The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1909-03-20

been presented q the 1iEtorF 81 ~
srzuasc engineering Blu. the impos-
sitle Was accomplished. the naystsr-
ious vsgarias Of the Mississippi we're
AL sosred, the yards OF red tape aiia
the conservative microscopic scrutiny
Of shs war department were both pas
SD and disentanglsd- and nnally
every detail plan Eas In the blue print
form or sheets OF paper that them
selves woaad reach across the Miss
tsssppi river
That coagTess Is cranky in the OPP
inicn Of some very good people. but
congress passed bill after bin to per
mil this biggest OF Mississippi river
projects to be- built entirely BIZ pirate
capital Every body along the upper
river helped accomplish this II is the
oniF Kay Dubuque can keep her big
steel boat building plant; il viii
double the size Of Burlington and
other 7drer cities: ii viii improve aavi-
sation In way better understood b.
steambcasmen than resolutions and
conventions. The war department
sent board of engineer officers 10 re-
port upon The effect Of the big dam
upon navigation; this board held sev-
eral Sessions after advertisement and
heard many Witnesses: the chairman
said that he had served on many such
boards and this was the first time that
il seemed impossible 10 develop any
opposition 10 2 given project
This situation Vas result Of
propaganda and q campaign Of sdnca-
TON which lasted for several years
without ceasias. directed upon sxactlF
fhe right people and carefully kept
from The world and The newspapers
The trouble most feared vas the dit
Erulty IN getting an engineer com
psfsnt for such q record breaking
work. and the obtaining Of capital 10
! the extent OF about 81 fsI,s. 600 TO build
IL But what vas feared most turalo
+ out 10 be- most fortunately planned b.
the tatss
For chief engineer there wss Sc
cured Hugh L Cooper He Is the man
who built the greatest and most dar-
! ing electrical installation al Niagara
with it's tailrace opening under the
middle Of tie curtain Of the falls; he
was called With four Others by the
British government 10 disgniticate the
Assam dam IN the Nile and 10 pre-
scribe . cure: ne dropped the work
here as Keokak for few weeks while
he made quick trip 10 Japan al the
/ Investigation OF the imperial govern
meat al Toxic TO be consulted about
some big piece of engineering there:
/ he has built scores Of hydro-elec1rical
power plants previously considered
impossible He has made plans for
the big keokuk dam that are satisfact-
DRY 10 himself. the chief engineer o.
The war department, and TO the CAPT
talists for whom his figures are tbs
last word upon any commercial en-
cheering proposition In short bolt
troubles tina. we're feared dissolved
into glorious fortune when Hugh L
Cooper telegraphed from Wall stree
that he would come right out 10 keo
kuk. He came. saw, conquered
thousand obstacles, and has don
things without any fuss or feathers
The whole thing is still in the nam
: of the keokuk and Hamilton Wate
Power company which will transfe
its rights as soon as the capitalist
: who will succeed it desire This is
!, local corporation composed of scor
: OF men of keokuk and Hamilton an
? every one leading citizen engage
/ in banking. manufacturing, iobbin
: and other vocations requiring bus
ness acumen. 1t was organized purel
: for the good of the cities of keoku
s and Hamilton and has not and will NJ
: profit dollar for its strenuous wor
r nov in the stage of fruition Not
e dollar has been asked outside Keoku
q and Hamilton for the expense of II
: promotion of the project now con
7 pleted
The greatest dam in the world e.
I cept that in the Nile: the largest cleo
: rical installation in America save onl
Z Niagara: the greatest engineerin
feat ever accomplished on the Mis-
) issippi rirer-tilese three things /
4 one have been worked out here $
4 quitelF that practically nothing hs
8 been printed about them heretofor
= Eren last October. when. 10 the su
2 prise Of the principal host, the eli
e Of Saint Louis President Roosevelt
r the thirteen governors and the 9th,
'e notabiss gathered here in Keokuk
= begin the pilgrimage down the Mis-
issippi. il did not leak out that II
real dsusex maehina was the big Ke
kuk dam. the site of which was o
e. served by the President and all Il
IN river commission and committee wi