The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1911-02-17

with a capacity of four hundred bill
lion gallons The upper part of the
state must be drained into a great
reservoir and the water held that
now naturally flows north. The
speaker told a story of an Irishman
who moved back to Winona county
from the north part of the state and
said that he did not like it up north
because everything was turned
around. The rivers flowed north and
the Irish democrats voted the repub
lican ticket.
Mershon's Plan.
The speaker outlined the Mershon
plan of improving the waterways
Mershon would build five dams, at
various points on the Minnesota
river, to hold the water. He would
build canal 240 miles from the
Lake of the Woods to Lake Traverse
to get sufficient water This canal
would be 100 feet wide at the top
sixty feet wide at the bottom, and
twelve feet deep The upper Mis-
sissippi would also be improved, SO
as to bring boats from Lake Su-
perior to st. Paul, making great
barber there. The speaker did not
know about the feasibility of this
plan 1t might be found too costly
at present, or part of it might be
feasible. This is a time of great un-
dertakings. The Panama canal will
cost $500, 100000, and the fortified.
tons will cost $5OOOO,OOO The inn
proving of the Mississippi river and
its tributaries is proposed, at cost
of $500 100000, and this would do
more good than the Panama canal
will
London has just appropriated $7O,.
10000 to improve its harbor, because
Liverpool and Manchester have spent
enormous sums in making great
harbOrs. Manchester spent $4,000,
600 in building a canal from the sea,
and has found the traffic SO profit
able that it is spending other great
sums. This is municipal expendi-
ture. Glasgow bonded itself for $780,
00O,O to make great harbOr, and
the Clyde is now a great ship build
When it started, the water on the
bar was only sixteen inches deep, and
now steamers have to have thirty
feet MankatO could be made big
city if boats could reach here.
Manufacturing has been going
westward. The steel industry has
reached to Gary, ILL.,, and to Duluth.
AT the latter place everything into
which iron goes will be made, and
the state will be made wealthy. II
the traffic could so down the river,
from the lakes, factories would be
located all along. Coal could be
brought i'll cheaply. This state will
soon have 100000 of happy and
prosperous people. We produce no
coal, and it must all be brought
in, at an average cost of 81 ton
for shipping it. Coal can be brought
i'll barges and landed anywhere along
the river for fifty cents a ton.
State Should Act Now.
There is water power running to
waste. The state has not laid its
hands upon the water power of the
state and claimed it, as il should,
and as it will if bill now in the
passes. The cost of the water power
is to be reported TO the state, and
no one can build a dam until he gets
a permit from the state. This should
be done before the great corporations
seize the waterpower and throttle the
people. Power furnished by water
is far cheaper than any other In
Minneapolis, -four can be manufac-
tured by water power for one cent
a barrel, by steam power for five
cents barrel. Water for domestic
purposes should be provided. There
is likely to be opposition, and the
bill refers all questions of health
and sanitation to the state board of
health, if it will act Some authority
should step in and act. Some COM
mission or other should have control
of the water power. 1t is figured in
New York that there is 1,500, 900
horsepower in waterpower undevelop-
ed in that state, worth $40 a horse
power to the state. This would fur
nish heat, light and power-all abso-
lutely essential to life, health and
happiness. The water power of the
state of Minnesota is equal to 3,000,-
600 tons of coal. After the coal is
all gone, the water power will be
there as long as water runs down
hill, thousands of years hence. The
state ought to step in, not harshly,
but to get a share of the profits, TAX
ing reasonable contributions. increas-
ing as the value of the water power
becomes greater.
Priceless Heritage of Wealth.
The state has lost vast quantities
of mineral land. If it had acted i'm
the early days it would have had
vast wealth instead of allowing in
dividual capitalists to become mil
lionaires. The 100000 horsepower, or
perhaps millions, would bring in not
less than $5,G00.000. coming in for all
time. We should act at once. before
tho ,,ouor buc oil hpcu to1 on