The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1893-10-12
ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY.
ANINTtsRESTING ADDRESS DELIV-
Erred lsY GEN. GREEDY.
Mathematical, Political, Physical and
Economic OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
Benefit North Carolina.

Economic Geography-Should
Benefit North Carolina.
Correspondents of The Sentinel
WASHINGTON, Oct. 6.-At the Cor
coran Scientific School of Columbian
University yesterday, Gen. A. w.
Greedy delivered an address on the
subject of economic geography, which
in view of the great natural resources
of North Carolina will be of interest
to the people of our State.
The lecturer divided his subject IN
to branches to be named mathematic-
al, political, physical and economic
geography. The latter is the most
important branch of this science. 1t
is the comparative treatment Of the
political and physical branches, and
illustrates where. when and how the
latent resources of the earth may be
most advantageouSly exploited for the
benefit of mankind. 1t involves
knowledge of the natural resources of
different regions, of transportation
routes, of natural elements that mill
tate against or are favorable to spe-
cial pursuits and Industries, and of
the numberless social conditions that
may affect the initiation, develop
ment or continuance of any material
enterprise.
Gen. Greedy concluded expressing re-
greet at the backward state OF develop
ment of such geographic knowledge
in this country, and congratulatlng
the university upon the steps takeI.
in opening to its students SuCn new
and fruitful field of study and re-
search. He declared that economic
ir $50 Sninnnn - and
tainly it is matter in which our
State is vastly interested in view Of
the wonderful Developments in the
domain of electricity; for water power
becomes in this connection the most
important and valuable resource of
the industries of manufacturing and
TRANSFORMATION; and no other country
on earth is blessed with such powers
so abundantly as North Carolina. To
show how this is [ quote from re-
cent letter from Chicago in the New
York Sun:
''There is Niagara, for instance, for
whose use in the service of man prep
arations on large scale are already
making. But when the tunnel is fin
ished and the first two of the 5000
horsepower turbine wheels are in
place by which the energy of the
mighty cataract is to be tapped above
its fall, the question will have to be
met. How is the power to be distrib-
uted over an area large enough to alb
sorb all that will be available? When
the plans for the Fair were under con-
sideration it was proposed to bring
enough power from Niagara here to
supply the Electricity Building. This
was to be a Kind of object-lesson in
power transmission over long dis
tances, and its proposers, waxing more
ambitious, seriously considered the
idea of leaving enough power to oper-
ate an electric railway from Chicago
to st. Louis. Both schemes were Sc
riously considered by German electri-
clans.
The nineteenth century has been
the century of steam; the twentieth is
likely to be known as the century OF
electricity. Men still living have seen
the water-wheel make way for the
steam engine, and may still live to
see the water-wheel come back again,
only harnessed this time to an cleo
trio generator and placed scores OF
miles away from the mill.
However this may be, it is certain
that the problem OF turning to &C
count the waste forces of nature is
| rapidly approaching solution, and that
| it is doing so because of the progress
which is being made in the transfer
nation and transmission of electric
power over long distances without
| sensible loss There is on exhibition
| here an electric dynamo which pro
| duces 90 per cent of the energy trans
| mitted to it by u steam engine Ihls
| is possibly as near perfection as the
generator will ever reach, and, consid
| ering the enormous waste that enSueS
| in converting the latent energy of the
| coal into steam and motion, the result
| may be regarded as marvellous. But
| the question of subsequent leak
| age in transmission is a much more
| important one when the original ener
gy is generated by the costly process
| of steam than it would be when drawn
| from an illimitable and easily utiliZeo
water supply. The main considera
| tion then becomes one of the ducts
| the diameter of the copper wire need
| ed to perform a given service repre-
senting all the difference betwee Ell
| profit and loss. The water supply o.
| a great city would be a simple and in
| expensive affair if forty millions Of
gallons day could be sent through
siX-inch pipe. The new methods il
electricity aim at doing with the more
subtle current something to which
| this would be closely analogous.
Considering, therefore, the eXtraor
| binary abundance and wide diStribu
| tiOn of our water powers, this new
science of economic geography, if il
teaches men all it ought to teach
will be of infinite benefit to NORTH
| Carolina" TARHEEL.