Evening star., 1918-01-16

reha bilitation OF the traffic this canal
such assistance might be predicated upon
the construction of an adequate water
terminal for service of the canal barses
to be located at some point as would be
connected with belt line reaching all
the railroads serving the Capital city.
such terminal would not only effect the
quick and economical transfer of coal
from the barges, but would also serve in
the handling of other products with dis
patch. Such a terminal should be owned
and controlled by the District. 1t should
really embrace such an area and ware
houses and buildings as would accomnlo-
date the principal market place of the
city.
''Such a terminal would bring together
the buyer and seller of all food supplies.
including vegetables and all varieties of
fish and shellfish, and would yield from
their use a sufficient revenue to pay the
interest on the investment, including the
upkeep.
Washington is really a laggard in
respect of a water terminal. The Po-
tomac river has been improved to such
an extent as to justify a. very much
larger water commerce than now ex-
lists, but large volume of commerce
cannot be realized unless a public nu-
nicipal terminal is provided and con-
nected with all the railroads 1t is well
understood that coordination of rail-
way and water carriers constitutes one
of the essentials for the complete utili-
zation of rail and water transportation.
which will not only be profitable to
both, but most important of all, will
insure the best transportation service
for the public
Mr.. Schof Refers to Deterioration.
Secretary Schoff of the Atlantic Deep
er Waterways Association said:
The Chesapeake and Ohio canal was
one of the big undertakings of America
and its completion was fittingly cele-
brated as national triumph. The fed
eral government. the capital city and
the contiguous states all subscribed lib
orally to its capital. In It's day it car
ried large freight tonnage, which it
is still capable of carrying. but today
its traffic is perhaps one-tenth of what
it was forty-fve years ago. Is this due
to any defect in its route or operation?
BY no means The city of Washington
consumes far more coal than it did
then, and the canal taps rich coal fields
with an output running into millions of
tons. Why. then. is it in its present
like other eastern canals once perform
ing valuable public service. it has been
allowed to pass under control of a rival
transportation interest, which chooses
to let it deteriorate, instead of keeping
it in condition of efficiency, as intend.
ed by the states that combined in char
tering it.
rs it to the advantage of the people of
the seaboard states that they have been
deprived of the services Of these waterways
Tor the construction Of which they SO
literally contributed? Certainly not, When
the railroads find themselves unable to
handle the business of the country. in a
time OF emergency like the present It
would relieve the situation materially If
portion OF the bulky freight might move
over the water routes
Time to Rectify Waterways Error.
THE impression is gaining ground that
mistake was made when we turned o,1r
packs to the waterways, and that the
time has come for rectifying the mistake
as far as circumstances permit.
france and Germany are depending Iarpe
ly. in the present war, on canals no larger
| IN capacity and no better in construction
than the Chesapeake and Ohio but Amer
lea, with a number of canals connectjnp
Its coal fields with tidewater, permits its
great cities to suffer from coal famine
because its railroads are too oyerburdened
with other freight to handle the necessary
volume of coal traffic and because they
are unwilling to divert any part Of that
traffic to the waterways which thew now
control and which they might again make
busy and profitable if they chose.
Ihis seems to be a case that calls for
government intervention, in order that
the American people may secure the bene.
| hts arising from the fullest possible use
| OF every transportation system they nos-
permanently choke the arteries of our ns-
ton and restrict the life-gfv1np f1ow n
other arteries that lave not the canac,fv
to carry the pressure.
| IT more coal camo BY water to wnsh.
inSton moro cars and locomotives wonId
be released for other service and tho peo-
pie would get more coal"