The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1914-11-19
River Traffic Cannot 7e Restored
Until All Terminals Are Alike.
Experts in River Travel
Assert.
KEoKUK GETS IN LINE
Christian Science Monitor Prints In
tersstins Article In Which Rise
and Decline Of River Ship
ping Is Discussed.

ping - DtocuSSeo.
| An interesting article on river term
inals on the Mississippi appears IN the
Christian Science Monitor of Boston.
The article reads:
Mississippi river cities are believed
| to have found themselves. They have
| been looking thoughtfully into the
past and have analysed the reason
/ for their existence and. in a few in
stances, for their decline And in or
der to obtain from the river further
benefits which 1t is constantly cap
able of producing, the cities have unit
ed, to provide uniform freight termin-
! ais with adequate facilities for load
| ing from boats to cars or from cars
to boats
Davenport, in Iowa. has work on a
million-dollar terminal more than half
completed: keokuk is ready to begin
construction of 1000 foot wall, and
! Minneapolis is building a dam in the
river which will SO deepen the chan
z
reach that city. Other cities have de-
ttermined to enter into the arrange
ment and actual Improvement work
! will be started soon.
| Terminal stations must be practical
iIy identical OF both vessels and rail-
roads would lose much time, and
energy would be wasted in the trans
ifers. A ten-foot wall at Keokuk and
1 a slipping levee at Alexandria would
make it necessary to use two entirely
different sets of machinery for load
i ing and unloading at the two towns.
Building of uniform terminals is the
program.
/ standardizing Transfers.
| With Standardization OF shore facil-
tiles including substantial landing
places uceful ct any stage Of water,
railroad tracks in proximity so that
cars can be spotted" beside the moor
ed vessels, warehouses and power
Operated cranes to effect the transfer
Of shipments, the revival and growth
OF river trade are expected to become
realities. At least it is to this end
that commercial organizations, bust
ness men, flnanciers, municipalities
and states not only have devoted a
/ great deal of attention but have made
cash OUTLAWS aggregating in the NIL
lions of dollars.
i While the old-fashioned side-wheel-
ers and stern-driven steamboats, are
going out of use, steel barges, towed
by steam and gasoline launches, sup
plant them, and the future radidity
with which they come into service on
the Mississippi depends. it is asserted,
on the successful handling Of freight
at terminal stations.
/ Commerce on the Mississippi has
greatly decreased since the sixties.
/ Log RATS, until /. few years ago famil-
lar sights on the river while being
floated from Wisconsin and Minnesota
camps to mills at Muscatine and
4 Quincy, are no more to be found here.
Traffic on the Mississippi has been re-
garded of late az practically at a
standstill. Veteran riyermen say that
not one steamboat plies On either the
upper or lower river which would earn
the cost of operation il it were de.
prived of its passenger traffic.
Reason for Traffic Decline.
What has been the cause of this
failure of the largest river on the con.
tinent as a highway of commerce?
The national government has spent
millions OF dollars for its improve
ment, has deepened the channel, re-
moved snags from the waters, pro-
vided lighthouses and built looks
around the rapids, but thus far com
paratively little actual return has
come from the outlay
Railroads bridge the river from east
to west and they parallel its banks
from north to south. They are car
riers for the Mississippi valley and
the nation, though the river and its
navigable branches offer freight trans
portation at rate OF approximately
one third less than do the railroads
The fact that the Mississippi is navi-
gable controls rail rates. it IS said, to
every city on it's banks.
Lack of economy in transportation
was not, 1t is claimed the cause for
decline in river traffic. 1t is declared
to have been due to rebating and fuc-
tuation in rail rates on the part OF
pioneer roads. Rivalry among steam
boat lines always has been sharp,
even more SO than between the rail
roads and in packets. Practices re-
sulting from Ill will and applied by
competitors in the river trade are de
clared to have worked toward tfc
common decline OF such traffic. Yet
old-time captains generally blame the
railroads for the failure OF the packet
business. and they are usually hostile
70 the concerns which they claim have
trespassed on their rights.
River transportation is slow. conse