The herald., 1896-11-16
FALLS OF niagara
READY FOR WORK
The Dream of Economists
Realized
SOMEBODY TOUCHED The BUTTON
And the Falls Now Work for
Living
BUFFALO FACTORY WHEELS
Now Turned by the Greatest Cataract
on Earth
Wires Strung to Deliver Forty Thousand
Horse Power
The Falls at Which Millions Have Gazed
in Awe Offered For Sale at
Thirty-six Dollars
Chunk.
BUFFALO FACTORY WHEELS
Now Turned by the Greatest Cataract
on Earth
Wires Strung to Deliver Forty Thousand
Horse Power
Associated Press Special Wire

BUFFALO, N. T., NOV. l5.-At mid
night the turning of switch in the big
power house at Niagara Falls completed
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
seven miles distant. The harness was
buckled that bitches the factory wheels
of Buffalo to the greatest cataract on
earth. Monday morning the street cars
of the city will move by falls power
Hereafter the falls must work enough
to earn their living. The buckling of the
harness could have been done as we'll
twelve hours earlier, but owing to the
fact that the father of William B. Ran
kin Of New York, secretary of the Nj
agara Falls Power company, is a cler-
gyman, and in difference to his wishes,
the Niagara falls power was not turned
into the transmitting system at noon
today, as had been expected.
The connections were made at mid
night tonight. The force of experts hav-
Ing the work in charge were busy all Of
last night and until late this evening,
testing the various connections and 60
ing over the machinery, to make sure
everything was in proper order When
everything was in readiness for the
switch to be thrown over, the electri-
clans were confident that there need be
no cessation of the current sent flowing
over the wires of the Buffalo street rail-
way system. The distance covered by
the line between Buffalo and the falls is
twenty-seven miles, and the expert elec-
tricians who have the work in charge
frr1nf 70 hot hal lrtst h.,
10 per cent and may not exceed per cent.
Careful tests are to be made in this con-
nection. the tests covering both night
and day and clear as well as rainy
weather.
The line that has been built to carry
the current bears wires of most sub
stantial nature, which, unlike the tel
egraph lines and poles, are placed very
close together and are braced in such a
manner as to be proof against heavy
storms. AT curves the poles are 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. On the overhead line glass in
sulators were found unequal to the
strain, and porcelain insula tors were
made especially to hold the wires The
insulators were subjected to a current of
10000 volts before being put in use
There are at present on the poles eight
cables, each carrying 5000 horse power,
or 10000 horse power in all. The poles
are of such a substantial character,
however, that this number of cables can
be doubled without subjecting them to
q greater strain than is considered safe.
The only contract made so far for the
delivery Of power by the company is
that with the Buffalo Street Railway
60,
the contract with the city the compile
ton of the undertaking of delivering
power in Buffalo was not obligatory be-
fore next July. 1t was to secure the
contract with the street railway COM
pany 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 1t is thought
that by the opening of spring the power
will be well distributed throughout the
city.
Since the inception of the undertake
Ing and during its carrying out the COM
pany have frequently called upon
Messrs. Edison and Tesla for advice and
these famous masters of electricity have
been frequent visitors to the Niagara
Falls power house to solve the technical
problems.
The power will sell in Buffalo for $36
a horse power per annum, and under its
contract with the city the company must
increase it's capacity 10000 horse power
per year until the maximum of 500 900
horse power has been reached
The switches in the Buffalo street
railway power house were turned on ex-
actly at midnight by w. l.. Remmett,
chief engineer of the General Electric
company. Mayor Jewett was present
and held the watch. Everything worked
smoothly.
AT THE POWER HOUSE
NIAGARA FALLS, N. Y, Nov. 15-
The fact that at midnight was to begin
the transmission of electrical power
from the falls to Buffalo for the first
time drew very large crowd of people
to the powe:e house of the Niagara Falls
Power company tonight. So many were
trying to gain admission to the place
that at 8 o'clock the doors were closed.
Those present in the power house proper
were: Messrs. w. B. Rankin, secretary
Of the company; w. A. Breckenridge,
resident engineer; Paul M. Lincoln,
electrical superintendent; I. R. Ed
monds of the General Electric COM
pany, and Hon. w. H. Ely Mr.. Ed
d. .monds had charge of the transformer
house. At 11:15 Messrs. Rankin,
Breckenridge and Lincoln took posi-
tions on the raised platform in front of
the switchboard on the main floor of the
power house and arranged the switches.
Shortly before IL o'clock Mr.. Brecken-
ridge informed Mr.. Edmonds In the