especially in Hilly Countries. Canals are quiet and very manageable. Therefore they are often carried on here by the Sides of Rivers, only on ground above the Reach of Floods, no other Use being made of the Rivers than to supply occasionally the waste of water in the Canals. I warmly wish Success to every Attempt for Improvement of our dear Country. . ."
The Revolutionary War put an end to many plans for the improvement of Franklin's "dear country." Immediately after the close of the war, however, the various projects were again advanced here and there as the young republic began to grasp the great opportunities that lay before it. Among the most important early undertakings were those which looked forward to a new West and the need of lines of communication in advance of the rough roads which were the only avenues of commerce. The scheme of improving the rivers which rose in the Alleghenies, and connecting their heads with the waterways which flowed into the Ohio River at Lake Erie, was one of the moving projects of the hour. The improvement of the James, Potomac, and
