RIVER `QUEENS' APPARAENTLY WON'T STOP AT CAIRO JULY 4

CAIRO, Ill. -- The sounds of a paddlewheeler's calliope and the yell of "Steamboat a' c oming" will be missing during the July 4 celebration planned here.

"The boats won't be stopping here this year," said Cairo Mayor James Wilson.

The boats are the Delta Queen and the Mississippi Queen, which conduct a 1,039-mile New Orleans-to-St. Louis race during the July 4 holiday.

The Chamber of Commerce received word recently from the Delta Queen Steamboat Co. that the "Queens" would not be docking at Cairo during the annual "Great Steamboat Race" between the two paddlewheelers this year.

"This is a big disappointment," said Wilson. "For the past eight years the city has sponsored a Steamboat Days celebration during the race between the two boats."

The boats have annually made a stop at Cairo, and participated in the holiday celebration.

Included in the annual River Days was the "King of the Rivers Pentathlon," a pentathlon competition between the crews of the two boats, with the winner receiving the Commodore's Cup. The Delta Queen crew has won the Commodore's Cup five times and the Mississippi Queen once. In 1990 the crews battled to a tie.

Other events during the annual celebration included various relay races for porters, waiters and cabin boys.

"We haven't given up the hope that the steamboat line may still schedule a stop here during the Independence Day weekend," said Wilson. "We're going to contact boat officials to explain our position.

"We have already started planning for the event," said Wilson. "We've added a new docking ramp, a new wall along the riverfront, and are in the process of naming two Cairo streets for the two paddlewheelers. We're also requesting a grant for a parking lot along the riverfront."

The Cairo City Council, during its December meeting, approved an ordinance for two new streets in the city Delta Queen Circle and Mississippi Queen Circle.

The two new streets, previously unnamed, lead from Peyton Berbling Memorial Drive to the boat ramps and back. The roads are 60 feet in width, which qualifies them as public streets.

"With so many plans intact, we're requesting that the boats reschedule their July stop here," said Wilson. "It wouldn't have been so bad if they had given us a year's notice. This is a blow to the people of Cairo who have worked so hard."