No. 16. IN SENATE, January 31, 1837. REPORT Of the Canal Commissioners on the petition of John I. Cook and Timothy Jenkins. The Canal Commissioners, to whom was referred, by the honorable the Senate, the petition of John I. Cook and Timothy Jenkins, praying the passage of a law authorizing the purchase by the State, of the Oneida Lake canal and feeder, submits the following REPORT: By the act incorporating the Oneida Lake Canal Company, the State reserved to itself the right to take possession of this canal and its appurtenances at any time within ten years from the passage of the act, upon paying to the company the whole amount of moneys they shall have expended thereon, together with interest at the rate of ten per cent per annum, after deducting therefrom the amount of tolls which shall have been received by the company. One half of the period thus reserved for the appropriation has elapsed, leaving five years yet unexpired. The Oneida Lake canal is four miles and a half in length, to which is added about two miles of slack water navigation on Wood creek. Its dimensions are the same as those of the Erie canal. From its junction with the Erie canal to the Oneida lake there is a descent of 56 feet, and upon the four miles of canal, there are seven wood locks besides a guard lock. The feeder is about three miles in length, extending from the Oneida creek, near the village of Oneida Castleton, to the Erie canal, and intersecting the same about three miles west of the intersection of the Oneida Lake canal. The width of the feeder is twelve feet upon the bottom, with a few wider places for the convenient passage of boats. It is intended to be made navigable, but the petitioners state that a small expenditure is still required to render it so. This canal was navigable during the whole of the past season, and from a statement from the treasurer of the company, furnished by the petitioners, it appears that the amount of tolls received during the entire season was $2,092.35; and that $490.75 was received in the season of 1835, after the 12th September, that being the day on which navigation commenced. Making an aggregate of tolls from the commencement of navigation on the canal, of $2,583.10. From the statement above alluded to, it appears that the canal cost,.... 864,886 37 That the feeder cost,.... 13,938 48 Add ten per cent for two years, supposing that to be an average of time in reference to the expendi ture,.. 15,764 97 Leaving 894,006.72 as the sum required of the State for the purchase. The undersigned have no certain means of arriving at the cost of repairs and superintendence during the time this canal has been in use, but it is probable they have been sufficient to consume the most if not all of the above mentioned income. It is, however, believed that a fair test has not yet been produced, and that a considerable increase of tolls may be expected. The trade of a large district of country compared with the limited extent of this canal, must find its way to the Erie canal through this channel. Yet like all other lateral canals in the State, its income will be limited, and little hope can be entertained that it can be made a source of revenue to the State should the appropriation be made. The petitioners urge, as a main inducement to the appropriation, the means which the possession of these works would afford, for obtaining an additional supply of water for the enlarged Erie canal. By an estimate of the waters of Oneida creek, made in reference to the termination of the Chenango canal in 1834, that stream will yield at a point five miles below the summit of the Chenango canal, 700 cubic feet of water per minute, and perhaps, as far down as the village of Oneida Castleton, the same stream will yield 900 cubic feet per minute. It is supposed that the Skanandoa will yield about half that quantity; making an aggregate of 1,350 cubic feet per minute. The Oneida Lake canal and feeder will require about 760 cubic feet per minute, leaving a balance to be contributed to the Erie canal, of 590 cubic feet per minute. To render this supply available, it will be necessary to open a feeder from the Skanandoa to Oneida creek, a distance of a mile and a half, and damages will have to be paid to the owners of hydraulic works below. These works are said to be of moderate value, consisting of a grist-mill with one run of stones, three saw-mills on Oneida creek, and one on the Skanandoa. The locks upon this canal are built of wood, and have probably stood about two years. Locks of this description, if well built, usually last from 8 to 10 years. It is contemplated to draw the additional supply of water requisite for the Rome summit of the enlarged Erie canal, from Black river and from Fish creek; and it is believed that a larger quantity is available from these sources, than will be required. The estimated quantities available from these sources are: From Black river, 14,681 cubic feet per minute; from Fish creek, 13,725 cubic feet per minute. Although the limited quantity available from the Oneida and Skanandoa creeks would be a desirable acquisition at this point; yet it would not dispense with either of the above supplies. The principal motive for the appropriation of these works to the public use, arises from a consideration of the claims to a participation in the munificence of the State, of those who are so situated as to be dependent upon this canal and feeder for a communication with the Erie canal. The inhabitants upon the borders of Oneida lake, and to some distance north of it, occupying a considerable extent of settled country, and a district producing large quantities of lumber and wood, are in this situation. The Oneida Lake canal company are authorized by their charter to charge, and it is believed they do in fact charge three times. the amount of tolls chargeable on the Erie canal at the time of the granting of their charter. These tolls are complained of as burdensome, and they no doubt do effect, to some extent, the competition between these regions and those bordering on the State canals. This effect is particularly objectionable in the article of wood. According to the present regulations in relation to tolls upon the State canals, no toll is charged upon wood destined to be used in the manufacture of salt. It is understood that the company in question charge toll on all wood indiscriminately, to triple the amount charged on the Erie canal on that designed for other uses. It is said that the effect of this charge is to exclude, to some extent, from this market, wood brought from the shores of Oneida lake. It is urged by the inhabitants in the vicinity of Oneida lake, that the early settlers of that country were induced to purchase their lands at enhanced prices, and to settle in that country on account of the means afforded for communication with the eastern markets through the channel opened by the New-York Inland Lock Navigation company: That when the Erie canal was constructed, this communication was taken from them, without the equivalent of being enabled to communicate with the Erie canal: That the effect of this exclusion was endured for several years, and until the construction of the Oneida Lake canal; and that the high tolls now charged upon this canal impose upon them burdens not exacted of other portions of the State. These considerations are urged with great solicitude by the petitioners. The weight and influence which they ought to exert, |