The New York herald., 1921-01-23

features of his story.
"OR long time New York's backward
r. port facilities have been source of
acute concern to shipping authorities
Now and then one of them filings warning
against the huge inertia of public ndiffer-
ence. Newspaper comment follows. and-to
paraphrase Mark Twains comment
another subject. the weather-"We talk a
great deal about it. but nothing is DONE"
To paraphrase Mark once more while We
are about it, There is no real reason why
New York should not have a port. 1t has
plenty of water" 1t also has plenty of
private enterprise, and private enterprise has
accomplished and is accomplishing much at
this moment by the addition of blocks of
docks and rail connections But the problem
is big beyond the power Of private enter
prise to cope with it. Long arrears of i'm
provement remain to be made good. The
truth is that six years ago, before the war
the ports Of America. New York among them
were almost outclassed by the smaller ports
Of Europe. In England and Germany, at
least, there was not minor shipping centre
without electric and other machinery for the
sw # and economic unloading and loading of
vessels such as to throw over New York a
tinge Of the primitive in comparison.
New York's Great Opportunity
Arouses But Little Enthusiasm
Now here is the principal port of country
in position. il It pleases, to dominate, or at
least take predominant share In the worlds
trade A great new American merchant ma
rine waits to take the place once held by our
ships on the seas. And the harbor Of New
York remains congested, tagging in facilities
to handle the waiting business with economy
and despatch. and with no comprehensive
plan and little will to meet its opportunity.
Still the first port of the country. it is
obliged to look elsewhere for examples of
energy.
Before the war Boston made at least a
gesture toward port development under State
auspices. Something was accomplished. The
Commonwealth Pier there is a model Of ac
commodations for ships and the handling OF
their cargoes. great drydock was begun.
But even there with little more than be-
ginning. action stopped. port commission
did organize a project for pier building. rail
connections, dry dock and minor harbor i'm
provements that would have made Boston a
formidable rival of this port But when the
commission put In an estimate of $50.0000o0
to cover these plans a major part of
them, State and public took alright. In
further Encouragement the war came on and
action virtually ceased.
The real pattern to the country in port
development has been set by Seattle In
1911 1t saw its opportunity, and seized that
opportunity with energy and ingenuity. 1t
dio resort to the State. not for money but
for legislative authority to release it's own
spirit of enterprise. By act of the Legisla-
ture in that year the city Of Seattle formed
a municipal corporation known as the Port
Commission. and set to work.
At present the Seattle municipality owns
and operates s16,000.0o0 worth of harbor
facilities, does a thriving business, pockets
the profits. and is reaching out for more.
Its shipping board is working with one of
the Pacific ship owning concerns for the
conversion Of one of the abandoned war
time shipyard sites into new terminal
FOR freight and passenger service. This Is
to cost s6,000,000 more. Without this addi-
tfon the municipality can boast of two units
In It's harbor accommodations-two piers, to
handle twenty ships at once--the most am
bilious thing of their kind in any port in
the world. We hear of Western "go:"
This is it.
To begin with II must be said Seattle
had advantages and. even more, freedom
from disadvantages unknown to the older
ports. New York, San Francisco. New Or
leans and the Gulf ports, Boston. Baltimore
and Philadelphia have all needed in the
past, and will need In the future, millions
clear. Seattle escapes this heavy item of
cost. With a minimum depth of 156 feet
of water In Puget Sound, the largest ves-
sells In service make port and find berthage
without even the aid OF pilot or tow They
always find IL. Tempered by the Japan
Current, the climate is mild and the harbor
never clogged with ice.
Seattle and the Government
Join in Harbor Enterprise
Inland from the harbor arc two large
lakes. In 1917 Seattle and the Government
by joint enterprise, cut canal, built locks
to accommodate vessels up to a length of
$50 feet, and by joining these lakes to Puget
Sound created a sheltered inner harbor
where ships may unload without inconven-
fence from the rise and fall OF tides. Their
bottoms may there be freed of marine
growths. Or the ships may be stored when
not in use. There Is nothing else like it
In the country. Later still the Seattle
municipality has laid before the War De-
partment a recommendation for widening
this canal to a width of 300 feet. with a
minimum depth of 81 feet at low tide, and
a larger lock for still larger cargo carriers
Berthed at the municipal docks, tho
freighter meets an equipment consisting OF
piers and cargo sheds. concrete warehouses
for general storage cold storage plants a