Great Falls tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1921-current, 1922-06-30
RIVER BOATS ABLE
T0CARRYW ON
MONTANA waterway
Davis Returns From Trip to
Bismarck in Furthering
River Plan.
(Tribuns's Helena Bureau,

Helena, June 29.-Althouph cons;d.
cradle Roadway has been made nv
Chester c. Davis, state Commissioners
of agriculture, in his plan for the move.
ment of grain from northern McCone
and Garfield counties by river boat to
market, much is still to be done before
such a system Of transportation can
be assured the farmers of those sec
lions, now remotely situated.
Mr.. Davis recently made a trim to
Bismarck. n. d., where he conferred
with Captain l. P. Parker. head of the
Benton Packet company, which has a
fleet of five or six light draft. stern
wheel, oil burning river boats. Mr..
Davis, following his. meeting with Cap
tain Parker, has in mind the delivery
OF wheat at a point near the mouth
of Big Dry creek loading aboard boats
and transportation by water down
stream to the nearest available rail
road station.
Can Get Boats
| Captain Parker, while not particu-
larry DESTROYS of handling this business,
has agreed to contract for the service.
providing certain requirements are full
filled. Speaking of the matter Thurs
1 udy >OLiliisSlDuCi laws Sd1u.
The boating will be expensive and
a great deal Of work will have to he
accomplished before much grain is
shipped.
In the first place the operation of
boats that are big enough to move any
volume of wheat is only practical at
the time of the spring and fall rises.
Therefore it is likely that a regular
schedule could not be maintained. The
feasible, economical way to move out
the wheat would be to establish a ware
house or warehousing facilities on the
banks of the Missouri so that the farm
ers could deliver their grain during the
fall and winter and the boats could
haul it out on the high water from
early May to August.
= Warehouses Needed
ut is first advisable to ascertain
definitely the number Of bushels that
could be delivered economically on the
river. If this volume is sufficient, the
next step is to see if we can organize
and finance a warehouse company. The
next step is to arrange for a redis-
counting the advances on grain so that
the growers would not have to wait
until. spring for their money. The
next thing to do would be to get the
Great Northern Railway company to
put on a spur track along the river at
or near Chelsea, which is between
Vol Point and Poplar, where the river
comes right UP to the railroad. The
railroad. company should also be asked
to establish a marine leg and conveyor
belt which could be used either to de-
liver the wheat OF cars or to deliver
it in "A warehouse pending shipment
by rail.
Before much money is invested in
erecting q warehouse on che banks Of
the river at the receiving point or in
a spur track and elevator at the point
of delivery,s the federal government
should be asked TO do revetment work
along the banks to prevent washing
and destruction OF property.
Might Psrchase Craft
IF all these things are accomplished
then the Benton Packet company would
contract to deliver the wheat at sc
much per bushel, or if your organiza
ton preferred, it would sell you the
boat or boats required. Those used
by the Benton Packet company are
tionally light draft. The largest of
them will carry 5000 bushels of bulk
grain and with a barge would move
$500 bushels more. When river con
ditions are right, Captain Baker esti-
mates it would take about five days
to load, make the trip down to point
Of delivery and return back up the
river.
IF the fall rise is sufficient, a great
deal of wheat can be moved in the fall
which would relieve the strain upon
the warehousing facilities. Captain
Baker estimates that it would not be
difficult for two boats and two barges
which he could furnish, to move
quarter of a million bushels of wheat
from that section. / am not instructed
to say what the contract price would
be as that would have to be established
between representatives Of the whea,
growers, organization and the Benton
Packet company. It would probably
be in the neighborhood of 20 cents
a bushel, although if conditions were
just right, it might beless."