The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1911-08-01

to that OF the improved Ohio is the
10 miles Of the Rhine between Coli
ogne and the Dutch frontier.
Nor are we compelled to LOOK TO the
TO the future for examples OF low cost
and EFFICIENCY En- transportation on
American rivers. The greatest car
goes moved at one time are not ham
died on the Great Lakes, or even on
Pthe Great Lakes, or even on the ocean
but In the fleets OF barges carrying
coal down the Ohio and Mississippi
rivers-the record cargo being $500
tons, handled by the tow boat
"Sprague" The board OF engineers
that recommended the Improvement OF
the Ohio report that great quantities
OF coal have been transported on that
river at a charge Of less than A Of a
mill per ton per mile-a rate as low
as is given on the Great Lakes for
coal from Buffalo to Duluth which
coal is taken as return cargo-and
say that they never heard Of a lower
rate except in deep draft ocean ves-
sells traversing great distances.
Sugar was carried 1000 miles UP
stream from New Orleans to Pittsburg
in 1905 and 1906. at an average charge
Of ia mills per ton-mile, while the
average charge on sugar for the ocean
haul of 5000 miles, from Rio Janeiro to
New York, was 1.27 mills. While the
exact expense per ton-mile, due to cost
of maintenance and interest on cost of
construction, would barry with the
amount OF traffic developed. If the en-
tire amount were loaded on to the traf-
fic already developed on the Ohio, the
total cost of transportation would
not be one-fourth as much as the av-
erage rate by rail.
In considering the total cost OF
transportation we must not forget to
figure how much that total cost might
be increased if the railways were en-
tirely relieved of the effect of the COM
petition of inland waterways. Before
the locks at the cascades on the CO.
lumbia river were built, freight rates
on nails and that class of goods from
Portland to the Dalles were $6.40 per
ton. AS soon as the locks were OPEN
ed the railroad rate dropped to SO per
ton. That the difference was due to
the river Improvement Is shown by the
fact that lates were not reduced be-
yond the poin' to which the steam
boats could run For instance. the
rate on salt in carload lots was $50
per ton-mile to the Dalles and 5000
per ton to Umatilla-$1.5O per ton for
the SS miles with water competition
and $3.50 per ton for the next 100
miles without water competition.
If 1t is proper for the people of the
United States to consider the total
cost" of transportation before entering
upon an extensive scheme Of waterway
development, it is even more import
ant that they consider the total cost"
which results when the transportation
system Of the country is overloaded
and breaks down. is it did in l9O6-O7.
There are many people who have Bit
ter memories of the losses incurred
drought the inability of the rail-
ways to handle promptly the traffic
offered them in those years. They
recognize the fact that the public In
terest demands the improvement Of
our waterways and the turning over
to them, to as great an extent as
possible, of the raw materials which
are chiefly responsible for the clogging
of tracks and terminals leaving the
railways of the country free to usa
their equipment in the transporta-
ton of traffic Of higher grade.
1t is to the interest of the people
that transportation be as prompt, as
efficient and as cheap as possible. I'M
less the railways OF the United States
can prove that their average rates can
and will be reduced TO something near
the average figures which have been
indicated for the Rhine, in Germany,
and the Ohio and Mississippi, in the
United States, there is no question
that the public interest demands the
Improvement of inland waterways. If
the railways could conduct transporta-
ton at profit at prices somewhat
near the present total cost Of trans
portation on the Rhine, there is no es-
cape from the conclusion that their
present rates are outrageously high.