The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-06-13
AN INrEnrsrrNo puBLrcArroN.

'fhe Southland" is the title of very
 handsome magazine published at Ashe-
 vile, N. C., by A. H. McQuilkin, the
 second issue of which has reached this office. Az the names indicates. 1t is devoted to the South and to the ex- ploitation of the country. the people and the resources of this section. The
 first article is a history Of gems and gem mining in the South and gives an interesting account of diamonds and other valuable gems which have been found in the Carolinas, Virginia and Georgia, and the possibilities of other sections of the South in this respect. There is also a very readable article on "The English of the Southern Apala-
 chian Mountains,'' which is an inter- esting contribution to the language literature of the South. In addition, there are several readable stories. poems and other articles, but the one which has attracted us most is en-
 titled Possibilities of Electric Power in the South." which Is worthy of more than passing notice, as it Is very much in line with what The Advertiser has more than once written on the subject. Some extracts from the article will not
 be found uninteresting. Referring to the enormous waste of power from the use of coal, the paper says:
 The burning of coal to produce steam with enormous heat losses, in order to operate an engine which in turn transmits the power developed to a dynamo or cleo tric generator with still further loss,
 while a practical means of generating large currents Is so hopelessly wasteful that 1t was long since pointed out that the existing supply of coal is being dissi- pated in so extravagant manner that the great subterranean storehouses must soon be exhausted: besides in many re- gions, and notably in the South, the want of convenient coal deposits and high
 freight rates make the production of
 power for manufacturing purposes
 matter of such an expense as to be prac- tically prohibitive in an age of sharp competition.
 This is a point The Advertiser has briefly referred to heretofore, and it is particularly applicable to many por- tions of Alabama. The Southlands article speaks of the needs and demands of the South and refers to the thous- ands of mountain streams that waste their strength in mad gambols down rock ribbed courses, cascades that play all day in the sunlight and whisper all
 night long in the white light of the moon; these phenomena of Natures great plan of action which inspire the poet and charm the painter, represent to the more practical if less romantic mind. great stores of energy meant to turn the wheels of the complex mech anism of modern civilization" and then adds that. the harnessing of cataracts and the distribution and sale of power on a large scale. and its use at points
 remote from its origin, are distinctly present-day achievements.
 The paper further alludes to the enor- nous developments now under way at Niagara, stating that at least 10000 horsepower of electric energy will be developed by the end of the present year, and also to the running of street cars in Oakland. Cal, at a distance of 14o miles from the place where the electric power is generated. The paper adds:
 If there Is one point to be emphasized
 more than another in this paper it is
 that the marvellous progress of electrical science in the past few years has car ried the whole field of electrical undertak- ings beyond the experimental stage and given it a secure place in the world of
 practical industry, where the most con- servativ:e of capitalists may invest with the confidence that thorough-going cleo
 trical development affords a legitimate and attractive field for active well-or- ganized business enterprise.
 Altogether the article Is an interest ing one and will well repay perusal. as it deals with a matter of vital interest to Alabama and t Montgomery. Elec- tricity is undoubtedly the coming power of the world.