The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-05-28
WILL PUSH NEW
 STEAMSHIP LINE The Montgomery Business League Behind Project MOBILE TO NEW YORK Three States Will Be Interested in the Independent Line as Means
 to Better Freight
 Rates

Montgomery, May 27.-tspecial.) .)-An in- dependent steamship line all the way from New York to Mobile, as a direct means of bettering the freight rates in the states of Alabama, Mississippi and Georgia, Is movement that has been launched by the freight bureau department of the Business Mems league of Montgomery with a splendid chance of success. H. Starr Kealhofer, manager of the local freight bureau, is the moving factor In
 the proposed line, and estimates that cap ital of $1,0OO,0O0 will be sufficient to ac- complish the desired results.
 While the movement has as yet not been thoroughly worked out, the project is to have cities of the three states mentioned combine In furnishing the necessary cap | ital, especially those cities that are touched by rivers that connect with Mo- bile. It Is estimated that such a lins would prove indispensable to Columbus and Rome, in Georgia, and to Montgom- cry, Selma, Birmingham and other Ala bama cities that are connected by means of waterways.
 Atlanta, New Orleans, Columbus, Miss, and other cities in Georgia and Louisiana would come directly under the head of municipalities that would welcome such reduced rates as would enable lower prices and better profits at the same time.
 The opening gun in favor of such water route was fired by -..r. Kealhofer at the recent meeting of the Mobile Basin and Tennessee River Improvement asso- ciation which was held in Birmingham this week. The next gun will be fired in MT. Kealhofer will explain the project to the business men and river promoters of that city. After that each city that could be affected by the lowered rates will be given full details of the project, and asked to cooperate in achieving the de- sired ends.
 Tn the opinion of Mir Kealhofer, four ocean-going steamers would be sufficient to guarantee ample facilities, the number being sufficient to have weekly trips be- tween Mobile and New York. Barges could then convey the merchandise from Mobile to the other cities that connect with Alabama's gulf city by means of wa terways. ass
 Good results that are said to have been achieved by Galveston in 1908 in estab- fishing such an independent line to bring about reduced rates are being pointed at as indicative of what can be accomplished While the independent line was not long lived inasmuch as it was bought up by one of the steamship companies, rates were established which in the majority of instances were materially less than the rates on the same commodities from New York to Mobile, despite the fast that Galveston was TOO miles farther than the Alabama port These reduced rates, it is declared, were somewhat raised after the consolidation, but a review of the tariffs at the present time shows, it is said, that Mobile still suffers a higher rate than does the Texas cty.
 The Alabama cities which would be di- rectly affected by such a line are Mobile, Selma, Montgomery, Birmingham, De- mopois and Tuscaloosa while Columbus, Ga., and Rome, Ga, would be the Geor- gia cities to be most affected. Establish ment of the line, as a consequence, would mean that goods could be shipped direct from New York to Columbus and Rome, in Georgia, and to Montgomery, Tusca- loosa and Demopois, in Alabama, not naming the various Alabama towns on the Alabama, Warrior Tombigbee, Coosa and Tallapoosa rivers. Owing to the fed eral activity in improving these water ways, 1t is matter of only a few months before direct routes can be had from the various points mention to Mobile.