The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1911-09-21
Interesting Story Of
The Great Warsaw Dam

Mote The following story by a spe
cial contributor to The Gate City i,
one way of telling of the big win.
dam recently completed by the gov
eminent at Warsaw, I'LL
Dam Is Completed.
Yesterday came the announcement
of the completion of the great dan
across the Mississippi river at War
saw, Ill. Conceived and carried for
ward in a quiet, almost secretive man
ner. many people in this vicinity die
not know that such project, rivalins
the more widely advertised dam still
but half completed at keokuk. was
even contemplated. However astound
ing as the news is, such is the case.
Our special correspondent who was
sent to Warsaw to investigate an un
confirmed rumor of some such work
cables back that not only is the re
port of the dam building there cor
rect, but that the dam itself is practi
cally completed. Humiliating as it is
we citizens of Keokuk must admi,
that Warsaw has put one over on
us in the matter of dam building.
A full description of the Warsaw
dam, together with a brief summary
of its varied uses and the great re
suits expected therefrom by the citi
zens of Warsaw, has also been re
ceiyed from our special correspon.
dent.
OF Beaveroid Type.
The dam itself is of the "Beaveroid
type, consisting of alternate layers OF
stone and cut willows, interspersed
with the river sand and mud-an ad.
agitation of the type used by the earli-
est dam builders of the world-the
beaver; hence the name. While sim
pie, this type admits OF great rapidity
in constitution, as is evidenced by
the fact that the Warsaw dam has
taken only about eight weeks to com.
plete, while its rival across the river
at Keokuk, of the 'monolithic" type,
has already been in course of CON
struction over a year, and will neces
state two years more before compile
ton.
In the construction of the Warsaw
dam, the work was carried on from
both shores toward point In the mid
die of the river. This method, while
apparently correct in theory, worked
out id very peculiar manner, and at
first seemed to threaten failure to the
entire project. For it was discovered
that the work on the dam from the
Missouri side progressed about three
shore, and developed an uncontroll-
able tendency to curve down stream.
When all the available material for
construction was used up, the Mis-
souri, side had been pushed forward
three-fourths of the way across the
river, while the Illinois branch had
only reached one-fourth of the dis
lance, and the two ends did not meet,
thus leaving a narrow opening
through which a certain amount of
water still escaped
6ig Gap in Dam.
This gap would have been fatal In
any other than the Warsaw dam. If
it had not been for the ingenuity of
those in charge-but the causes which
prevented the entire closing of the
dam are SO remarkable as to demand
an explanation.
Below the dam site, on the Illinois
shore. is beautiful white structure
that at first sight looks like a renovat-
ed castle on the Rhine, but which on
closer inspection proves to be a pro-
ducing plant of a DEMONSTRATING bey-
erage extracted from malt and hops.
So great was the attraction of this
beautiful place to the men engaged
on the dam, that it beckoned to those
opposite on the Missouri side. as Nee.
ca to the wandering pilgrims. and
urged them to redoubled efforts.
which accounts not only for the great
progress made on that side, but also
for the DETECTION of their end of the
dam down stream in the direction of
the castle. Likewise, the workers on
the Illinois shore, having to go away
from the castle, were retarded by nu.
merous backward glances and pill
grimages and not only made less pro-
gress but were unable to watch the
approaching work from the Missouri
side, thus falling to make a proper
connection of the two parts OF the
dam.
Special Diet Used.
Still another peculiar influence of
the white castle on the men engaged
in this work, was noticeable in their
diet. We have heard of the Oxford
crew who won their race over Cam
bridge through restricting their diet
to eggs, and of the hero Perseus, who
ON his trip across the Libyan desert
fed only on grasshoppers-but these
humble but doughty heroes who
built the Warsaw dam proved even
more abstentious-m many of them, we
are told, having subsisted for weeks
at time entirely on the health-giv-
Ing beverages of malt and hops Sc
cured at the castle. This certainly