The Lexington intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1901-1949, 1913-08-22

Said Mississippi Valley Was
Wonderful Way Back in 1893.
GREAT G-CuTH SIHGE Then
Harvesting Of Mississippi at Ksokuk
Stimulates Development Of Entire
V~alley-Wonder Of Engineer
lns-OWclal Opening OF
keokuk Dam, August
26-27-28th.

Before Mark Twain made his trip up
the Mississippi river from New Or
leans to st. Paul, in 1882, little had
been written about that portion of the
river north OF st. Louis. Few writer's
who had written about the Mississippi
ever had been farther north than the
Mound City, and it was thought Of by
them as rather a barren region.
In this they were mistaken, wrote
Twain, for found an amazing re
gion, bristling with great towns, pro
jected day before yesterday, so to
speak, and built next morning. A
score Of them number 1900 to 5000
people. Then we have Muscatine, TO-
600; Winoua, 10000; Moline, 10000;
Rock lsleud, $4,000; La Crosse, 12,-
600, Burlington, 2 $1,000, Dubuque, 25,-
600; Davenport, 10000; St. Paul, 49,
600; Minneapolis, 10000, and up
wards
That was 30 years ago. The COM
bined population of the cities enumer-
ated was 252. 900, in contrast to the
census of 1910, which showed 1885,
coo. In 1898 st. Paul and Mlnneap-
oils had a combined population Of 800,
900; in 1913 the twin cities are est.
mated to have $500 population,
Mark Twain made no mention Of
Keokuk, la, but if he were to travel
up the river by steamboat today, Keo-
kuk would be impressed on his mind
more than any other city, 1t is
across the Mississippi at hat
point that the greatest engineering
project the west has ever known is
now in operation, a $4,000, 900 power
development dam, sending out 200.
600 electric horsepower over trans
mission. lines that extend as far south
as ST. Louis, approximately l75 miles
away.
The entire project will be dedicated
August 26, 27 and 2S, with the govern
ors OF Iowa, Illinois and Missouri in
attendance, as well as a number Of
officials from the national capital. In
connection with he dedication, the
Mississippi Valley Power Boat asso-
citation will hold It's annual race re-
gatta at Keokuk.
But Keokuk Is not the only point
on the river that has ~prospered since
the day Mark Twain wrote his Life
on the Mississippi" The entire val
ley has had a phenomenal growth. For
one thing 1t is rich. With white pine
forests and minerals at the north, corr
and wheat In the intermediate section,
and cotton, sugar cane and yellow pine
In the south, the valley has unpar.
alleled natural resources, sufficient to
support millions more in population.
But perhaps the greatest esour
OF all is that offered by the Mississippi
riVer-water power. Keokuk, favored
by nature for the development Of such
a mighty project as has just been com
pleted there, was the first to take ad-
vantage of the opportunity.
The Mississippi as a source Of pow
er, Is much more valuable than a
public highway. The development and
utilization Of that power may mean
as great a growth Of that section in
the next 40 years as has occurred in
the last 40 years.
A portion Of this vast power is now
being utilized at Keokuk. The pow
er there developed is exceeded only
by the total in three states in the
Union. 1t is several times greater
than that developed in the state of
Colorado. What such a development
means has been graphically described
by a recent writer in the Independent,
as follows:
Experience cs-efdlly colIated
shows that each horsepower by a wa
ter wheel supports Ave people; the
factor Of Ave is rather remarkably CON
slant. II ~two-thirds Of the SHAFT de-
yeiopment Of the Mississippi river
@Ss- = ==sS - manufacturing, II
vin furnish saEtenanaa TO a m.liea