The Southern herald., 1910-12-09

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Of the big state Of Texas We think
We might try our hand in a little
epistolary way. When last We
used our ready pencil we were at
the new and future great Texas
city. We left that future great
seaport on the evening Of July IL,
reaching Houston about 6p. m,
same evening, leaving that city
that night at $40 over the H. a.
T. c. r. R., arriving in Dallas,
the morning of July 18th about
1870, spending that morning in
looking around, and arrived at
the Dam Site about 3 p. m. that
evening, and with very little ex-
cepuion have been here ever since.
We did take a little vacation about
Sept. 10, and took a trip down
the Trinity river to a dam lock
job having a promise Of more
cash for eight hours work at that
dam than Fred A. Jones was will
ing to give for ten hours at White
Rock reservoir. White Rock is
what this place is commonly
called, and is about six miles out
from Dallas, and we are building
what is known as White Rock
creek reservoir, and like every
thing in Texas, it's a big thing.
The dam is supposed to hold the
water OF White Rock creek for the
use of Dallas. We've long since
completed two big wells in the
side OF a pretty big hill, first dig
ging and blasting out a whaling
big hole in the hill side; blasting,
because after digging a few feet
we struck rock and had to use
dynamite. The wells are about
fourteen feet square and 40 or 90
feet deep, being built on rock
foundation with about Is inches
concrete floor or bottom to wells
sides or walls of wells are concrete
also. | do not know the holding
capacity of each well, as | have
been too busy to figure this out,
| The reservoir is supposed to hold
some water, but how much | am
also unable to say, but some 1900
o. $4,000 acres Of land will be
covered and will be 40 Ieet deep in
deepest part, as that is height OF
dam, which is 200 teet wide and
about 3-S of a mile long. The
main body of dam will be just
dirt cased on sides with concrete
slabs 6x10 inches thick and s or
10 feet long. Fred A. & Co.,, have
been figuring on furnishing this
work by March, but we are hav-
ing so many backsets, accidents
and breakdowns with some of the
uew-fangled dam building ma
chinery that it looks very much
Us tho they will not be able to
stop any of the spring rains, if
any, as it does not always rain
here, there having only been two
nice light rains since June. We
have two overhead cable warps
to carry the dirt from along the
creek bank to dam, one Of which
is in operation when it is not bro
ken down, They are rather pc
culiarly constructed machines,
, there being a tower Built on each
side of the dam go or 70 feet high,
and on a track just like a railroad
: only one tower has only one
rlil, the other having two, but we
are putting five heavy steel rails
under the one we are trying to
get in working order. One OF
these towers has a big steam boil
er, and about 100 tons Of other
: complicated machinery on it, Ul
/, at the top Of this tower is a very
f large wire cable, reaching to the
top OF cable tower on opposite site
Of dam. On this wire is a big
iron bucket, said to hold foul
: yards of dirt, Teach one some
+ smaller than your back yard }
This bucket is dragged along the
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