The evening world., 1894-03-15
II Companies Within Reach Of Their
Live Wires Take Current from
the Falls, ali Right.
REFUSE, AND THERE WILL Be A FIGHT.
Canal Propulsion the Big End Of the Talk
but tho Little End Of tie Scheme
Hannah Tells How 1t Happened.

The actuating motives of the Cataract Gen.
eral Electric Company, branch of the Niagara
Power Company, which has just secured
fifty year contract giving 1t sweeping electrical
privileges along the canals of the State, are re-
vealed in the following statement made to a re-
porter for The World yesterday by Frank W.
Havley, Vice. President of the company. He
said:
1.-THE contract is good thing for the State,
and / don deny that 1t is also mighty good
thing for us. We are going to sell the cleo
tricty generated by the Niagara Power Com
pany, and If anybody opposes us we will fight
them.
Electricity will be conducted to all the
principal towns along the canals and Central
road and offered for lighting, heating, motive
power and manufacturing purposes at rates
lower than any local concern can afford. We
shall give these local concerns opportunity to
get in out of the wet, but If they refuse guess
there is not much question as to which will
SURVIVE
The big combine has complete control of
Niagara Falls on both the American and
Canadian sides, and significant fact is that 1t
bought the land on the American shore forso
distance above the falls and long strip run
ming back several miles from the river. so as to
shut off any company that might want to start
further UP the river and dig q canal around the
Niagara company.
On the Canadian side grants have been
secured for tunnel twice as large as the
American one. The capacity of the present
completed tunnel is sufficient for 300, 600
horse power and the volume of water diverted
will lower the depth at the falls two inches.
Although the Cataract General Electric Com
pany has but the nominal capital of $40, 600,
it is backed by the richest men in New York.
Thomas c. Plat was taken into the scheme to
lend advice in the securing OF franchises. of
which many more will be needed.
Another significant fact is that no successful
plan for propelling canal boats by electricity
has yet been devised. Agreat noise was made
about Frank W. Hawleys experiments on the
canal last summer with electric motors,
and State officials and legislators have for a
long time been necessarily beguiled with the
alluring proposition OF electrical propulsion on
the State great waterways. So there was no
opposition to the bill passed last year, which au-
thorzed the superintendent OF Public Works to
make contract which was supposed to have in
view only electrical propulsion on the canals.
tract which gives all sorts of electrical prvi-
leges practically exclusive, for fifty years, and
those interested lost no time in getting the con-
tract signed when they heard of Mr. Gerst S
bill to prevent the making OF any such con-
tract.
Closely examined. the liberal terms OF the
contract develop as follows:
Power for canal boats, whenever suitable
Ia
ceed $50 n horse power season. Each boat
would require about fifteen horse power Ac-
cording 10 the estimates of electrical engineers
this gives large profit to the company.
Free lighting at locks Under the present
system each keeper is required to furnish his
own light
Free motive power for locks and bridges.
This would require only an occasional use of
small power which could be drawn from the
main wires with almost imperceptble effect.
The canal feature is only by play in the
great scheme. The main object is to reach
towns and cities along the line and there sell
electricity for all kinds OF purposes in opposi-
4 ton to the local companies. The fluid will
first be offered them at figure lower than it
can be generated by steam. If local concerns
accept and become servants of the great cor
poration their generating plant will he shut
down ana connection made with the cataract
wires II they refuse to surrender then the
great corporation will try to ruin them. When
the small companies are done for the big one
can charge what 1t pleases for its power. 1t Is
. plan to control the electrical power market
In all places between Niagara and Albany.
The Cataract Company and its parent, the
Niagara Power Company, are not allied with
the General Electric or Westinghouse Com