The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1913-07-22
keokuk and Ito Possibilities.

coat as warm as 1t was last WedneS-
| day and hikes out of town on one of
| the swiftest trains running, 1t can be
put down that he is headed for some
place where he expects to enjoy him
self and where there will be knowl-
edge gained which will come in nigh
| ty handy in the future days That
was the way it was the past week
with the writer. 1t was case of the
Southern Iowa Editorial association
members having their summer meet
] ing at Keokuk, and the editorial I'VE"
who were not present missed whole
| lot of the fun which goes with the
game.
Keokuk Is scraggy old town.
/ There are many Of the Oldest build
ings and some way the men who own
them have failed to keep up with the
/ procession Keokuk is Just between
/ north and south, that is it is just far
j enough south to have sort OF lazy
and Indifferent feeling, and not far
enough north to have sufficient gin
ger TO get hustle on themselves and
erect better and more modern struc-
lures. Keokuk now has the oppor-
/ tnnity of the city's life. There Is
every reason to cause men to improve
their property. There are some de-
lightful residence lots and good bust
ness blocks could be erected on the
ground which is worth real money
I and on which stands some old ram
Y shackle of building They do not
/ seem to see these things
The liveliest thing about Keokuk
and which has caused the city to be-
come known the world over is the big
dam. That is one of the marvels of
the world. Hugh Cooper saw in the
value of the water more than hum
/ dreds OF men have seen In the value
of land. He brought about him men
of talent, and 1t should be said men
of talent in all manners. From the
legal end Of the game down to ac-
credited authors he has scattered
about in buildings The best man we
/ have ever seen in the publicity way
4 is G. Walter Barr, physician, surgeon.
author and man of all walks of life
who knows and who tells interesting
3ly of what he knows One day Mr.
Barr is entertaining bunch of coun-
/ try newspaper men and the following
he entertains and goes over the story
again with those from different coun-
tries who were sent here by their
governments to find out what this
wonderful man Cooper has done in
this wonderful new world. There is
probably more pleasure to Mr.. Barr
in entertaining the county newspaper
men. He is right at home with them
ard on two occasions when I have
been over the dam with him he has
taken the keenest delight in showing
to the editors every solitary thing in
connection with the work.
The work is even more than that
of the Panama canal for over where
they are building the Panama cana,
they have plans which have been
tried, while at the Keokuk works all
has come from study of the situation
and machinery has been placed in
position which even the government
officers were fearful to tackle. 1t IS
an entirely modern, up-to-date
new plant, working principles which
have never been tested before, but
which are now showing to the world
the wonderful fertility OF the brain
and Drawn which has been brought
to Keokuk. Every street car and
every light in st. Louis, lat miles
away, is now controlled by the Keo
kuk plant. One man sitting in a con
cete building at the huge works con
trolls every action with the electricity
which goes to st. Louis. Every two
and one-half miles between Keokuk
and St Louis is a station where tele
phone connection allows any warning
to be given to any point. Huge wires
run out from the main power station
at Keokuk. They cross the river and
, are carried on heavy poles the entire
147 miles. And you want to stop and
think that one man way back in Keo
kuk says by mere wire whether q
! street car motor in any OF the fac
, tories or any electric light shall turn
wheel.
A year ago ] was in Keokuk and al
, that time was on train and made
J the trip on a railway far beneath the
bottom of the Mississippi river The
, last time was there there
ty-five feet of water where the rail
: way track had been and this could
be raised seventy-ive feet more with
. the locks. The massive locks, the
: greatest of all engineering feats in the
matter of the power house with its
contents OF supplying electricity
which can be doubled that which is
now in use. 1t is a wonderful piece
of work One OF the seven wonders
, of the world should he crowded on,
, OF the way to make room for this
: I W0rl wi hoe boap Jnyo ,,,Io, ~. =