The Birmingham age-herald., 1918-09-15
CIVIC ASSOCIATION ].
 WANTS SANDERS ID SPEAK HERE
Secretary-Manager Harold Writes Manager Sanders of Mississippi
 Waterways

In order that shippers and other in- .erested citizens of Birmingham may get Hrst-hand information as to the cause of the delay in starting operations of the federal barge line on the Warrto, river, the Civic association yesterda V wrote to Mir. NJ. J. Sanders, general man. ager Of the Mississippi-Wa arrior water ways, urging him to come to Birming- nam and address the people on this s,,b- Jeet. MT. Sanders has already agreed 10 appear before the Civic association on request of SecretaryManag C. l.. harold but no date has been agreed upon.
 MT sanders is now in Washington. and IS expected to return to New Orleans m a few days. He has appeared befora commercial bodies of St. Louis Kansas City, Cairo and Memphis, and Birmine- nam shippers are anxious to receive Mir. sanders on visit to Birmingham To former cities he has delivered yerv as. suring messages and Birmingham in- 'eieS' arc anXious to get some assur- ances for the Warrior.
 The Civic association is making a sne. ciai drive to develop a larger rail ana water movement of freight via inc fad. eral barge line. This is deemed essen- tial in view of the fact that inc rail road administration, it is understood. will scfutinize the initial operations of the barge lines to determine the extent q, ils success as compared with rail trans. portation. And the greater the vo,,,,oe or Ireight moving both in and out of Birmingham district the less will be the cost per ton per mile of water transnor- tation
 me following is a copy of the letter sent yesterday to MT. Sanders, embodvine ,he complaint about the congestion of coal at the Powhatan mine:
 MT. M. J. Sanders, Federal Manager
 Mississippi-Warrior Waterways. Wash.
 ington, D. C.
 My Dear Mr. Sanders:
 Again I am writing to ask if vou will 10, llot come to Birmingham and address the SNi1 assoclation, as per your promise, on the very live subject of the warrier rver barge line. A visit from you at tnis time would seem very apt because some oi the most interested shippers arc expressing disappointment over the de- lay in starting the operations. A ah,. instance IS that of the Franklin Coal Mining company which, relying on n. announcement of the federal barge line IS engaged in coal mining development at Powhatan, on the Locust Forh branch These people have gone ahead and constructed loading bin with n cal pacity of 2000 tons and with eouipment 10 load barges at the rate of 2Uj tone per hour. Their bin was full for two weeks continuously up to last Tuesday, because no barges were ayailabla to transport same. This occasioned a tvuo weeks idleness of the operatives and now. although relief is promised to inc extent of 425 tons every fortnight tbs company is threatened with the lose or their organization. This would indeed he uniortunate at a time when thev were driving ahead to an ultimate devalon- nent or 1000 tons per day. Will you not pc so kind as to give us a definite date to announce to our shippers who vii, pc reJoiced at your coming. The river advocates have noted with interest vouy appearance before the commercial bodies or St. Louis and other western cities ana very much hope that you can coms to Birmingham right away. Yours trulv
 CHARLES l.. HAROLD
 secretary Manager.