Evening star., 1924-12-10
LAUD PRESIDENTS
WATERWAY VIEWS
Rivers and Harbors Congress
Passes Resolution of
Appreciation.

President Coolidge's Endorsement of
development of the internal water
ways of the United States in his mes
sage to Congress last week is deeply
appreciated" by the National Rivers
and Harbors Congress, the congress
declared in resolution adopted at
the opening meeting of its two-day
annual convention today at the New
Willard Hotel
The resolution, presented by Roy
Miller of Corpus Christi, Tex. and
unanimously adopted by the congress.
authorized the president of the rivers
and harbors body to appoint a COM
mittee to call on the President at the
White House and convey the feeling
of the organization to him. The fea-
ture of the Presidents message
wherein he referred to development
of the inland waterways as a means
of effecting tax reduction is especially
pleasing to the congress, the resolu-
tion added.
A call for 2 coordination of all
efforts centering on water transporta-
tion was sounded by John II. Small,
president of the congress, in his an
nual address. Mr.. Small reviewed the
work of the year and said he hoped
for more constructive work during
the coming year of the work Of the
congress.
Tells of Odd Collision.
Differing from the ordinary high
way accident in the United States in
practically every particular, Jonkheer
DR.. A. C. D. de Graeff, minister from
the. Netherlands, told the congress
that he had personally witnessed a
collision between q steamer and a
trolley car in his country. where a
mix-up in signals permitted trolley
car to run onto a steamer.
Nearly a million acres of arabic
land is being reclaimed from the bot
tom of the Zuyder Zee, Hollands in
land sea, by draining of this vast
body of water, at cost of $50, ,000,-
900, DR.. de Graeff told the congress.
In the possibility of flooding practical
ly the entire extent of Holland under
eight feet of water in case of war
rests one of it's most valuable means
of national defense, he declared. add
ing that Holland deems it's liberty
more important in case of war than
the saving OF its property.
Reviewing In detail the rivers and
harbors bill which would appropriate
$50. 100000 for river and harbor de-
velopment in the United States. Rep
resentative S. Wallace Dempsey of
New York, chairman of the House
haTDOrE
pleaded for support of the bill Mr.
Dempsey told the congress that the
Congress of the United States has be-
fore 1t ample concrete evidence of the
adyfSabllity of spending this money.
which. he said, would result in in
calculable national benefit Repre-
sentative Dempsey pleaded for con-
struction of the intercoastal canal.
for deepening of the Hudson River.
for deepening Of the harbor of Miami,
Fla. and for harbor improvements at
Los Angeles, Calf. He said water
power development at Niagara Falls
should be matched on every stream
capable of such development in this
country, and asserted that without
the products manufactured at Mag
ara Falls this nation would not have
been able to wage successful war.
Many Speakers Heard,
Other speakers at the opening
meeting of the congress included Mrs
Sarah Willard Strout of Portland
Me-, president of the Women's Ma
tional Rivers and Harbors Congress;
Frederick H. Fay of Boston, Frank
5. Davis of Boston, A r. Smith of
New York and S. A THOMPSON. sec
retary Of the congress.
Rear Admiral William A. Moffett.
chief of the Bureau of Aeronautics of
the Navy, will address the congress
this afternoon on air travel by dIri-
gibles. Other addresses are to be
delivered by Maj. Gen. Harry Taylor,
chief of Engineers, u. s. A, and Will
liam 7. Donnelly of New York.
Sir Esme Howard, the Ambassador
of Great Britain; Secretary of War
Weeks, Senator James A. Reed of
Missouri, Representative Edgar How
ard of Nebraska, Miss Belle Sherwin
and Mrs. Izetta Jewell Brown will
speak at the banquet of the congress
tomorrow night at the Willard.