The Lexington intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1901-1949, 1910-09-03
ALL ARE CONCERNED
IMPROVEMENT OF NATIONS WA
TERwAYs OF INTEREST TO
EVERY CITIZEN.
VITAL FACTS ARE PRESENTED
Cost Of Getting Grain TO Market Mate
rally Reduced Through Shipment
by Wster-6ensfts Distributed All
over the Country.

You may not know it-you probably
don't-but II is a matter Of Importance
TO you whether the waterways Of the
United States are improved or not
and this is true no matter who you
are. what your business is, or what
part Of the country You live In. 1t
may be that you are a farmer and you
tell me that 1t is nonsense to say
that It can make any difference TO
you whether the waterways Of the
country are improved OF not, because
you live away out west, miles away
from any river which is n~avigable now
or ever will be.
Well. l admit that 1t is not as easy
to see as the grain elevator down at
your railway station, but the benefit
is there Just the samoa real. sure
enough, dollars-and-cent benefit. Wa
terways have already been of tremen-
dous advantage to the farmers of the
country and their further improve
ment will put more money into your
pockets and those OF your ~neighbors.
Take grain for an illustration. A
large part of the grain raised In the
country is shipped away from the
place where 1t Is grown. some for use
in the eastern states and some for ex-
port to Europe. Under these condi.
tons the price Of grain is not fixed
at the nearest railway station. Your
wheat, for instance, is worth just what
II will bring in Liverpool-less the
cost of getting 1t there. You can see
at once that it makes a whole lot Of
difference to you how much It costs
to send your grain to New York or
Liverpool-and there's where the
waterway comes in.
Where Economy Comes In.
In 1908 the average cost Of carrying
wheat from Chicago to Buffalo by lake
YVES one cent a bushel, while the cost
by rail to New York was Ill cents
almost twelve times as much, although
the distance is the same, But grain
which is to go all the way by water
must be transferred to canal boats at
Buffalo. Little canal boats drawn by
mules cannot carry stun as cheaply
as big ships driven by steam, 30 the
through rate by water was six cents
a bushel, a little over half as much
as by rail. For the twenty years end
ing with 1908 the water rate, on the
average, was lower than the rail rate
by 6.2 cents a bushel, On the ship
ments from Lake Superior the differ
ence was greater still, since Duluth is
less than 100 miles farther from New
York than Chicago is by water anC
nearly 500 miles farther by rail, but
no comparative rates are published.
The beneficial effects Of the water
way, through lowered cost Of transpor
tation, are not confined to the grain
shipped from cities on the lakes, buI
extend to practically all the grain
produced. The total production o.
the five principal cereals-wheat
corn, oats, barley and rye-during The
past 40 years, was over 10000, 0OO, 0Ot
bushels. II the average addition L
the value of this vast volume Of graiI
was FIVE cents a bushel, and tina
seems a moderate figure in view o
the facts stated above, the total Il
more than $1,000, OOO, OO0-nearly all o
which has gone into the pockets Of thu
farmers.
But while the beneficial effect Of thu
waterways extends to a surprising dis
lance, a waterway close by exerts
very much more direct and powerful
influence than one a long way off.
the Great Lakes and the Erie cana
have increased the value Of grain al
over the west, what do you suppos,
would happen If the Mississippi. Mis-
souri,. Arkansas and Red rivers wer
so improved that boats could run ey
cry day in the year unless hindere0
by ice?
Money Needed for Work.
The National Rivers and Harbor
congress is working for the improve
ment Of the rivers, harbors and water
ways in all parts Of the United States
Chairman Alexander Of the rivers an
harbors committee, says that $685. 600
900 will complete every project whicI
has been begun or has been recon
mended by the army engineers. Tv,
hundred million dollars would prot
ably finish up all OF these and all III,
new projects which will be surveys
and adopted within the next few years
The average annual production o
the Ave principal cereals, which dun
ing the last ten years has been lIB1I
100000 bushels, has been steadily IN
~ereasing and will probably continu0
70 increase for some time to come
The complete improvement Of al
cur waterways would increase III
value Of every bushsl Of grain Pre-
duced By at least I'VE cents-my owl
opinion IL that It would be more thaI
that.
But let US be on the safe side. Sur
pose we spend a billion dollars a
waterways instead of q half-biIl10n
suppose that the production Of g1A
remains as Il is instead Of increasing
and suppose that the price Of grafn !