The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1910-11-25
CANALS FOR BENEFIT
LESSON FROM EUROPE SHOWS
HOW WATERWAY IMPROVE.
MENT HELPS RAILROADS.
HAS A CREATIVE EFFECT
Construction Of the Manchester Ship
Canal Shown to Have Resuscitated
Many Dying Towns-Many Give
Similar Experiences.

'S' SuS"u " TJaV0 nC0USCIk6kS
Many Dying Towns-Many Civ
Similar Experiences.
In previous articles 1t was show
that the waterways carry goods NOR
cheaply than railways do or can an,
compel the railways to carry for les
than they otherwise would, and thel
: the claim was made that the improve
ment Of waterways is benefit to tn,
, railways with which they compete
Several instances were given to sup
, port this claim and many more NIGH
be given If space allowed, for the
writer, who has studied the subject fol
rs years, has found many instances
OF benefit. and not single instance
OF harm, to railways from the i'm
provement Of waterways. It is now in
order to see II we can find a reason
Tor this rather surprising result.
| Waterways, as has been said before,
produce benefits In three principal
ways-by direct saving in the cost of
transportation of goods carried by
water, indirect saving, by the lower
Ing OF railway rates through the com
petition of water routes, and by what
may be called creative effect. II
Is this last named effect which we
are now to consider.
Manchester, England, before the con.
afrnnttnn nf tho chit,
dying town. Hundreds of stores and
thousands of dwellings were empty,
factories were closed-some moved
away-and population was decreasing
With the opening OF the canal all this
was changed. Factories reopened,
new ones were built, the empty houses
were refilled and thousands of new
ones built to accommodate the popula.
ton that came pouring in. And the
benefits were not confined to Manches.
ter alone. but were distributed over
the whole great industrial region, con.
tanning over 100000 people, of which
Manchester Is the center. 1t was not
only natural, but inevitable, that the
great increase in population and pros.
perity in Manchester and the surround
ing region should be reflected in the
business and the profits of the rail.
ways therein.
Liverpool Also Aided.
Liverpool fought desperately to pre-
vent the building of the canal and the
of tho new port of Man.
chester; but instead Of being injured
BY tho canal, the business of LIVERPOOL
has increased faster than before. Dur.
ng the Is years before the canal was
opened the increase In the harbor re.
'eipts at Liverpool was only 3310, 900;
n the same length Of time after It
vas opened the increase was 81, 1885,.
100. The 100000 tons of trafac at
Manchester have not been stolen from
liverpool, they have been created by
he canal.
frankfort, Germany, before the
liver Main was improved, was not
ying city but was decidedly stagnant.
and Mayence on the Rhine.
hitch had been improved. were grow.
ig rapidly. while Frankfort was grow.
lg very little. AS soon as the canal.
alton of the river was finished, which
as in 1885, the city began to grow
nd has kept on growing ever since.
he population, which was $4,000 In
1915, has increased to $4,000 in 1895,
$4,000 In 1905, and is probably
ore than 100000 now. Evidently the
sople of Frankfort expect their city
keep on growing, too. They spent
Ter $l,50O,000 on harbor when the
yer was first improved and are
'rd at work right now building
w and much larger harbor at cost
$17,6O0.000. Just as in the case of OIL
the benefit was not con.
led to the city of Frankfort; the in.
strial and commercial life of the
lole region was greatly stimulated.
mes long closed were reopened, new
dustries were started and today
ere Is an almost continuous success. I'LL
m OF factories lining the banks of OF
river from Frankfort to the LIE
line. oh,
Everybody Reaps Benefit. vel
Hunt the world around and always
everywhere we find that the i'm.
'vement of waterways sets cities to
wing, factory wheels to humming.
commerce to moving in a wider "o
swifter stream. Railroads get
re business in big cities than in
all towns, in densely populated
nufacturing region than in one that 7
thinly settled. Waterways, there ing
., benefit railways-and states and col
ions as well--by promoting an in =
ase In population. in manufactures
In commerce. But for one who ''a'
IS to get clear down to the bot. tim
OF things there still remains the kim
stion: why do waterways in. corr
ase population and create com. Wit
ce and Industry" 49,.