The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1910-04-15

up. the river will flow through the
first half of the dam. In fact. the
water will be allowed to flow through
the dam i'm this manner until it is
completed. When everything is in
readiness, next winter, the openings in
the deck will be closed, and the wa
ter will naturally ascend the dam un-
til it reaches the chutes. through which
it will rush down into the generators.
Then the work of manufacturing cleo
tricity will have begun, and one of the
greatest engineering and commercial
enterprises of southern Minnesota win
have been completed.
Tins far. as stated, the work has
been entirely preliminary, although
Us men and dozen teams are at
work. The work has been delayed by
the slownesS of the machinery To ar
rive There is 100000 worth of ma
chinery on the way now, all of it hav
ing been shipped, and some of it hav
ing arrived. The rest is expected at
any time. The men and teams have
been employed i'm clearing both banks
and niger heads, moving i'm what ma
chinery has arrived, constructing build
ings. and excavating for the founda-
ton i'm the east side.
Gathering in Niggerheads.
The big stone crusher arrived yester-
day, and will be used to crush up
the niger heads that abound i'm the
river bed. All of these will be used
for distance of two or three miles
up and down the river. clearing the
bed entirely. They make the very
best material for making concrete con
struction. They will be crushed up in
to small pieces and mixed with the
cement. and will make an indestruct-
ible wall. even stronger than some of
those constructed in the days of an
Gent Rome. that are lasting to this
day. Niggerheads that are too big TO
be moved bodily will be dvnamited
and the fragments brought Several
teams are engaged now in collecting
these bouders. and great piles of
them are being erected where the
crnsher will be stationed. When the
concrete work begins, it is estimated
that $50 yards day will he laid,
and that $4,000 yards i'm all will be
laid. The cement has not yet ar
rived.
Machinery Slow to Arrive.
The derricks have just come. and the
timbers for the cabeways, or else
things would have been moving faster
before this. Two steel cables are to
be stretched across the river. over the
dam, to move concrete and steel and
timbers quickly. Eacn will carry i'm
mense loads, on suspended ears. Two
huge derricks will be used. also. Two
boilers have arrived. to be used for
the cable way derricks and the boiler
feed pump, but the smaller ones have
not yet arrived. for the hoist engines.
etc.
a generator is to be put in at the
old mill. to be operated by the water
wheels at the mill. to supply electric
lights. The entire valley is to be
lighted up at night with are lights. so
that the workmen can work as well
and fast as in the day time. and per-
haps faster, as it will be cooler
Engineer Witherell has moved the
site for the dam l25 feet up stream
since he arrived. which makes it bet
ter for the road leading to the bridge
ever the dam. and it is a better site
for the dam. also. He states that work
is proceeding fairly well, but as soon
as it gets well under way it will pro-
ceed Il great deal faster
Big Lake to Be Made.
When the dam Is completed and
the basin filed, the lake will extend
back a considerable distance above the