Arizona republican., 1911-07-28
VAST EXPENSE
OF TRANSPORTATION
Would Be lessened If Rivers Were
Made NaV:gable.

Washington. d. c.. July 22-(Specias
Correspondence of The Republican,
Under our complex civilization every
man. woman and child depends for ut
least part of the necessaries of life on
the transportation of commodities. This
burden it is fair to recognize as a tax
1t is recalled that in 1905 our annual
payments 10 railways Gin which about
20 per cent was for freighD first rose
above two billion dollars; that in 1907
it exceeded 81. 5S9. OOO. 600 and 1898 it de-
clined 10 a little below $4,000. OOO. OO0.
the current average being recKoned at
two and half billion dollars.
This vast amount of money spent for
the transportation of the things that
we eat and wear and use; the coal that
we burn, the brick. the iron ere and
the thousand and one things which en-
ter into the life of the people if reck-
Oned as head tax would be equivalent
to over so per capita for our - 900, 00O
inhabitants; as a family tax p; is Sl35
annually for each, average family.
Reckoned as a land tax it is over S1.25
tional domain, or an annual figure cor
responding with the price fog which
most of the public lands were sold: and
if figured as a tax on the improved land
which yields our Astounding farm pro-
ducts il averages $500 yearly for each
of our AIS. 00O.0 600 acres The question
therefore asserts itself with brutal
force how long can production contin-
lie under so weighty a burden? No
wonder the quantity of farm products
of the necesSaries Of life has f.lIen of
since the year of congestion. 1906.
though the value of the products con-
tinues To- increase under the inverse
relation brought out by the secretary
of agriculture i'm his last report. and no
wonder that retail prices of food have
scared since the farmers learned in 1906
To limit their production to what the
railroads can carry.
There are in the United States 295
navigable rivers of a total length of 90
400 miles. If these rivers could be
made 10 do Il quarter of the hauling of
freight and thereby move that freight
at a quarter of the current cost there
billion dollars annually in traffic
charges. reducing the current tIanspor-
tation burden to 500 per capita or 800
per family. 81 an acre on land. all of
which saving might be measured in
reduced cost of living
Commissioner Of Corporations Her
pert Knox Smith in speaking of the
crying needs for a comprehensive poll
icy by the general government towards
the waterways of the United States.
which has been the slogan of the Ma
tional Rivers and Harbors congress
since its organization fifteen years ago.
said that our waterways must BE-. made
an integral part of our entire carrying
system THE tremendous predomi-
nance of through traffic l. the United
States between widely separated sec
tons makes unificdtiOn with the whole
transportation system almost essential
for the life of any part If that system.
We find. however. that general water
traffic is almost isolated from the main
currents of the traffic of the country
BY general water traffic | mean the
traffic that is not carried upon water
lines controlled by or closely affiliated
with the railroads. There is n surpris-
ing lack of coordination between the
rail lines and general water lines. And
until we have close physical rail and
water lines with close commercial con-
nectiOns at the through terminals of
the railroad the enormous charge for
transportation cannot be appreciably
reduced.
My personal opinion is that the con
structiOn of waterway channe;s by the
government should be absolutely con
ditiOned upon the present or future as
sured existence thereon of adequate
terminals provided by the locality and
by it kept permanently open for the
general benefit of these users of that
channel Local authorities are the only
ones who can furnish and keep open
the proper terminal frontage. and such
4 requirement would not only result in
providing terminals, but would also go
far To prevent the presentation of
worthless and visionary schemes of
waterway improvement. If the local
ity is required to stake its own money
on such terminal improvements il is not
going to urge upon congress channel
work of such futile character as will
is the system i'm many places in Eu-
rope. and. judging from the results
there. il has certainly worked admir-
ably