The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-02-24
Public Does Not Realize What an Asset It Has in Majestic Alabama
 Stream
BUNN GIVES HIS
 IMPRESSIONS UPON
 REGENT RIVER TRIP
Wants It to Be Used Per- manently and Not Sim ply as Rate-Making
 Factor
By o. L. BuNN

Secretary Birmingham IraIfic bureau
 I feel sure that the business interests of Birmingham and
 the district do not fully realize
 what an asset we have in the Warrior, because if they did, there would be a more con- certed action on their part in the utilization of that magnifi cent body of water.
 It was my pleasure and privilege a few days ago to make boat trip from Cordova to Tuscaloosa, and I was amazed at the magnitude of the river and to learn that at present there were no regular schedules of boats operating on it.
 understand the government has
 spent something like s11,000,o00 Tn
 making the river navigable the entire
 year and now since that has been done
 we, figuratively speaking, fold our
 hands and are content to allow tho
 water to flow by our very doors, mak
 ing no effort whatever to use it ex-
 ccpt that some go there fishing at
 various times of the year.
 FEW OPERATORS USING IT
 It Is true thas certain energetic ard
 live, awake coal operators are using
 is regularly, barging coal to Mobile,
 New Orleans and other points, there-
 by saving considerable in transporta-
 tion and at the same time such ac-
 tjon,. in reality, is preventing the rail carriers from advancing the freight
 rates to those points of destination.
 Birmingham and the district use large
 quantities of sugar. molasses and cof-
 tee moving from New Orleans; boots,
 shoes, dry goods, hardware and va
 rious other articles manufactured in
 the east; canned goods. evaporated
 fruits and like products shipped from
 the Pacific coast.
 Further, some few weeks ago was
 at Mobile and while there inspected
 the facilities available for the reship-
 ment of traffic and was agreeably sur-
 prised to find that one corporation
 at least had foreseen the coming i'm
 evitable use of the port of Mobile and
 the waterways for the use of manu-
 lecturers and distributors, especially
 to Alabama territory and the Birming-
 ham district The Warrant Warehouse
 company, m connection with other in
 terests owning the old cotton ware
 houses and terminals of the Magnolia Compress and Warehouse company,
 had converted these cotton facilities
 So as to make them economically us-
 able for the assembling, transferring
 and distribution of miscellaneous
 tonnage. HAVE ENORMOUS CAPACITY
 They are modern, being sprinkled and
 have 100000 cubic feet capacity, together with 3,00U,00o cubic feet of storage and 600 feet of yard storage, all connected with railroad terminals and located in- mediately behind the Mobile improved water front.
 Since these facilities will furnish connecting link at that port which viii be of great value in any increased use of the Warrior river. why is it not the reasonable and business thing therefore for us to ship such traffic from the aforesaid points of origin to Mobile, caRe of the warehouses, as mentioned, anal have 1t reshipped on to Birmingham
 at rail and water rates?
 Now, since the government has as- sumed the directorship of rail carriers. l feel sure 8 reasonable rate could be secured from the river to Birmingham,
 which, added to the water rate from original point of origin, would reduce our present through all-rail rate. Such action would at once also create a dls- similarity in transportation conditions as between Birmingham Atlanta and a large number of other competitive cities in the south, thereby giving the interstate commerce commission some legitimate reason for deviating from a strict interpretation of the long and short haul provision of the act to regu- 1 late commerce. in establishing rates to Birmingham as stated.
 It seems we are overlooking our op- portunities by going along in the use ual way and not taking advantage of | the possibilities of the river for which l the government has spent such large
 sum of money. and evidently 1t was all done for our benefit and for all other | business interests located on and near | the river
 CITES CASE OF HOUSTON | Reflect for one moment and see what 1 one of our progressive western cities. 1 somewhat similarly situated, did Hous- 1 ton, Tex, is located probably 50 miles | from the gulf and to secure the bene- fit of water rates the citizens of that l city got together and dug a canal tho l entire distance at an enormous cost l That act of theirs placed Houston on l the gulf and in conversation with . | a few days ago, he said it was money we'll spent. We are located less than half that distance from the Warrior | river, therefore the problem facing us 1 is not near so great should we decide | to make Birmingham water point Personally, believe we should first make arrangements to establish iinu of boats or self propelled barges on the Warrior river operating between Cor 1 dova and Mobile: we should then have | established through rail and water ratee | to Birmingham: we must actually ship | our traffic via rail and water to dem- l onstrate the feasibility of that route; 1 the rates established must be remuner- | ative so that the boat line can live ana become a power; business energy, ideas and management should be injected l into it's operation so that 1t will be a | dividend payer and not liability. aa I Is so often the case with water carriers. l In other words. tho whole proposition | ought to be considered from the view | point of creating ltwe and permanent l asset for the district and not merely | temporary scheme by which rates only I are to be reduced.
 l Some day what have said will cer- tainly be done-why should we not DO
 the leaders instead of following iater | on?