The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1915-05-02
Former Governor Eberhardt Selects
keokuk Man as Member Execu-
tive Committee Of Tern,in-
ais Conference.
TRYING TO SAVE TRADE
River Cities Will be Disseminated
Against II They Do Not Pre-
pare Proper Terminals
and Wharfs.

y. f. Mcfarland of this city, has
been named as one Of the two men
from Iowa to be member of the
first executive committee of the river
terminal conference. The appointment
was made by A. O.. Eberhardt, former
governor of Minnesota, who is chair
man of the conference.
The purpose of the executive COM
mittee is to handle the affairs of the
organization for the coming year, and
meeting is being planned for the
latter part of May when the officers
of the committee will be selected.
The committee will endeavor to bring
about the results which it is hoped to
obtain through the organization. Prin-
cipally, this is to arouse the cities of
the Mississippi and the Mississippi
valley to the need for proper terminal
facilities, and wharfs, in order that
they may compete with the coast
states, which have the advantage
through the Panama canal.
Local Work Must Be Done.
Keokuk started some time ago to
modernize her harbor front The
work was started, but seems to have
dragged Of late. The Gate City has
always been a consistent advocate of
the terminals for the river city. and
it was due to a great extent to the
efforts of this paper that the improve.
ment of the local river front was
started Such a work as this, one
which will mean thousands of dollars
to the merchants and wholesale
houses of Keokuk, should be carried
through, and should be pushed to com
pletion.
Above and below Keokuk, cities or
the river are realizing what it means
to have modern harbor facilities ant
! modern terminals. 1t is time tina,
rush the work. which has already be
gun, to completion here.
AS a matter of fact, river transpor
tation and terminals experts are alive
to the fact that the seaboard state:
have the edge on the cities along the
Mississippi and it's tributaries now
that the Panama canal is completed
Eberhardt's Views.
Governor Eberhardt in his letter to
Mr. Mcfarland announcing his ap
pointment to the executive body says:
You, of course, know and realize
that unless tho people Of the Missis
sippi valley along the Mississippi
Missouri, Illinois and Ohio rivers, and
their tributaries, provide adequate ter.
minal facilities and establish mod
ernly equipped steamboat service. our
merchants are going to suffer consid.
erably through the discrimination in
rates favorable to coastwise states
brought about by the completion of
the Panama canal. In other words,
unless we have an outlet and ship our
goods down the Mississippi to New
Orleans. we cannot comnste with the
states bordering on the Atlantic and
Pacific oceans. 1t is now absolutely
a question Of self protection
keokuk has made an excellent start.
and the river front Is already i'm
proved greatly over its condition a
few years back, but there is still
much to do. and there is every need
for haste in the doing Of this work.
1t is probable that the committee Of
this terminal conference will endeav-
or to work out some concerted plan
of action for all of the cities and
Keokuk should be ready when that
time comes.