The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1910-04-05
MISSOURI Can
CARRY Big BOATS
NAVIGATION AS IN OLD DAYS AID.
VocATEp AS PRACTICAL nv
ONE FACTION.

Pierre, S. D., April 5.--While the at
tendance OF outside delegations at the
Missouri river meeting held mere did
not show up 10 q large extent outside
of the river towns from Bismarck 10
Yankton, . few q the inland towns
took enough interest to get representa-
tives to the meeting. The discussions
which developed, especially those In
which practical and experienced river
men took part, showed that in their
estimation the Missouri river can be
navigated just as well today as 1t could
in days gone by when 1t was the great
artery of commerce for the whole Of
the Northwest.
The traffic will not now pay the
profits which 1t did when boat was
built at Pittsburg or st. Louis and
sent to Fort Benton, and In q single
round trip was expected to pay for it,
self with all the expenses OF the trip
added, and leave any future earnings
OF the boat as net profit. The char
acter OF the freight which has to be
handled at the present time is differ
ent from that of the olden days, when
the carrying of trappers' supplies to
Of their catches of the season made the
return Cargoes. Now the traffic to be
handled is in the way of grain and live
stock, and the shipments instead of be-
ing from one end OF the stream to the
other are from points remote from rail
facilities to the railroad points for
trans shipment.
The representatives from down river
points appear to look at the situation
from a different angle, as their dream
Is that Of a great artery of commerce
which Is to reach from the upper
reaches Of the Missouri to the gulf, and
become not only a great highway Of
commerce, but a general regulator OF
freight rate for a large part of the
central West To this end they are
working toward the organization Of
boat companies, at st. Louis and Kan
sas City, and are asking for a deep
channel to carry the class of boats
which they desire to operate and which
they say must be of large carrying ca
pacity to assure low freight rates with
the gulf as an outlet.
Local Traffic Advocates.
The advocates of building up local
traffic are not asking for the deep
channel which the others desire, but
demand that the government shall
either care for the river or release its
claim OF control and management and
allow them to work out their own sal
walton. The method of control which
the government attempts to use, is con-
sidered by all the practical river men
to be practically wrong. 1t aattempts to
provide a channel, without attempting
to stop the causes which prevent the
river from clearing a channel of it's
own. SO long as the protection OF
banks of the stream is looked upon by
the government as only q incident to
a channel, there will b. no channel. If
the banks are protected, and the cutting
which is continually going on 1t stop
ped, the river, in their estimation, will
clear a channel of it's own. With the
banks protected the annual deposits of
mud and silt will be stopped. and with
the channel which the river will make
for itself, navigation will be fairly safe
for the open season of navigation
about eight months in the year.
incidentally to this they claim that
protection of the banks will reclaim
and prevent the waste of thousands of
acres OF good tillabie land all along the
streams every year, and the money
which this alone would be worth to
the country would run into the mil
lions.
While the general consensus Of opin-
ion by all is that the Missouri is not
in condition to be navigated by the
proper class of boats for most of the
year, any practical improvements
which the government will place along
the banks of the stream will only make
the channel better Tor that work, and
assure a larger carrying capacity to
the boats which can be operated on
the stream.