The Penn's Grove record., 1913-11-21
WANT BIG COAST
WISE CANAL DUG
Deep Waterway Delegates In
sist That 1t Is Necessary
FROM MAINE TO KEY WEST
Would Aid in Restoration of Deserted
Farm Lands and Give United States
a Fairer Portion of Panama
Trade, They Declare.

Jacksonville, Fla.-Pleas for suffi-
Gent appropriations by Congress to
complete the proposed inland water
way route along the Atlantic Coast,
were made at the convention of the
Atlantic Deeper Waterways Associa-
ton here. The urgent need for the
improvement of an inner trade route
along the coast was emphasized and
recent destructive costal storms were
instanced as arguments.
Many speakers showed the urgent
need for an immediate appropriation
to complete the work already Under
taken both by the Federal Govern
ment and the several States. AS a
evenu producing and trade carrying
project the Atlantic inland waterway
was contrasted with many of the
Western river projects to the disad-
vantage of the latter.
The convention discussed the pro-
motion Of the inland waterway from
PASSPORT, Me-, to Key West, Fla. It
also is planned to encourage a move
ment which will extend the waterway
from Florida to Galveston along the
Gulf of Mexico. Several sections Of
the proposed inland water route al
ready been completed, while others
have only been surveyed, but have
been favorably reported on.
Representative j. Hampton Moore,
Of Pennsylvania, president of the AS
ISOLATION, presided, and read his an
nual report. He declared the area to
be aided by the improved water trans
portation facilities contained 40 per
cent. of the entire population of the
United States and so per cent. of all
the wage He said that the
four ports to be touched by the pro-
posed waterway, collected f%our-ffths
of the customs revenue, and that
through them passed most of the i'm
port and export business of the coun.
try. This small territory, compris-
ing the original thirteen States, pro-
duced SO per cent. of all the manu-
features and go per cent. of all the
coal in the country. Those facts, he
pointed out, should be taken into con.
sideration by Congress.
AS tending to show how the lack Of
adequate transportation increased the
cost of living in the Eastern States,
President Moore said:-
The problem confronting the own
ers of neglected Eastern lands is
chiefly the problem of ~transporta.
ton. 1t is the problem of the pro.
Queer to get to market, a problem
resulting from the concentration Of
population and business activity along
the Tnes of the railroads, while vast
stretches of country have suffered
abandonment because the waterways
that have formerly served them, were
not kept up to modern standard.
If it takes five days to ship freight
from Philadelphia to Chester, a dis
lance of twelve miles, or six days to
Trenton, thirty-four miles, or thirteen
days to New York, ninety miles, as
was recently demonstrated, it is eyi.
dent that the railroads need relief. II
takes an hour and a half only to ship
from Philadelphia to Chester by wa.
ter, four hours to Trenton and over.
night to New York.
The early completion of the Panama
Canal and the consequent shorter dis.
lance between the Atlantic and Pa.
cific coasts also was used as an argu.
ment for the improvement of the At,
lantic Coast waterway, together with
the project of a similar nature from
Florida to Galveston along the Gulf
of Mexico.
How the proposed inland water
transportation route would aid the
agricultural activities of the Atlantic
States was the theme of Lieut.-Gov.
Howe, of Vermont. He told of the
many abandoned and practically use
less farms in all of those States, and
declared that only cheaper water
transportation could bring them back
to a fruitful condition. He said:
your problem here in Florida and
our problem in Vermont are the same.
1t is to make our cultivated land
yield more and to compel the land, so
far neglected, to give it's increase.
Here in the East, we are only now
learning the lesson, but we shall stay
by until the triumph is complete.
The same thing applies to all the
rural sections of the Eastern States.
There are more deserted farms in
New York, by their own statistics,
than in all New England. Much of
the land in Pennsylvania is in back
ward hands. You can ride for miles
in Virginia, the Carolinas, and in
Georgia and see land neglected that
ought to be adding yearly to the
wealth and prosperity of the nation"