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ment to protect the lives and the property of the citizens." No declarations were made by any party thereafter until 1880 when the Republican convention: which nomi- nated Garfield and Arthur declared: "Wie deem it the duty of the con- gress to develop and improve our sea coasts and harbors." The Democratic convention of this year made no declaration whatever. The subject was revived in 1884, al- though there was no declaration on the question that would satisfy the unanimity of demand of the present day and time brought about by the admitted necessity of permanent ad- ditions to the means of transportation in the way of improved waterways. In 1884 the Democratic convention nominating Cleveland and Hendricks declared: "The federal government should care for and improve the Mississippi and other great waterways of the republic so as to secure for internal states easy and cheap transportation to tidewater." In 1888 the Democratic convention had nothing to say, while the Repub- lican convention nominating Harrison and Morton broached the slightly by its recommendations and approval of "appropriations for the necessary works of national impor- tance in the improvement of harbors and the channels of internal, coast- wise and foreign comme:ce." The platform adopted by the Dem- -ocratic convention in 1892 nominating Cleveland and Stevenson at Chicago took an advanced stand. The plank was as follows: "Resolved, That the federal gov- ernment should improve the Missis- sippi and other great waterways of the country so as to secure for the internal states easy and cheap trans- portation to tidewater, and when any waterway of the republic is of suff- cient importance to demand the aid of 'the government, such aid should be extended on a definite plan until Permanent improvement is secured." The words "on a definite plan until Permanent improvement is secured" were well in advance of the time, though that is the practice upon which all improyements is now followed. It 1S, capable of even broader construc- . tion, through co-ordination. The convention of 1896 nominating McKinley 'and Hobart' at St. Louis was silent on the question while the Chicago convention nominating Bryan and Sewell adopted the plank of the Democratic convention of 1892. Neither the Democratic convention of 1900 subject 'TAE MarRINE REVIEW nominating Bryan and Stevenson alt Kansas City nor the Republican con- vention: "at Philadelphia nominating McKinley and Roosevelt had anything to say on the subject of inland water- way and harbor improvements. The convention nominating Roosevelt and Fairbanks at Chicago in 1904 was also silent, while the St. Louis con- vention nominating Parker and Davis adopted the following plank: "We favor liberal: appropriations for the care and improvement of waterways of the country. When any waterway like the Mississippi is of sufficient importance to demand -'spe- cial aid of the government, such aid should be extended with a definite plan of continuous work unt'l perma- nent improvement is secured." the ~The platforms of 1908 not only de- clare for the improvement of the waterways of the United States but go further in their recognition of the necessity for 'the conservation of the natural resources of the country which are intimately associated with the preservation of our forests. The Re- publican convention at Chicago said: "We endorse the movement inau- gurated by the administration for the conservattion of natural resources; we approve all measures to prevent, the waste of timber; we recommend the work now going on for the reclama- tion 'of arid land, "and. reafhim the Republican policy of the free 'distri- bution of the available areas of the public domain to the landless settler. No obligation of the future is more insistent and none will result in great- er blessings 'to posterity. In line with this splendid undertaking is the further duty, equally imperative, to enter upon a systematic improvement, wpon a large and comprehensive plan, just to all portions of the coun- try, of the waterways, harbors and great lakes, whose natural adaptability to the increasing traffic of the land is one of the greatest gifts of ,a: be- nign Providence." -- . The Democratic convention of Den- ver states: "Water furnishes the cheapest means of transportation and the national government, having control of the navigable waters, should improve them to. their, fullest, capacity. We earnestly: favor the immediate adop- tion of a liberal and comprehensive plan for improving every water course in the union which is justified by the needs of commerce, and to secure that end we favor, when practicable, the connection of the great lakes with the navigable rivers and with the gulf through the Mississippi river, and the 21 navigable rivers with each other, and the' rivers, -bays and sounds of our coasts 'to each other with artificial canals, with a view to perfecting a. system of inland waterways to be Mavigated by vessels of standard draught. We favor the co-ordination of the various services of our govern- ment connected with waterways in one service for the purpose of aiding in the completion of such system of inland waterways, and we favon the creation of a. fund ample for continu- ous work which shall be conducted under the direction of a commission of experts to be authorized by law." This is doubtless the most com- plete and far-reaching declaration on the improvement of waterways that has ever been made. The subject should be looked at largely. Im- provements should be projected upon a scale commensurate with tthe mag- nitude of the country. Improvements should be made not for a day or a year, but for all time. The sum of $2,500,000,000 is none too much to spend upon th's work during the next 50 years, but at the end of that time the country should not have an_ill- planned system, benefiting only local - communities, but a magnificent, _co- ordinated system interlocking the en- tire country and worth every penny that was put into it. PIG IRON SITUATION. While the slowness of recovery of the iron and steel market in the past half year has been emphasized the past week, yet it is not safe to judge the future by that week's dullness. There is a prospect of railroads or- dering 20,000 freight cars at an early date. The Steel Corporation has just announced' plans for expending $2,000,- 000 in rebuilding three blast furnaces at Ensley, Ala., and in making other improvements to the Tennessee plant. While melters of pig iron are taking metal under contract freely, sales are not large, and the price of southern jron has weakened. Sales of struc- tural material generally are not heavy, but several large building projects 'have -been closed. The drought. has, compelled, a number, of coke plants to close, and labor diffi- culties 'have also added to the coke region's embarrassment. . Cast iron pipe makers have received contracts for a fair tonnage of pipe in the east and middle west. A large part of the business now going to plate mak- ers is from wrought pipe manufactut- ers with contracts in the oil fields.