New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1915-07-25
URGE COMPLETION
OF STATE CANAL
Of Highest Importance to
City's Commercial We'll
fare, Says Bulletin.

"The Greater New York Bulletin Of
the Merchants Association of New
York" in its latest issue contains an
editorial under the heading of "The
Barge Canal Must Be Completed" as
follows:
"The completion of the state barge
canal system is of the highest I'M
portance to the commercial welfare Of
New York City. The Erie Canal gave
New York its first impetus toward its
present supremacy as centre or trade
and industry by bringing TO 1t, before
the railroads were built, the products
of the interior of the state, and event
ually those of the enormous productive
area around the Great Lakes. Even IN
its recent years of decadence the canal
has been of incalculable service to the
city by preventing the railroads from
increasing their rates.
1.-THE voters of the city understand
what the canals have done for it. They
have always stood ready to save them
from abandonment, and although for
many years they could not protect
them from neglect, the improvement
which is now making tardy progress to
completion was authorized by their bal
lots.
"The original estimate of the cost Of
this work was generously made in view
of the fact that the last previous at
tempts to improve the canal had re-
suited in failure because the 100000
appropriation was wholly insufficient.
Large as the estimate was, however,
Governor Odell insisted upon a liberal
addition to cover possible miscalcula-
ton, and the sum of S101 100000 was
finally granted. This has since been
increased by $19,000000 for terminals
and by S8,O00OOO for branches.
"The plan of improvement covers 440
miles of construction and $50 miles of
canalized rivers and lakes, or 100 miles
altogether.
"The channel is seventy-fve feet
wide at the bottom of the prism, with
twelve feet of water. The system when
finished will include the Erie Canal,
Joining Lake Erie to the Hudson River
at Waterford the Champlain Canal,
from Lake Champlain to the Hudson;
the Oswego Canal, branch from Lake
Ontario to the Erie, and the Cayuga
and Seneca Canal, which extends south
ward from the Erie through the Fin
ger Lakes" almost to the Pennsylvania
border.
these canals will be capable of car
rying fleets of barges, each with load
Of 1000 tons, or 100000 bushels Of
wheat. So far as this city is concerned,
the system is not confined to the State
of New York, but extends to all the
states bordering the Great sLakeS. 1t
will bring to New York not only vast
quantities of merchandise and raw ma
terial to be used here, but also large
amounts of freight destined for export
or for shipment through the Panama
Canal to the Pacific Coast.
ut has been found that the S128,OOO,-
600 already appropriated will not be
enough to pay for the canal. About
s27 900 ,0CO more will be needed, chiefly
to compensate owners for property
taken by the state, the condemnation
awards having far exceeded the calcu-
lations of cost. The voters will be
asked on Election Day to approve a
further bond issue to cover this unex-
pected factor.
"As the state has already granted so
large a sum, there can be no doubt that
il will complete the work. The vote of
New York City should be unanimously
in favor of the needed additional loan.
There has always been opposition to the
canal in certain of the interior sections
of the state, and failure TO sanction the
new bonds would both defer the use OF
the canal and entail a large avoidable
outlay because of the suspension or
abandonment of contracts"