﻿874 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  STATE 
  MUSEUM 
  

  

  raent 
  of 
  the 
  water 
  storage 
  capacity 
  of 
  New 
  York 
  streams 
  to 
  its 
  

   fullest 
  degree. 
  

  

  Another 
  mistake 
  in 
  New 
  York 
  has 
  been 
  in 
  largely 
  confining 
  the 
  

   agriculture 
  to 
  the 
  production 
  of 
  grain 
  and 
  dairy 
  products. 
  Had 
  

   manufacturing 
  been 
  the 
  general 
  policy 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  for 
  the 
  last 
  

   hundred 
  years, 
  the 
  population 
  would 
  easily 
  be 
  anywhere 
  from 
  

   2,000,000 
  to 
  4,000,000 
  greater 
  than 
  it 
  is 
  under 
  present 
  conditions 
  

   and 
  a 
  much 
  larger 
  proportion 
  of 
  the 
  agriculture 
  would 
  be 
  garden 
  

   truck, 
  fruits 
  and 
  berries 
  than 
  it 
  now 
  is. 
  These 
  products 
  yield 
  

   very 
  much 
  better 
  profit 
  to 
  the 
  producer 
  than 
  grain, 
  cattle, 
  dairy 
  

   products, 
  etc. 
  The 
  result 
  of 
  this 
  policy 
  would 
  have 
  been 
  that 
  

   the 
  aggregate 
  wealth 
  of 
  New 
  York 
  farmers 
  would 
  be 
  much 
  higher 
  

   than 
  it 
  is, 
  and 
  the 
  same 
  thing 
  is 
  true 
  of 
  all 
  other 
  classes. 
  

  

  The 
  construction 
  of 
  the 
  1000-ton 
  barge 
  canal 
  is 
  expected 
  to 
  

   greatly 
  increase 
  the 
  manufacturing 
  possibilities 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  by 
  

   bringing 
  into 
  it 
  the 
  raw 
  material 
  for 
  the 
  manufacture 
  of 
  iron 
  and 
  

   steel. 
  These 
  industries 
  have 
  clustered 
  around 
  Lake 
  Erie, 
  at 
  

   Lorain, 
  Cleveland, 
  Ashtabula, 
  etc. 
  but 
  the 
  industry 
  at 
  these 
  points 
  

   is 
  burdened 
  by 
  the 
  necessity 
  of 
  bringing 
  coal 
  and 
  limestone 
  for 
  

   flux 
  by 
  railway 
  transportation 
  from 
  a 
  considerable 
  distance. 
  

   The 
  barge 
  canal 
  will 
  permit 
  of 
  the 
  development 
  of 
  iron 
  and 
  steel 
  

   manufacturing 
  at 
  points 
  very 
  near 
  the 
  coal 
  and 
  flux. 
  This 
  manu- 
  

   facturing 
  ought 
  to 
  develop 
  extensively 
  along 
  the 
  line 
  of 
  the 
  canal 
  

   between 
  Rochester 
  and 
  Utica. 
  

  

  Another 
  difficulty 
  has 
  been, 
  until 
  within 
  a 
  year 
  or 
  two, 
  the 
  

   great 
  cost 
  of 
  incorporating 
  companies 
  in 
  this 
  State. 
  Previous 
  

   to 
  1902 
  the 
  State 
  tax 
  required 
  from 
  corporations 
  was 
  one-eighth 
  

   of 
  one 
  per 
  cent. 
  The 
  result 
  was 
  that 
  nearly 
  all 
  large 
  corpora- 
  

   tions 
  were 
  incorporated 
  in 
  New 
  Jersey, 
  but 
  in 
  1902 
  this 
  was 
  so 
  far 
  

   modified 
  that 
  the 
  fee 
  now 
  is 
  merely 
  nominal. 
  

  

  At 
  the 
  legislative 
  session 
  of 
  1904, 
  an 
  act 
  was 
  passed 
  authorizing 
  

   the 
  appointment 
  of 
  a 
  permanent 
  River 
  Improvement 
  Commission, 
  

   and 
  while 
  this 
  act 
  is 
  hardly 
  all 
  that 
  can 
  be 
  desired, 
  nevertheless 
  

   it 
  makes 
  a 
  beginning 
  towards 
  the 
  rational 
  improvement 
  of 
  the 
  

   streams 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  to 
  their 
  fullest 
  extent. 
  We 
  still 
  need 
  a 
  mill 
  

   act 
  which 
  will 
  permit 
  of 
  constructing 
  dams 
  on 
  the 
  smaller 
  streams 
  

   without 
  any 
  further 
  grant 
  of 
  powers 
  from 
  the 
  Legislature 
  than 
  

   those 
  granted 
  in 
  the 
  general 
  act. 
  We 
  also 
  need 
  to 
  repeal 
  all 
  acts 
  

  

  