The New York herald., 1922-07-30
BARGE CANAL OFFERS
RELIEF IN Rail TIEUP
Boats Operated by 35 Firms
Available for Trips
From Buffalo.
FREIGHT RATES LOWER
State Charges No Tolls and
Keeps Route in Con-
ditiOn.
TERMINALS IMPROVED
TERMINALS IMPROVED
New Grain Elevator in Brook
lyn Can Be Made to Care
for 100000 Bushels.

New York's $16o,000,o0O State Barge
Canal are receiving more serious con-
sideration from shipping officials OF
firms and business organizations in
New York in view Of the existing rail.
road situation and the possibility Of a
car shortage.
The barge canal Is fully equipped to
handle vast volumes Of freight which
can travel by water from Michigan
to Europe without hitting rail and
at lower than prevailing railroad rates,
New York business interests are in
a somewhat easier frame of mind
since they realized that the canal. de-
signed as a supplementary method OF
transportation, could be utilized to the
direct benefit of the State and the city
In the opinion Of E. r. Carhart
chairman Of the State Barge Canal
Commission. approximately 85 per
cent. of the population Of New York
State lives within about fifteen miles
of the canal.
Goods can be transported from Buffalo
to Manhattan in less than a week, and
1t requires only sufficient number OF
canalboats in operation to assure New
York full supply of the products OF
mid-Western factories. mines and farms
for an Indefinite period.
Shipping by 35 Companies.
That adequate equipment is available
Tor transporting freight is indicated by
the fact that there are about thirty five
separate companies operating vessels on
the canal. according to Charles L. Cadle
State Superintendent of Public Works
One of the largest companies Is the
Interwaterways Line, Inc, of AZ Broad
way. of which Julius H. Barnes. former
president of the United States Grain
Corporation, and now president of the
United States Chamber of Commerce. is
president. This company operates five
steel motor driven vessels of 1900 tons
capacity each between New York and
Buffalo.
Another large company is the Trans
marine Corporation, at Nassau street
which operates thirty barges of $50 tons
Cleveland. Detroit. Chicago, milwaukee,
Duluth. Superior. Minneapolis and st
Paul. The Inland Marine CORPORATION
at Is Moore street, operates twelve cargo
carrying vessels of 1S5 tons capacity
each between New York, Canadian and
mid-Western points.
The Lake Champlain Transportation
Company, at IL Moore street, operates
200 barges of 900 tons capacity each
between New York and Canadian points
The New York Canal and Great Lakes
Corporation of 27 Pearl street. of which
T.. S. Walsh, former State Superintend-
ent of Public Works. is general manager.
operates fifty-one $50 ton steel cargo
boats and other craft and furnishes an
express service.
Fifteen freight vessels, equipped with
Diesel electric drive engines and costing
about s5,000.000, will be built by the
Central Steamship and Commerce Cor
poration of New York for service be-
tween New York and Chicago on the
Welland and State Barge canals. and to
the West Indies when the canal Is closed
in the winter.
Grain Elevators Help Trade.
An important development in the
canal Is the completion Of a grain ele-
vator at the Erie Basin. Brooklyn.
which has capacity of 1000. 900 bushels
of wheat, and which can be made avail
able for holding 100000 900 bushels. The
elevator will be operated by the State.
Another Of similar dimensions will be
erected at Oswego.
ne CiHdi mas an interesting Deartng <
on New York's port development, as
there has been for years rail differ
entail against New York in favor Of
Baltimore. Philadelphia and other cities
on the Atlantic seaboard. The State
Barge Canal furnishes shippers here
with powerful weapon to combat this
differential. In addition no tolls are
enlarged on the canal from Buffalo to
pier s, East River. the Manhattan
terminus
The canal system of the State in
cludes the Erie Canal. Champlain Canal
Oswego Canal. Cayuga-Seneca Canal.
Cayuga Lake Inlet at Ithaca. Black
River Canal. Glens Falls feeder and
the lakes. reservoirs. feeders, harbor
basins and terminal docks connected
Herewith.
The barge canal Is operated and
maintained at the expense of New York
State, under whose management and
ownership IL must remain perpetually.
The construction Of the terminals was
authorized in 1911. and by bond issues
of 1903, 1909 and 1915 the Erie, Cham
plain, Oswego and Cayuga-Seneca
canals have been enlarged to Uniform
dimensions.
The depth of channel in all sections
Is u feet, the length between lock gates
Is 32s feet, the available length inside
lock chambers Is 800 feet and the width
OF lock chambers IL 40 teet. Inc mini
mum clearance under fixed bridges Is
161A feet. The total mileage Is 525 miles
Routes for Bnrgcs.
A vessel bound from New York har-
Dor to Lake Erie would proceed north
through the Hudson River encounter
Ing its first lock at Troy. 1928 miles
from Pier 6. East River The Erie
Canal turns westward from the river
2.45 miles north of the lock, and from
this point to the junction with the
Niagara River at Tonawanda the dis
tance Is 339 miles. Proceed ng up
stream In the Niagara River. which Is
ut an elevation OF 56i feet above sea
level, for 13 miles, the United States
Government lock at Squaw Island Is
reached, which raises the vessel to the
level OF Lake Erie.
Should Lake Ontario at Oswego be
the destination, this route would be fol-
lowed as far as Three Rivers. 314.7
rifles from Manhattan. where the canal
lied Oswego River would be entered
pnd used for "a miles to the lake. From
Oswego vessels may pass Into Lake
Erie via tile Welland Canal. which Is
under Canadian ownership.
For the Cayuga and Seneca Lake re-