The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1910-08-23

Both Concerns Seeming Anxious to
Re Purchased by the Government
\ Moxnentous Issue to People in
Eastern North Carolina, Involving
the Making Free of One of Two
Canals.
To the Editor: The old fight that
for several generations has been
Sagad between the Albemarie &
Chesapeake Canal and the Dismal
swamp Canal, bids fair to be settled
ar the meeting in Norfolk. September
6th. when the government Board Of
Engineers will have a hearing Of the
interests representing the two canals.
Each canal is anxious 20 be purchased
BY the government and it is a most
momentous issue to many thousands
Of people in Eastern Carolina
The purchase and making free OF
one by the government means the
practical corfscation of the other, and
necessarily a depreciation of values to
some extent in the territory served by
the toll canal. The making free Of
either Of these annals means the re-
establishment Of BOA ines that have
heen bought Up or ~strangled by the
railroad companies; it means hat
about twenty-five counties in Eastern
North Carolina Will get much lower
freight rates. as Norfolk is a great
basing point for making rates and is
the great distributing gateway for the
counties OF North Carolina Uatered by
The I1SHl;n+a IL pnrHIIIr1 nc Iittia
Ch0Wan, Blackwater, Meherrin, Roam
oke, Cashie, Sc~uppernong, Alligator,
PamIico. Tar. Neuse and Trent rivers,
and Currituck, Albe1narle and Pamlico
Sounds,
A successful business man, a large
mill owner in Eastern North Carolina,
writing in answer to an inquiry as to
the amount Of savings in freight that
the making free of the Albemarle &
Chesapeake Canal would mean to the
people Of Eastern North Carolina,
says;
The figures have been carefully es-
tmated covering the question you have
asked, but in doing SO both the Able
marie and Chesapeake and the Dismal
Swamp Canal were taken into consId-
Grafton. and as a matter Of fact The
hguTes represented owe six hundred
thousand dollars per year. You, OF
course, understand If this canal was
made free that the waterbound COM
merce would be increased very much,
possibly double You are aware Of
the TACT that he present ana permit
boats to pass through them loaded not
10 exceed nine feet. If, as suggested
t!theT OF the canals should be pur-
chased By the government and made
Zee and cut made deep enough to per
NIT boats loaded to twelve feet, there
would be a marked increase in bust
ness and a decrease in the freight
'aleS, and when you take into consid-
erauon the fact that the eastern coast
OF North Carolina has tWenty-siX hun
dred miles Of water front, bottled up
SUBJECT to toll canals, l am inclined tC
say That l would be modest in sug-
s"%,!hS that d savings of at least q
nillon and a half dollars per yea
n1.Shl be made by the people of east
efn North Carolina"
AS ANXIOUS as the people of Eastern
-E'-th Carolina are for an inland
%'lef"ay' which has been the hope O.
wat Sectlon for a hundred years, there
mary h believe the making O
Hte waterway from the Chesapeake
hINtmarIe Sound would give tha'
m1u"H almost as much benefit as the
more extended waterway. They would
ne enjoying immediate relief while thu
~'4hued inland Waterway is continued
'S tdIhed about. There is a bill
49, congress now which authorizes
[mr r Hecretary Of the Navy to %contrac'
tn e't purchase Of a canal, subject t
tFpfOVal of Congress. The govern
meat engineers are to recommenf
% canal is to be selected and there
SlEong probability of the recon.
I~11o@'lon of the Albemarle & Chesa.
mahe canal. This has been a liv;
C I11-5 with the people of Eastern
tin, '''I Tor many years. A resolu.
|2I EDnCprnino 49, D.z o-z
oanal was introduced at the Demo
- congressional convention of tn,
faIoD district last month, but was no
">"rably considered.
tn iTeft Gallatin when Secretary o
1'easory in his famous repor