St. Landry clarion. (Opelousas, La.) 1890-1921, 1909-07-31
Mr.. SchelPs talk was as follows:

MI. SchelPs talk was as follows:
ladies and Gentlemen: Cup to this
time it was impossible for me to say
anything to you or lay out plans which
I could say I could carry out owing to.
conditions, but to-day I feel that we.
can state without hesitancy what we.
can do. The work that has been ac-
complished, and YOU have seen it. has
been accomplished under great difficll-
ties. Other men may have handled
them better than / did, but I did the
best / could under the circumstances.
"You can go and see the pumping
plant foundations and buildings almost
completed. When I said five years ago
they would see that, no n would be-
lieye me, but to-day they can see it, and
I say with absolute certainty that the
canal will be finished for next years
crop. The hardest part of the2work is
completed. The people in Pennsylvania
are more interested than ever before,
which is going to make my part OF the
work easier.
aTo give some idea of what has been
done, I wish to state, that t~hree-fourths
of the earth work of the first five miles
is completed and paid for. The pit
which is 45 feetI also completed. Some
people ask why is it SO deep? We do
ItUh HI U b1FG Whit al ak3s&@HHS GASdRhN6A
45 feet so that the pump is always below
the water line and does o have to
lift the water, but pushes It up owe the
hill. The steel work is all up, and the
roofing and brick work almost complet-
ed. The dredge boat which had ~
miles to dredge has ~ miles completed
and paid for
"Our pump is all built and ready for
shipment. It wal built by the II. D..
Wood Company of Philadelphia. 1t
pumps a six foot stream of water from
fleet to Is feet per second OF ~108,O00,000#
gallons of water every t~wenty-four
hours. This pumpi is directly connected
to two 1000 III. r. tandem cnmpound
~condensing engines britt by the Rus
sci Engine Company Of Massillon, Ohio.
These engines are also built n ready
to ship. The boilers were built by the
E. Keeler Company of Williamsport,
Pa, and ready to ship. The condensors
were built by Williams of Philadelphia
and all steam fittings by Edwards Of
Philadelphia, Pa, and is all completed
and ready for shipment.
"We are notgoing to have all OF the ma
chinery shipped, however, until about
October LIST, as these foundations are in
some places Ii feet thick and will have
time to settle. The pump weighs 1885,
900 pounds, the impeIler is II feet3 In
ches and weighs 5000 pounds. The
shaft Is @ inches in diameter, 80 feet
long and weighs $4,000 pounds. ANY
man knows that such machinery should
not be put on the foundations under six
months. The foundations should stand
six months to give the concrete time to
set, and 1t is not necessary to ship the
machinery nov as we could not use the
plant before next spring; but that plant
will be erected and completed ready to
operate not later than the first of April,
1 : aIF51Sn e x0 MT Iae4 ne w asF y 90 n 4 . nd
fifteen miles Of Opelousas l~aterals, and
such other laterals necessary to irrigate
10000 acres of land.
Il do not want you to call this the
SchelI canal. Itdoes not belong to me.
This belongs to you people. / only
want to do my duty as a man and a
citizen of the United States and am try
ing TO do what / think every one should
do, the best we can with the life and
ability we have, and make the world
better by having come into it. This
canal belongs to you. When it is COM
pieted it will only be q very few years
until I must step ont. You will find
that everyone who begins 3 thing of
this kind after IT is completed, he does
not live to enjoy the benefits of it, be-
cause 5y that time he has worn him
self out with hard work. / hope it will
not be exactly that way with me and /
can honestly say that my health is bet
ter to-day than it has been for fifteen
years. We are going to succeed with
the canal. YouaTe going to finish 1t with
me-. / may not live to see it, but when
this irrigation canal is finished it VIII
reach all over this entire country
Sunday the party observed the
Sabbath, remaining at Washington.
Monday morning they came to
0pelousas in their special coach, and
were met at the Southern Pacific
depot by a host Of townspeople.
Carriages and buggies conveyed them
to the country a piece to view the
rice farm Of Messrs. Littetl & Robert.
They were enthused at the size OF
the large rice fields, covered with
the golden stalks laden with heavily
headed rice. Many of the visitors
took sheavas Of the rice. to take to
their far-aWay home.