The true Democrat. [volume] (Bayou Sara [La.]) 1892-1928, 1917-03-31
RIVERS AND i1ARBoRs
NEED HELP.

u iutlN 'ttF na@ UNIV NAfH fhA
friends Of waterways should bestlr
themselves. that time IL now declares
Hon jos t. Ransdelt. T. : senator
from Louisiana and President OF the
National Riyors and lIarbors Congress
Not . dollar has yet been appro
prlated to continue the work on rivers
and harhors during the coming fiscal
year and. unless the needed funds are
provided at the extra session Of Con
grpss. practically all work Of this char
acter mus, shortly be stopped In all
the harbors from PASSPORT 90 Key West
and Brownsville. from San Diego 10
Seattle. from ogdensburgh to Chicago
and Duluth, and eu all the rivers of the
country, great and small hundreds Of
drpdgrs WilI be stilicd. thousands OF
boats and barges will be tied up 90 the
banks and tens Of thousands of men
will be- discharged
Not only did the Rivers and tIarbors
bin fail. but the Sundfy Civil bill as
we'll Il IS In the latter hill that appro.
pfiatloHs are made for projects which
have been placed under continuing
contracts and TO the completion Of
which, therefore. the honor OF the
Government has been pledged
The passage Of the Flood Control
bill gives authority to place the Lower
Mississippi and the Sacramento rivers
under continuing contracts As one
Who has used his best efforts through
many years to secure the passage Of
this bill. am naturally sraliiied al this
result, bat thoroughly agree with the
opinion. which has been repeatedly
and officially expressed by the National
/ Rivers and fIarbors Congress, that
every important project should be put
under continuing contract, so that IL
might be pushed 10 prompt completion
IT Is my deliberate Judgment that no
better Rivers and Iiarbors bill was
ever framed, or one more free from
items Justly subject 10 criticism, than
the one which recently failed 20 receive
consideration In the Senate II pro
Yided for many important projects 10
all parts ot the country, including nine
Its new ones. Yet Eve Senators Ken
Won Of Iowa. Sherman Of Illinois Wat.
son al Indiana Harding Of Ohio and
Jones of Washington signed minor
/ ity report opposing this bin and sup
ported a eabatituie which would have
completely reyolutiouiaed the method Of
making river aud harborappfoprjailohs.
! Let me name few cut of the many
projects on which a stoppage Of work
/ is threatened There IL the East river,
where a better entrance 90 the Brock
+ Ism Navy Yard for oar battle ships Ia
needed President Wilson secured an
appropriation to begin this work, al
though the Rivers and Hafbors Com
/ mlttee had voted TO omit all new PRO.
iects from the 1916 bill
There are the Hudson river and the
Narrows Of Lake CHAMPAIGN, which
must be- improved by the Government
before full use can be made Of the
barge canals on which the State Of New
York has spent nearly slb5,0o0 oo0.
There are the Chesapeake and Della.
ware Canal and the waterway from
Norfolk to Beaufort The United States
Ia faced today With the possibility, II
not the probability, Of war Scores Of
military and naval experts have tesit
fed to the enormous value. both for
oifense aHd defense, Of an Inland water,
way along the Atlantic coast which
would be safe both from attack BY an
enemy aud the perlls Of the sea.
Last year nearly $4,000 900 tons Of
freight were carried into and en' oi
Lake Superior. During the same time
the foreign commerce Of the United
States amounted to more than s7S73,
I 600 8eo. Yet, as II stands to-day, the
work OF improving our lake and ocean
harbers mast soon be- halted
When a general strike on all the
railways Of the country was threatened
last summer II was suddenly realized
that, because u leads out from oar
greatest center OF the iron and steel
industry a dependable channel In the
Ohio river would be- OF the greatest
value so oar Navy In time Of var the
existence OF non-existenee OF such q
channel might readily prove &C. be the
fa, 'or which would decide whether our
Gag hould float in victory or be lower.
ed In 5afeat
"Wha, Is true OF the Ohio II true in
greater Of less degree OF all the other
rivers Of the United statos No lesson
has been NOR plainly taught by the
var IN Europe than this that the
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