Mexico weekly ledger., 1896-11-19
NIAGARA IN
At Midnight Water is Turned Upon
the Turbines OF the Falls Power
Company to Move Street
Cars in Buffalo, 81
Miles AWAY.

BUFFALO, N. Y, Nov. 16.-At mid
night the turning of a switch in the
big power house at Niagara Falls COM
pleted a circuit which caused Niagara
river to flow up hill, SO to speak, by
returning a fraction of its resistless
energy, which had already swept past
the gates of Buffalo, back into that
city, twenty-seyen miles distant The
harness was buckled that bitches the
factory wheels of Buffalo to the great
est cataract on earth.
This morning the street ars Of this
city will move by falls power. Here
after the falls must work enough to
earn their living.
The buckling Of the harness might
have been done as well twelve hours
earlier, but, owing to the fact that the
father of William B. Rank1ne, of New
York, secretary of the Niagara Falls
Power Company, is a clergyman and
in Difference to his scruples, Niagara
falls power was not turned into the
transmitting system at noon, as had
been expected.
IMPORTANCE OF THE TEST.
The force of experts having the
work in charge were busy all Saturday
night and until late Sunday evening
testing the various connections and
going over the machinery, to make
sure that everything was in proper or
der. When everything was in readi-
ness for the switch to be thrown over
the electricians were confident that
there need be no cessation of the cur
rent set flowing over the wires of the
Buffalo street railway system.
The distance covered by the line be-
tween Buffalo and the falls is twenty
seven miles, and the expert electric
ians who have the work in charge es-
innate that the loss of energy will be
less than 10 per cent, and may not
much exceed s.. Careful tests are to
be made in this connection, the tests
covering both night and day, and
clear as well as rainy weather. The
electricians are paying particular at
tention to this test, as on the perfect
insulation of the carrying line depends
much of the future ucces eff the un-
dertaking.
The line that has been built to carry
the current-bearjng wires is of a most
substantial nature. Unlike the ordi-
nary telegraph line, the poles are
placed very close together, and are
braced in such amanner as to beproof
against heavy storms. At curves the
poles r set double, and are guyed to
numerous smaller poles to prevent
sagging. The overhead line extends
from the power house at the falls to
the city limits of Buffalo, where the
wires enter cement conduits.
SEVERE TEST OF INSULATION.
Glass insulators are found unequal to
the strain, and porcelain insulators
were made specially to hold the wires.
These insulators were subjected to a
current of $4,000 volts before being
Il RAs IA aSOs
There are at present on the poles
| eight cables each. Their carrying ca
pacity is 5000 horse power, or 10000
horse power in all. The poles are of a
substantial character, however. The
number of cables can be doubled with
out s~ubjecting them to a greater strain
than ia considered safe,
The only contract made SO far foI
the delivery of power in Buffalo by the
power company is that with the Buff
falo street railway company for 1000
horse power. Under the contract with
the city the completion of the under
taking of delivering power in Buffalo
was not obligatory before next June.
1t was in order to secure the contract
with the street railway company that
the work was hurried through SO far
ahead of time. Contracts with others
desiring to use the electrical power
will now be made, and it 10 thought
that by the opening of spring the
power will be we'll distributed through
out the city.
EDISON AND TESLA GIVE ADVICE.
Since the inception of the under
taking and during its carrying out the
company has frequently called upon
Messrs. Edison and Tesla for advice,
and they have been frequently visitors
to the Niagara falls power house to
solve the technical problems. The
power will sell in Buffalo for $36 horse
power a year, and under its contract
with the city the company must in
crease its capacity 10000 horse power
a year until the maximum of $4,000
horse power has been reached.