New-York tribune., 1912-12-28
TOMK|NS HOPES FOR
PORT SUPREMACY
Continued from first page.

now vacant or insufiiciently used. Ihe
! tax receipts of the city will increase III
/ consequence Of these improvements
] and funds will thus be made aValiaple
for still other public improvements.
The organization and administration
! of the Port of New York is natlonal
resnonsibility and is distinct from other
citv functions. New Industrial oppor-
tunities for manufacturing at New
York will be created by proper port
DEVELOPMENT policy. Every part OF the
mort and every factory in the port
should be made accessible to all lines
of enthusiastically and railroad
reaching the port. \ factory shoulu
not be made to depend upon one rail-
road which is near il, but should nave
Cheap access to all lines for the receipt
of its raw materials and the shipment
of its finished products. This Is Whdt
Boston. Philadelphia, Baltimore ana
Norfolk are striving for and What
Montreal. New Orleans and san FRAN
cisco have largely attained through the
public construction and control over
the terminal railroad systems ot the
port.
While the harbor Of New York Is
bigger and better than that or any
other American seaport for pracucai
purposes. at the present time IL Is ho'
much more efficient than are the mar
bors of its rivals II now is the most
extensive port on the Atlantic Coast
tbrouob which 10 pass commodities In
transit or TO deliver them 10 Iocai
factories. These conditions should not
be permitted to continue. our atteh-
tion has been too much centred upon
tho uagnitude of our commerce anu
not sufficiently on the importance ol
producing the best terminal tacliltieS
for our industries. Factories ratheI
than steamship terminals ana ware
houses constitute the tax aVallaDle as
sets Of our city and most of our com
petitors. in comparison with New YORK.
can show a more modern industrial
organization.
New York is the great port oi ihe
world at which focuses the ocean terr!
service of North America. COM
paratively few tramp vessels come
here for cargoes. our service To All inc
great and small ports of the world Is
essentially a liner service, and cargo
I II h,
York for package freight sent here py
railroads. coastwise steamers or ocean
steamers. New York is relying too
much upon it's established trade in
this respect and too little upon its old
time enterprise and public spirit our
uneAelled natural opportunities at the
port. including the level road from the
interior of the country To 1t, VIII not
save our supremacy from the attacks
of o,r rivals unless we shall use these
opportunities in an intelligent way.
The city's declaration Of policy al
South Brooklyn and its declared policy
Of being willing. if necessary, to con-
struct long piers costing Sj,"oo"o
zach between West 4lth and West 18th
streets To meet the demands OF com
mcrce. and the indications that 1t VIII
soon adopt a comprehensive plan ana
policv for the organization Of its west
| side Manhattan terminals are m
dicativc of a determination upon the
part Of the community 10 modernize
terminal conditions here in conformity
with the spirit Of enterprise which pre-
walls at other ports.
As soon as a comprehensive plan
shall he adopted for West Side terminals
If is reasonable To- assume that tho
Secretary Of War Will cooperate with
the CITY in the establishment of pier
head line which will facilitate carrying
out the best terminal plan in the in
tercst of the national commerce which
passes through the Port Of New York.
The great obstruction to such plan Is
found i'm the effective but unobtrusive
opposition which the New Jersey roads
naturally present TO mOdcrnizatlon
of the New York Centrars terminals,
such modcrnization which will compel
Them at great expense TO rcorganize
their terminals in Manhattan with a
view of ultimately connecting them by
tunnels under the river with New
Jersey.
Even this opposition which | have
been contending with for the last three
years will ultimately be overcome and
Manhattan will become an integral
part of the North American continent.