ulty of supplying
water was started as an objection, assisted his friend by the
observation, "Give yourself no trouble--the tears of our constituents
will fill it." Many others opposed the act on the ground that, by
bringing the produce of the States on the lake shores so easily to New
York, the property of the State would be depreciated; which appears to
me, in other words, to be--they opposed it on the ground of its utility.
Others again grounded their objections on the doubt that the revenue
raised by the tolls would be sufficient to justify the expense.
Fortunately, however, the act was carried; and in seven years, the
canal, though not quite completed, was receiving tolls to the amount of
upwards of 50,000l. In 1836 the canal debt was paid, and produce
valued at 13,000,000l.--of which 10,000,000l. belonged to the State
of New York--was carried through it; the tolls had risen to 320,000l.
per annum, and 80,000l. of that sum was voted to be appropriated to
the general purposes of the State, the total cost having been under one
and a half million sterling.

One might imagine that such triumphant success would have made the State
ready to vote any reasonable sum of money to enlarge it if required;
but the old opponents took the field in force when the proposition was
made. Even after a certain sum had been granted, and a contract entered
into, they rescinded the grant and paid a forfeit to the contractor of
15,000l. It was in vain that the injury to commerce, resulting from
the small dimensions of the canal,[BA] was represented to them; it was
in vain that statistics were laid before them, showing that the
7,000,000 miles traversed by the 4500 canal-boats might, if the proposed
enlargement took place, reduce the distance traversed to two millions of
miles, and the boats employed to 1500; Barn-burners triumphed, and it
was decided that the enlargements should only be made out of the surplus
proceeds of the tolls and freight; by which arrangement this vast
commercial advantage will be delayed for many years, unless the fruits
of the canal increase more rapidly than even their present wonderful
strides can lead one to anticipate, although amounting at this present
day to upwards of 1,000,000l. yearly.[BB] Such is a short epitome of a
canal through which, when the Sault St. Marie Channel between Lakes
Superior and Huron is completed, an unbroken watery highway will bear
the rich produce of the West from beyond the 90 deg.