Evening star., 1931-05-31


of the Ohio when we consider that the
| shipments on the river are over 20 .000,-
900 tons a year, where in 1922 1t was
| around 100000 tons. The Ohio flows
through the heart of Americas indus
trial region. This peace-time accom-
pliShment of the War Department and
the Corps of Engineers has given this
| large section of the interior Of our Ma
ton water transportation through the
Ohio and Mississippi Rivers to the Gulf.
The Great Lakes are being improved
| for increased transportation. The Fed
eral Government has taken over the
Illinois Waterway from the State of
Illinois and Is proceeding rapidly on the
work of connecting the Great Lakes
with the Mississippi through the Illinois
Waterway and through the Mississippi
Chicago, Milwaukee, Duluth, Detroit,
Cleveland and Buffalo will have water
transportation to the sea.
There is now a 6-foot channel up the
Mississippi as far as Minneapolis and
st. Paul It's depth Is being increased
! to feet. Plans for this work have been
completed ard ali installations under
construction up to the head of navi-
CATION are being built with a 9-foot
channel in view.
Work on Missouri River.
The Engineers are also at work On the
establishment of reliable navigation on
the Missouri. Eventually the Missouri
will have a 6-foot channel from the
Mississippi through Kansas City, st.
Joseph and Omaha to Sioux City. On
this project work is at present concen-
trated on the stretch from the Missis-
| sippi to Kansas City. This work has
suffered some setbacks because of low
| fnr hoc he iy,,V,, r. fn
sitting up of the wing dams by which
| the stream is confined. 1t is 85 per cent
completed and, given favorable weather
conditions, should be open to naviga-
ton within the coming year. The upper
section necessarily waits on the COM
pletion of the lower but the upper Mis-
souri, is already the scene of extensive
preliminary work which will increase as
the lower portion nears completion,
| The completion of the upper Mississippi
and the Missouri will provide water
transportation to the great agricultural
regions of the Northwest.
| Steady progress is teing made toward
the completion of the. intercoastal
| canals system on the Atlantic and Gulf
Coasts as far as Cs pus Christi, Tex.
Surveys beyond that Joint have been
authorized.
The Army Engine~iI are as much
concerned with hsroor Improvements
and waterway development on the West
Coast as they are with projects on the
Atlantic watershed.
From Harbor Refuge in Alaska all
the way south to San Diego they are
engaged in intensive improvement work.
All the great harbors of the Pacific sea-
board are receiving attention. San
Francisco Harbor, Los Angeles and
Long Beach Harbors, San Diego Harbor
and other lesser ports are being pro-
vided with deeper and wider entrance
channels.
| Is Million for Flood Control.
! River improvement is receiving its
share of attention. Flood control work
on the Sacramento River alone calls for
an expenditure of approximately $18.-
| 100000 and will protect the Sacramento
and San Joaquin Valleys from the flood
menace that always has threatened life
and property. In the north extensive
works are being projected for the
maintenance and protection Of the 40
foot channel of the Columbia River.
The improvement of numerous other
harbors, bays and rivers in Washington
Oregon and California will greatly
lessen transportation costs and increase
the facilities to handle the rapidly
growing coastal and international COM
In the execution OF all this work on
river and harbor improvements and
food control the Corps Of Engineers
employs approximately 10000 civilians
and conducts a business aggregatine
about 100000, 900 annually. Right now
they have 971 projects authorized BY
Congress. These include SO canals ano
waterways and the fiood-control prof.
ects of the Mississippi and its tribu.
taries. The fiscal year ended June 80
1880. closed the greatest year in river
amount in any similar period in the
history of the Nation. The fiscal veal
ending June 80, 1881, will be greater
from a standard of achievement thar
that of 1890.
While on the subject OF rivers anc
harbors, it is only just to acknowledge
that the policy and plan which art
turning our inland waterways into ar
efficient transportation system came
from outside the War Department A.
early as 1925 Herbert Hoover. then Sec
rotary of Commerce. definitely outlinee
ard advocated the organization and CO.
ordination of our waterways.
The plan for taking over the Illinois
Waterway by the Federal Government
and through 1t connecting the Missis'
sippi system and the Gulf with tht
Great Lakes belongs to Herbert Hoover
AS President he continues to take al
active driving interest in completing
these great projects. Under his direc'
ton the development of our inlanc
streams has become a national rathel
than local program.
Complete Nicaragua Survey.
Allied with the river and harbor worl
of the Army Engineers is their most re-
cent accomplishment, the completion o.
the Nicaragua Canal survey. At a time
when our military expenses are under
scrutiny it Is worthy of note that thu
money for this work was squeezed ou
of the regular Army appropriations. 1
was while on this duty that the En-
gineer battalion was able to co-operatt
in the relief work incident to the recen
earthquake at Managua.
The War Department operates thu
Panama Canal and is now constructing
the Alhujuela Dam on the Chagre
River to supply additional water t
, make possible the handling Of create
trafic through the Canal.
A number of problems of contro
versial nature have been settled by tn
War Department during the past year
For example, the Illinois Waterway, Civ
ing Chicago access to the Mississippi
, could not be undertaken until severa
complicated legal tangles had been un
snarled involving the rights, privilege
and interests Of the State of Illinois IL
existing channels and canals. A mum
ber of differences of opinion and lega
questions had to be adjusted before sucl
structure as the Hero -Hackett Brjdg
could be built across the Mississippi
River at New Orleans The same
true of the plans for the great bridg
: | x,I, ic 70 kNa ka,,{lf ovAr klo TOldaI
. Gate at San Francisco.
The controversy regarding the Sal
Francisco Oakland Bridge has also beer
adjusted. Until year ago the polio,
of the War Department and the Nav,
, Department was unfavorable to tn,
erection of any bridge structure nortl
of what Is known as Hunters Point. I