The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-04-21
NATURAL SOURCES OF POWER.

The further Californians remove them
selves from the traditions upon which ex-
perience in other States and countries is
founded the better prepared are they to
master the unique natural advantages
of the State. This overcoming of the
habit of tradition has been proceeding
slowly and painfully for years, and with
every triumph in that direction has come
a corresponding step forward. From
stock-raising we advanced to wheat
growing, from this to the cultivation of
ordinary American fruits, from this TO the
introduction of fruits that will grow no
where else in the United States, from this
to the making of wines, and now we are
reaching out for still more artistic
achievements in the way of extracting the
essential oil of odoriferous flowers. In
each of these steps, with all OF their
separate and various peculiar ramifica-
tons. discoveries have been made of pos
sibilities strange TO the experience of their
initial undertaking. On every hand
valuable discoveries are constantly being
made, and yet likely we are hardly yet on
the threshold of those that will be made.
The absence of abundant fuel is draw
back to the State, as this means lack of
sufficient power for all the valuable uses to
which power may be put. Is it not worth
while to look about for a solution of this
difficulty on lines unrestricted by tradition
and experience? Is power based upon the
combustion of coal the only kind that we
can imagine? Have we not found so many
unexpected treasures in California as to
encourage us to seek one more, and that
one of very great importance? Let us see
what we might find in such a search
OF course we have inexhaustible water
power in the mountains, and if this power
can be transmitted for considerable dis
tances in the form of electricity our whole
fuel problem is solved. Not only, however,
is there still some uncertainty with regard
to the profitable transmission of such a
power, but the installation of the plant is
very expensive. Certainly if such a
scheme would be successful elsewhere it
would be more so here, where there is no
severe cold to freeze the streams.
There is abundant reason to think that
the State contains an inexhaustible store
of petroleum and gas. The very fact that
our Goals are mostly lignites shows that the
carboniferous formations here are very re-
cent, and geologically this means the like
lihood of there being very abundant sup
ply of hydrocarbons deep in the ground.
Again, the mountains of what we call
"bituminous rock" that exist in the Coast
Range are unavoidable evidence of vast
stores of petroleum. We have made only
the slightest and most primitive efforts to
develop this resource, and yet such efforts
have resulted in rich discoveries.
Since the science of ''storing" electrical
energy has been more or less developed
and the ''accumulator" has come to be rec
ognized as having usefulness within GER
tain limitations, if we can find inexpensive
means for charging aecumulators we have
solved a problem. The plan of charging
them by steam power is improbable, be-
cause the percentage of such power repre-
sented by accumulators is far below that
secured from the direct application OF
steam. If we had, say, a head of water
produced at small cost, we could charge
accumulators with it at meager expense,
and in this way accumulators might be
made to furnish an economical power.
We have the tides Of San Francisco Bay
where appliances to utilize their power
! would be in no danger of injury from