Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-08-30

aired officials sometimes running up as
high as $1,000 or 5000 a year, which as
sociations are formed for no purpose ex-
cept to induce Congress to accept some
river and harbor Improvement.
THAT is reinforced by the demand OF
the press over a large area that certain
improvements shall be made. These
newspapers usually say in effect: We
are against improving the little creeks
we are against wasting money In river
and harbor bills. but we. are In favor OF
our project; and the chances are even
that their project is the worst In the
whole list.
THE path to reform is for Congress to
exercise some restraint: for Congress en-
phatically to declare that 1t does not ap-
prove these wasteful items and these in
judicious methods.
ut is for US to ignore local considera-
lions, to forget that we are senators from
a state and realize that we are senators
of the United States. 1t is for the MEM
bers of the House to ignore, while the
river and harbor bill is pending. the fact
that they represent district In which
there is Muddy creek or PoduDk creek or
Cheesequake creek. We represent the
whole nation, and our duty is to frame
river and harbor bill which shall be ma
tional in scope and which shall be drawn
for the benefit of the whole people
Senator Burton does not take kindly
be accomplished by turning the whole
subject over to an .appointive board, free
from local influences. He holds That
providing for improving the rivers and
harbors is distinctly a legislative func-
ton. and should not be delegated to any
executive branch of the government, but
he does hold that the legislative branch
must use greater discretion and more
scientific methods in apportioning fed
eral aid.
Senator Burton's objections to the pres
ent methods in use in making the rivers
and harbors bill fall into three classifica-
TONS He expresses them thus:
THE first relates to the policy or meth
cd of making appropriations" Senator
Burton's ideas on which have been set
forth in the foregoing.
1.-THE second is that appropriations are
made for many rivers and haroors the
channels of which under present condl-
tons cannot be profitably improved. rms
applies especially to certain inland water
WAYS. and applies in a most emphatic
manner to the Improvement OF certain
rivers by the construction. OF expensive
locks and dams.
Third, there are large appropriations
for benefits which are merely locai, ana
which in some cases only remotely or IN
cidentally affect navigation.
lone must consider, Also, said the
senator. that transportation conditions
have greatly changed in the last twenty
years. Numerous inland rivers which
were either the sole means for anordlng
Transportation, or which were IN any
event efficient means for bringing proo-
nets to the market, have now been super
seeded by other methods Of TRANSPORTATION.
That which may have been very 1udicious
in 1870 or 1880. or even in 1850 Is aito-
yether iniudicious in this year 1914
..1he traffic statistics show dwindlfng
amount of freight on these rivers. They
show also that there are other more en-
Gent and cheaper methods of carrying
the products of the farm and the factory
to market.