The times., 1898-11-08
USE OF MOUNTAIN STREAMS.
Germany COntemplates Harvesting
Them for Industrinl PurpOseS

Germany COntemplates Harvesting
Them for Industrial Purposes.
The State Department has received an
interesting report from Consul Monag han,
at Chemnitz, In which he comments upon
Germany's desire TO utilize every means
of Industrial development The report
includes the following unique paper on
Mountain Water Courses as Industrial
Aids:"
'in recent times. two factors have at
tracted special attention to mountain
streams and their principal value. Now
that all navigab.e rivers in Germany have
been regulated. their high waters. once
fraught with deplorable consequences to
the inhabitants of low lands. practically
confined the question has arisen how far
the course OF streams in the mountainous
districts may be utilized for Industrial
purposes.
There has been q marked increase in
the value of water power since il has been
proved that it can be made available by
electrical transmission for works at long
distances. The electrical exposition of
Frankfort showed that 70 per cent of the
power found at a river could be carried
a distance Of Ia kilometers 0l0 niles. At
that time, the cost of the experiment was
too high TO make 1t practicable. Since
then, many methods Of transferring the
power twenty to thirty miles have been
made profitable. 1nasmuch as the danger
due To the movements of large volumes
of water in the mountains must first be
done away with. the employment of such
methods has been restricted hitherto to
plants where the lowest water level of
the rivers was sufficient There will be
vast progress in utilizing water power as
soon as this difficulty Is overcome. e.
the waters OF the mountains will be util-
lied equally during the whole year.
The dangers hitherto inseparable from
waters in the hills can be scientifically
controlled. One has only to construct res
ervoirs large and secure enough to con-
tain easily more than the largest prob
able amount and TO give it of In the dry
seasons in the required quantities. How
far such reservoirs endanger inhabitants
OF the valleys IS a question much more
important than all those concerned with
industrial or agricultural development
Only after the most carefuI scientific in
vestigation by the country's best en-
gineers should the basins be built or the
valleys damned.
The appalling accidents ike the Johns
town disaster and the more recent one
in France have prejudced the public mind
Dams do not. however. burst when proper
ly built: and TO build dams properly is
no harder, nor half as hard, as to swing
bridges across broad spans of rivers and
guarantee them against storms. Water
volumes may be estimated 10 maxi
mum; winds and storms. with free play
of the elements in wide areas Of space
never.
THE advantages of storing up the
water may be summarized as follows:
Creation of uniform water power for
the factories in the valley. and induce
ments TO increase said industries; dis
tribution OF power by electrical transmits
sion; higher water level in the streams,
even in the warm Summer months, and a
| decrease of their impurities; decrease in
the liability OF the rivers to freeze by the
drawing off of comparatively warm water
as the layers of water in a reservoir are
rarely less than five degrees centigrade;
Improvement Of the water supply for
cities and irrigation of barren lands; de-
crease in the liability of floods and the
damages done by them; decrease of the
desire on the part of the inhabitants to
collect in large towns; beautifying the
landscapes. developing fisheries. water
and ice sports. etc, and Improvements of
means of transportation