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is the admiral aware that many of the great harbors of the world are nothing more than tidal basins, vir- tually great lock chambers in which the possibility of damage is added to and even multiplied by every ship that enters? Should the gates of these tidal basins, through some accident similar to that at the Sault, give way there might be a chaos of ships, but we do not find anyone worrying about it. ' Surely Admirals Goodrich and Chadwick are not afraid that any naval ships will bring about the ac- cident that they' seem to dread. If they are, we would suggest that the authority in charge of the canal, when it shall be finished, provide a few officers who have had experience in canaling big ships and put them in charge of all vessels passing the can- an It is almost unbelievable that any man with a thorough knowledge of the subject will recommend a sea level canal with its tidal currents, narrow bottom widths and_ small bottom loaded ship; where two ships either could not pass without one making fast or else only at certain points; where the 'full modeled, hard-bilged will hunt the bank with absolute cer- tainty, although the naval ship with finer ends and easier bilges should do better; where for about half. the total clearance under a cargo ship length the sinuous curves make steadying a ship impossible from the lack of courses or ranges even in day time, and at night a thing not to be attempted or even thought of. ' The straight course of the lock can- al made possible by the Gatun Lake with day and night ranges are easily negotiated at all times. Naval offi- cers will add nothing to their reputa- tion for ability in opposing the lock canal canal, even if the sea _ level would not cost over $280,000,000 more money and six years more time for construction and did not have locks of its own. Foreigners who are not only con- tributing nothing to the cost of the canal but beneficiaries through the United States taking over their failure, have had much to say who are Tre Marine REVIEW about what we should do. They were 'treated with far more courtesy than they had any right to expect when they were invited to take part in the consideration of the type of- canal, and the taste some of them have since displayed in criticising our methods is questionable to say the least; 'but that they should be supported by our own countrymen, who have had ex- building nor perience neither in operating canals, is worse. A HUMILIATING SPECTACLE. A feature of the celebration, and one that must have been saddening to every American as it must have gladdened the hearts -of our foreign gests, was to be found in the fact that of the ranks upon ranks of sea-going merchant ships lining both banks of the noble Hud- son, yes and around into the East riv- er and Brooklyn to Bay Ridge and Bayonne, the stars and stripes waved from a solitary American liner and she built on the Clyde. Of river and sound and tugs, lighters anid ferry-boats there were steamers, coasters not wanting hundreds, but never in the whole history of the United States has our utter impotence at sea been more forcibly demonstrated and at the moment we were celebrating in harbor the What a pitiable expression of a great nation, the greatest American birth of steam navigation. that the chief evidence of its wealth and strength and energy should be found in a fleet of battleships, cruisers, torpedo boats and submarines; im- plements of destruction only and as useless and valueless to us in actual war as though they still lay in the brain of the designers. Never was there nor could be a better example of the value of the merchant marine to the: navy, than presented there that day. The foreign navies had more backing, right in our own harbor than ourown, There lay atanchor in the Hudson a fleet of American fighting ships of which the first cost was not a cent less than $200,000,000 and only one American flag at the taffrail of a foreign-going ship in sight. American can If any consider that without Hudson-Fulton: October, 1909 shame, he is unworthy of his flag; if the fact will contribute to bringing about a better state of things the humiliation will not have been in 'vain; otherwise we have merely made an exhibition of ourselves, our guns and armor and ships were a vain and nothing but contempt with our empty show leaving amusement and "guests, the parade had better never have been, and the picture should be draped and turned to the wall. MUNICIPAL HARBOR IMPROVE- MENTS. The investigations necessary in the preparation of the series of articles now appearing in THe Marine Review describing the principal harbors of the north Pacific coast may have led in- cidentally to the collection of consider- able data on the general subject of improvements, both municipal harbor on the Pacific coast and on the At- A study of this data leads to a number of interesting questions, three lantic. of the more important of which may be stated as follows: 1 How far may a corporate 'city or port district legitimately go in the improvement of its harbor - facilities? That it should provide a deep, easily navigable and well protected fairway from its water front to the open sea cannot be questioned. A seaport with- out a deep, well protected, accessible harbor is dead. But after the harbor it- self has been improved, in which work the city can often obtain assistance from the national government, how far may the municipality go in providing the wharves, piers, dry docks, coal bunkers and even ship yards which are necessary to every well-appointed har- bor? 2. What ise "most kind* of an suitable for the organization economical management of public harbor improve- ments? 3. To what extent is the expendi- ture of money on harbor improvements justified by the increased shipping and . commerce attracted by these improve- ments? These are questions of vital importance to every American seaport city. It is not the function of the munici-