighting
for the rivers.
'There is only one way to meet the
situation and to restore to railroads
the competition they ought to have,
and that is by improving our rivers,
connecting them where necessary with
artificial canals, depending upon the
electric lines reaching our rivers and
extending out now into the interior
Of the country to furnish in connection
with the improved rivers. the compe-
lition which a gigantic railway COM
| binatIon must have. Improve our
rivers and you will have furnished to
t|cIy man a great free national high
way upon which he can launch his
boat anf carry his goods, free Of all
charge, to the ocean highways of the
world.
''The building of the Panama cant /
meets with the approval of the coun-
try. and yet it will fail to accomplish
the results for which it is intended
unless we improve the 10000 miles Of
navigable rivers lying within our
mountain ranges; unless we improve
rivers and harbors between our noun
tain ranges and the seas in order to
enable freights to be transported
cheaply from the interior to the
worlds ocean highways. The time, it
seems to me. is here when the. coun-
try would approve a bond issue of
large size for the purpose of improv-
Ing rivers on comprehensive basis.
The development of the country now
depends upon it,
by a majority of nearly 100000
votes the State of Illinois has declared