' l^ROJECTED NEW BARGE CANAL OF STATE OF NEW YORK. 757 



present, the existiiiii- canal tVoiii Laki> Erie to Tonawanda heinoj 

 retained as a water feeder only. This, with natui-al local supplies 

 from streams along- the line, will oive all the water recjuired until 

 the Seneca River is reached, which has an abundance of water. The 

 only locality where the water-supply problem attains great impor- 

 tance is at the sunnnit level, between the Mohawk River and Oneida 

 Lake. This is provided for, in the larger canal, by utilizing the 

 existing sources of supply and developing additional ones by water 

 storage in "West Canada Creek, the Mohawk River, and Oriskany 

 Creek. 



If in the future more water is needed, due to increased use of the 

 canal, or for any other reason, this can be supplied by additional 

 storage in the Adirondacks at a comparatively small expense. 



It is believed that these new and enlarged canals will be of benefit 

 to New York in enabling her to retain and increase her commercial 

 supremacy, largely through their controlling influence on freight 

 rates and the [)revention of differential discrimination against the 

 port of New York, which is now and has for years been the rule. 



They will also benefit the entire region of the Great Lakes, and this 

 benefit will extend far into the interior of the great Northwest and 

 influence transportation rates throughout the country. 



Upon the Great Lakes many millions of tons of freight are trans- 

 ported every year at exceedingly low rates — far lower than are pos- 

 siljle l)y any other than water transportation. The canals that New 

 York has undertr.ken to build will practically extend this cheap sys- 

 tem of water transportation to the seaport of New York and other 

 ports in the vicinity, and bind the East and West closer together. 



