Los Angeles herald., 1910-11-27
FRIENDS OF TAFT
CHECK ATTACK ON
WATERWAY POLICY
Committee on Resolutions at ST.
Louis Convention CTitiCiseS
Executives Course
BARTHoLDT OFFERS DEFENSE
Lee RasSieur Declares President
Named Engineers UnfriendIy
to Work on Mississippi

ST. LOUIS. Nov. 26.-An attack on
President Taft was thwarted at the
final session of the Lakes-to~the-Gulf
Deep Waterway association conven-
ton here this afternoon after the rcso-
Iutions committee had asked approval
a. its report Friends of the chief eN-
ecutive rushed TO the platform and
appealed to the delegates to eliminate
what Governor Deneeu of Illinois
termed an insult After two hours
warm discussion the objectionable sec
ton was stricken out The section
which caused the heated debate iol1
lows:
"And in hitter disappointment and
in sorrow we are compelled TO deplore
the course of the executive in delaying
the creation Of the board provided in
the last rivers and harbors act and
in finally appointing a board which
proved unfriendly to our policy and
our project, despite our patriotic EFFORT
to aid him by information concerning
these physical and commercial con
ditions better known to us than 10
others"
Lee Rassieur of st. Louis, in defend
ing the resolutions, said the president
had delayed the appointment of the
engineers for five months apd that TWO
of the army engineers on the board
are known 10 DS utllA lSlit'iy ~ t4lS
w terWay.
BARTHOLDT DEFENDS TAFT
Congressman Bartholdt said the sec
tion did an injustice to the president;
that President Taft by the wording Of
the act was compelled to name the
chief of engineers of the army as one
of the board. He appealed to the con
Vention to vote to eliminate the harsh
words.
Congressman H. T. Rainey Of Illinois
made a bitter attack on the army en-
gineers as a whole. and said that the
men on the board were prejudiced
against the waterway. He said the
resolution as read should be adopted
Governor Deneen characterized the
section as an insult, and declared
that President Taft had attracted the
attention of the world to the project
by making a trip down the Mississippi
river last year He predicted that
next year the convention would be at
tacking the members of the lower
house of congress.
Chairman A. Fl. Scott of the resolu-
+ions committee said the committee in
its deliberations had not discussed
politics
Other resolutions adopted demand of
congress a waterway connecting the
Great Lakes with the Gulf of Mexico
with an initial depth of not less than
fourteen feet and lock sills adapted 10
a depth of not less than twenty-four
feet.
And we hold" the section read
chat the advocacy of less depth by
federal engineers has arisen from de-
sire to circumvent our efforts and de
feat our main purpose of improving
transportation by an adequate system
o. commercial navigation
ADDITIONAL MONEY REQUIRED
The section which caused the debate
was a part Of section s of the resolu-
tions As adopted section S reads:
Expressing appreciation of the ac-
tion of the sixty first congress in max
ing a conditional appropriation for the
lakes to the gulf deep waterway-an
appreciation in full measure of the
merit of that modest appropriation
We declare our need for more liberal
provision for this purpose by congress"
The old officers Of the association, IN
Guiding President ". V. havanaugh
of St Louis, Treasurer George II. Mon
roe Of Joliet, ILL.,, and the former vice
presidents We're reelected.
Dr~.ny the afternoon Philip Wcrleln
of New Orleans and John +. Irish ot
san Francisco told of the advantages
Of their cities for holding the Panama
exposition in 1915. The convention did
not vote an Endorsement Of either city