THE IMPROVEMENT OF WATERWAYS 



195 



cities in the eastern and the central part of the United States 

 to the Orient and to the western coasts of North and 

 South America. It also allows the easy concentration of the 

 United States Navy on either the eastern or the western 

 coast. 



It is to be hoped that the Erie Canal, connecting the 

 Hudson River and the Great Lakes, will in the near future 



CANAL 



Two great oceans artificially united. 



be made deep enough for ocean-going vessels. Another 

 project of great importance is the proposed establishment, 

 by canals and dredging, of a protected waterway from 

 New England to southern ports. A network of inland 

 waterways connecting Houston and New Orleans is (Feb- 

 ruary, 1919) almost completed. By extending the Chicago 

 Drainage Canal and dredging the Illinois River the Great 



