Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1912-03-15
WATER POWER.
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/ Continued from Page One)
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way and lighting corporations, and
eftentnnes, Ct banks as well. The
connections betweens such concerns he
regards of serious public significance.
The concentration of control Over va
! ter powers the commissioner declares
is exercised partly by direct ownership
| % stock but mainly through inter
| locking directorates
The rapidly increasing concentration
Of water power control about which
| The commissioner sounds q warning
MAY become. he SAYS the nucleus for
II monopoly OF both water ana steam
| power. Ii the water power cannot
| meet the entire demand of q given
| locality he points out that the own
ers can acquire auxiliary fuel plants
and handle water and fuel power over
| the same distributing lines and thus
a complete commercial power monopo-
| ~ might gradually be built up-in fact,
already exists in number Of COM
| munities.
Ten great groups of interests, with
| the General Electric Company as the
most powerful. are declared b. Com
missioner Smith to control or strongly
| influence about 50 per cent. of the
developed commercial water power of
the United States These ten groups
| themselves are more or less inter-re-
| lated with resultant growing conf
| munity of interests. In this eennec-
ton the commissioner report says.
IN this maze Of relationships,
| ranging from practically joint control
] dowf. 10 personal association IN com
mon direetorates. Is clearly revealed
| the drift of water power and public
utility corporations under the control
of few very powerful interests.
These connections, some stronger and
some weaker, suggest a favorable con-
ditioa for a very small number OF
men to consolidate very large inter
| ests whenever they may decide it TO
their advantage to do so This inter-
locking of interests through directors,
while not necessarily indicating d pur-
| pose of monopoly, certainly affords an
incentive and means to combination.
Mr.. smith. urging the immediate for
mutation Of a definite policy of de
veloping the remaining water power
sites on the public domain. recon-
merds, generally speaking that the
government retain the ultimate control
of theec sites. They should be deyel-
! oped at once, he declares. not only to
conserve the fuel supply OF the coun
| Try, but because they are fast pass
ing into private control 1t IS estl-
mated that the water power now used
| saves 32.900,0o0 tons of coal annually
and. Mr., Smith adds, the water power
resource Is not expended III its using
| The problem OF Development the
commissioner continues. cannot be
| soyed by fixing by law the selling
| price of water power by itself. which,
| in aHy event, will be controlled by the
| cost oil fuel power. Recognizing that
| the most efficient use of water power
| requires q considerable degree of uni
| fed control the commissioner makes
| this recommendation FOR tho develop
meHt r public gater powers.
Tine public can either develop and
operate the sites, selling the energy
| II market rates. or the public may
lease the sites at rental fairly rep
reseutine it, natural value. The
eomn siealeI fnvets the rental sys-
tenn.
Tho water power of tire country, de
yeloped aud practically capable OF
dew lopmont III fins time, probably
does not exceed 2a,oo0.ono horse power.
| Mr. smith SAYS Tho total developed
| water po1vei today is about GO00,0o
horsepower The total stationary pow
q used IN the United States-stean,
water and oasis probably over So
! o1o 041 horsepower
g,F al fft ~ &
| Investigations. found concentration of
| water powers, according 10 the report.
in three distinct phases. FIRST there
was a Capitalization of control in each
| lmp9rtant locality Secondly, large in
| terests Influenced a number of those
local concerns, and finally there was
| found q growing relationship among
the big interests
in California, six great power cor
poralions of which the most import
ant is the Pacific Gas & Electric Com
| pany (with 1889 horse powerl, to-
eathur control $4,000 horse power
over 50 per cent. OF all the developed
water UoWer in the state" Mr. Smith
says in discussing local concentration.
Ia Washington two companies con-
troll 2l0,Q00 horsepower, or about 20
| per cent, of all developed water pow
| er.
In South Carolina, the Southern
Power Company owns about 100000
horsepower or 70 per cent. of the total
commercially developed with $4,000
horsepower updeveloped.
In the southern peninsula of Mich
igan. the Commonwealth Power, Rail-
way and Light Company controls 81
600 horsepower or % per cent. of the
commercially developed, together with