Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1893-01-10
CAPTURING A CATARACT.
Niagara Falls ''Harnessedn and viii
Soon Go to Work.
1000 900 Horse power Can BE- Developed
Large Part Soon Available.

BrffALo, Jan. S.-fof More than nifty
years the dream of engineers has been to
harness Niagara" Well, the dream has
come true. Niagara is in harness. To be
sure, the trace chains have not vet been
hooked to the whiifle-irees of industry, but
the collar and names, the bride and bit ar,
in position and ready for the strain when i,
shall come. The greatest cataract of tht
world has been snbdued, and If, in knowl
edge OF its captivity its roar is more sullen
than of yore when it existed only as an
insurmonntable obstacle to navigation and s
wonder for sightseers to grow solemn over
the smiles on the faces of capitalists, the
new jingle in the pockets of residents OF
the village of Niagara Falls, and the com.
placent prophecies of the Buffalonian thai
ten years hence Chicago will not be in it
SIR no, sir, no: on your life," are atone,
ments.
1t is estimated that the total power of the
gr tat waterfall is equal to that of Is 900, ,0Ot
horses. To anyone who has seen its mighty
volume this does not seem absurd. The
present scheme will only utilize less than
one-hundredth of that vast wasting force
but it may be stretched in the future TO as
great a length as may be made useful.
The effect of this great enterprise may
not be as great as the sanguine remark of
the Buffalo man who has been quoted would
empty, but it will be very great. of course
many of 'he manufacturing interests which
will be attracted by cheap power will gather
in the little town which hovers on the brink
of the cataract, and which has in the past
been notable principally for its big hotels its
clam0rous cabbies and its Indian bazaars.
But plan has been devised whereby the
power will be electrically transmitted to
Buffalo with comparatively small loss, so
that this city will undoubtedly come in for
many of the pudding's plums.
The village of Niagara Falls itself has
gone wild with boom almost Western in
its enthusiasm. But the boom is secreted
and the enthusiasm is hidden. At least, so
Niagara Falls people think. Every man in
The place intends to make fortune out of
some land deal, but every man tries to con-
zeal his praiseworthy purpose so that his
neighbor may be thrown off the scent
Erstwhile open and above board citizens
may be seen sneaking into real estate offices
by night and day, while other citizens, also
4rstwhile open and above board. watch
hem and chuckle at their own duplicty in
corners and obscure doorways
only to themselves sneak and themselves
be watched within the week.
Nothing. not even good lively suicide,
.an attract attention now from the fever of
and speculation which prevails in this vii
age, once simple minded i'll everything but
is dealings with visitors. The coming OF
he long predicted days of prosperity, the
idyent into commercial importance, has
lad a most deplorable effect upon Niagara
Falls human nature.
The first attempt to utilize the water
,ower of Niagara Falls was made by
Horace A. Dey, who in 1850 built the old
hydraulic canal running from above the
,apids to what are now known as Shoel-
<opf's mill on the brink of the cataract
This canal discharges its water into wheel
pits only 60 feet deep, which in turn dis
;harge at point more than 100 feet above
he level of the river below the falls, so
hat more than three-quarters of the pcs
,ible force is wasted The old hydraulic
anal gives in all only about 5000 available
lorse power.
The new method is the same principle
differently applied. A canal has been Gu.
from above the rapids as in Dey's plan;
but it runs only short distance before it
reaches the pits, which are l20 feet deep.
\ sheer fall through great pipes is thus OBJ
aimed, which is nearly as great as the
height of the falls.
Thus far the work was comparatively
,asy. The fun came in giving the water
yent from the wheelpits. This was az
by the construction of Il great
upno1 tbr,upb solid limastona rnct from,
he wheelpits to below the falls. The water
distracted from the river thus flows for a
listance through the canal, then takes
is big tumble through the pits down to the
urbine wheels, and then flows through the
unuel to the rivers lower level.
This tunnel is s7l3 feet long, 2s feet
Ugh and Is feet broad, in semi-clrcular
form. 1t is bricked up along its whole
eBgth, an undertaken which has consumed
l3 900 900 cubes of baked clay and which,
lad it been done by single bricklsyer.
would have occupied his entire attention for
4 years. 1t was thought to be better
plan to employ 1000 men in its construct
on, however, and they have managed to
lig it and line it in little less than three
years, having kept hard at it day and night.
The total cost of the enterprise so far has
been q triile of 81 500 900.
With the wheelpits already finished or
lnler way, the plant will develop mini
mum Of l2o 600 horse power. This would
ne more than sufficient to run seven of the
largest steamships afioat, and steamships
are not easy things TO run. 1t is highly i'm
probable. however, that the power from the
falls will be utilized in ocean navigation.
But if the dreams of the projectors of
his big enterprise come true, some things
almost ~ remarkable as that would be are
TX. ly to occur. Its promoters have been
levotng much attention to studying how to
transmit the power as they have to studying
how TO develop ii. just what their scheme
is they won't tell. They are AS "lose-
noutlpd about il as the Niagara Fails folks
are about their real estate deals. But they
boldly assert that they can deliver power in
Buffalo at only a slight loss, and darkly
hint at being able to send it by wire to any
lis,ance as easily as You can send mes
sage by telephone.
In order to increase the power it will b.
oniy 10 dig new wheel pits. The
ranal anil the tunnel are big enough to hold
" yater for ! ,000.o0 horse power, and that
is what the company places it, maximum
at. OF course there are sneerers,
but the company has Niagara Falls and the
engineers on its side, and seems likely to
come out ahead