The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1910-12-16
SAVING OF MILLIONS
WHAT COMPREHENSIVE SYSTEM
OF WATERWAYS IMPROVE
MENT MEANS TO FARMERS.
FIGURES TO SUPPORT FACTS


4 rect Return Would Mean 100000,
600, and Proportionateiy All OtheI
Products Would Be Affected.
In former article we gave facts anG
figures to prove that, If the compre
hensive plan Of waterway improve
ment advocated by the National Riv
ers and Harbors congress were car
ried out, the direct return to the farm
ers of the country, on the single item
of grain, would certainly be 100000,
900 year--and probably would be
more than twice that sum.
But grain Is not the only item on
which the farmers would receive a
benefit. The fact is that for the farm
ers-and everybody else, for that mat.
ter-the cost of transportation influ.
ences practically everything he buys,
sells. eats, wears or uses In any way
whatever, except water, air and sun
shine. The average man Is inclined to
laugh when told that he pays out more
for transportation than he does for
taxes or because of the tariff-but his
laughter does not alter the fact in the
least.
There are three principal methods
Of transportation, the wagonway, the
railway and the waterway, and there
Is so great difference in the cost of
transportation by these different meth
DDS that it is worth while to study the
matter little. The experts of the
good roads bureau estimate the cost
Of hauling ton of freight one mile
by horse and wagon on the average
road In the United States at rs cents.
The cost on thoroughly good, smooth
road might be reduced to 10 cents
Poors Manual gives 1882 mills per ton
mile as the average price received by
the railways in 1907, while the official
records kept at the 500 show that the
average rate on the freight carried
into and out of Lake Superior in the
same year was only s. of one mill.
: Facts in Nutshell.
You can better understand what
these figures mean if they are stated
in another way. They mean that If
you have dollar to spend in shipping
a ton of freight you can send it 4
miles on an average road. 10 miles on
a first-class road, 1271a miles on rail
road. and 1850 miles on a lake vessel.
1t is very easy to see that good
roads are lot better than poor roads
but that transportation by horse and
wagon is too costly at the hest to be
used except for small loads and short
distances. So far as interstate traffic
Is concerned the wagon road must be
left entirely out of consideration. 1t
is just as easy to see what great |
benefit would result from the building
Of railway into region where there |
was none before. and that a still |
greater benefit would result from SO
river that 1t Is made |
navigable when 1t was not
so before
Waterways increase prosperity In
three principal ways, viz: direct. saw
Ing, indirect saving and by what may
be called a creative effect. The direct
saving is that which occurs on goods
actually carried by water, and some
facts which indicate how great this d.
rect saving is, will also make more
plain the vast difference between the
cost Of transportation by rail and by
water.
Through the 500 canal at the out
ct of Lake Superior there were car.
led In 1907, 58,217,214 tons of freight.
This was carried an average distance
If 1888 miles at an average cost Of
8 of one mill per ton-mile. If this
lad been shipped by rail at the aver
lge railway rate for that year (7.82
nills), it's transportation would have
ost $338,G33,364 more than was paid
or Its carriage by water
The total freight carried on all
axes that year was, in round num-
'ers, 100000,000 tons. This vast ton.
age was carried for $55O,0O0,O00 less
han 1t would have cost to send it by
all, and the improvements, which pro-
uce saving large enough to pay off
he national debt in less than two
ears, cost only $85,000,000.
Proof Of Good Results.
Wouldn't you call that pretty fair
ividend on the investment? And don't
OH think 1t would pay to improve all
ur waterways as fast and as far as
re can?
But" says some one, what reason
, there to suppose that improved riv-
RS would give anything like as good
esults as have been obtained on the
akes?' That is proper question and
entitled to an answer.
The only waterway in this country
hitch has been improved as whole
composed of the four lakes above
'iagara Falls, but there are many i'm
royed rivers in EIIrope. From a care.