Page 75 - USA ROAD TRIP SUMMER of 2000
P. 75

We have seen



                   Farming  (milk,  wheat,  barley,  alfalfa,  sunflowers,  corn,  cattle,
                   berries, & beans)


                   Modern mining (silver, gold, iron ore, copper, and coal)


                   Fishing


                   Forestry


                   Basic manufacturing (steel, lumbar, paper, and taconite)


                   All  this  work  is  done  by  hardworking  men  and  women  in

                   sometimes-harsh climate and sometimes dangerous, dirty, dusty,

                   damp, deafeningly loud conditions.


                   The final common element of  these products is  water. We now
                   have  a  real  sense  and  profound  appreciation  for  the

                   overwhelmingly powerful place the waters of the Great Lakes, the
                   Mississippi  and  all  her  sister,  mighty  rivers  have  played  in  the

                   fortunes  of  our  great  country.  The  volume  of  these  basic  goods
                   that add to the fabric of our rich lives could not be transported in

                   such  vast  quantities  by  any  rail  or  highway  system  alone.  The

                   rivers  are  and  always  will  be  the  true  highways  of  our  midland
                   goods.  The  captains  and  ship  hands  of  all  the  vessels  that  ply

                   these  often-dangerous  waters  carrying  those  goods  have  our
                   deepest admiration.

















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