The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1913-08-28
keokuk's Dream Realized.

congratulations.
keokuk's Dream Realized.
Muscatine Journal: Muscatine and
many other Iowa cities have sent dele
cations to swell the crowds which to-
day swarm the streets OF Keokuk in
honor of the formal opening and dedi-
cation of the great dam across the
Mississippi river which Is turning the
resistless power of the Father Of Wa
tiers to the work of puny man. Every
city In the state joins In extending
to Keokuk its congratulations upon
this happy realization of Keokuk's
great dream.
!! What the dam is to mean to Keo-
kuk and to Iowa and the whole Mis-
sissippi valley can only be guessed at
now. 1t may mean far more than the
most enthusiastic optimists expect.
Its actual benefits may be less than
those SO confidently anticipated. But
1t Is not to be doubted for moment
/ that the formal opening of the big
power project marks the beginning OF
!. a new era In the northern Mississippi
valley, and signalizes the advent of
what must prove a vital factor in the
] future commercial and Industrial de-
velopment of the river cities and the
surrounding territory, at least from
st. Louis to Clinton or Dubuque
While yet uncertainty surrounds
the actual results and effects Of tn
presence of this river-made power ~
commercial factor In this territory,
all uncertainty about the realization
of the long-treasured dream of
power dam at Keokuk is past. Long
/ before the civil war, Robert E. Lee,
then young engineering officer in
the United States army, made sur
veys of the river at Keokuk, and In
| his report to his superiors discussed
the possibility of a power plant such
as Is now an accomplished fact The
clear-seeing young engineer declared
that some day in the future such
plant would be built. but he placed
the realization much farther in the
/ future than the present day. Through
! long years Ksokuk dreamed of the
/ power plant that was to make her
rich, prosperous, leader among cit
les. But the years passed and no
dam was built, no towers of masonry
arose from the river, and her heart
grew sick with hope long deferred.
When at last work was begun, nearly
all Of Keokuk was skeptical. The
] arhaoc re 6rct prork dapo nm tho MT
nois shore only aroused laughter
skeptical laughter, in Keokuk But
as time passed and the work kept on
growing in scope and volume and
purpose with every passing day. skep-
/ ticism was succeeded by hope, hope
i by confidence and at last confidence
by certainty.
1t was because Keokuk never ceas-
ed to dream its dream that at last
the dream became an actual accom-
plished fact of vast, grim mountains
of concrete and masonry. Governor
Dunno spoke with truth at Keokuk
yesterday, when he said: The dam
which you will dedicate tomorrow is
monument to the genius OF Hugh l..
Cooper and is none the less a monu-
ment to you people of Illinois who
stood back OF Mr.. Cooper while he
was promoting the project" And the
Illinois executive might have added.
And who by their faith and their
dreams prepared the way for Mr..
Cooper and his genius to promote the
project"
4 Even the most kindly friend OF
KeokuS must admit that that city
owes wonderful debt to Mr.. Cooper.
Keokuk had its dreams and through
, many years made earnest II futile eff.
, forts to realize them. But 1t came In
time to dream too much and do too
little. The whole lesson OF Keokuk's
experience is that dreams. be they
mems or cities, are not to be de
| spised. Yet neither should cities oil
, men be content with their dreams
alone, waiting somnolent, for their
dreams to take on solid form and
substance.
Hugh Cooper came to Keokuk and
Keokuk's dream became fact But
If 1t had not been this Hugh Cooper,
1t would have been another one. Sc
great dream was destined for reali
cation some day. He who by actual
vision or ? his minds eyes review
] the gala evc~ n Keokuk today will
! scarcely dare in the future to SCOT
at dreams or dreamers. When dream
: ing is accomplished by folded arms
it may arouse our Impotence. but the
really big idea may take on the sub
stance of accomplishment too quickly
to make scorn or ridicule directed at
those who hold IT, anything but dan.
gerous boomerangs.
Then and Now.
Cedar Rapids Gazette: A Norwegian
| hr. ~ A