The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1914-02-23
Commercial Va'ue Of the Hydro-Electric
Dam at keokuk
by Annual Meeting OF the Iowa En-
cheering Society at Council Bluffs February 90

be taken in the time devoted to the
entire subject here.
Man has learned IN Europe and is
learning in America, that factories
should be located near the sustenance
that the workmen must get from the
soil-that economy Of factory cost re-
quires that lowest cost OF living which
is possible when the factory operative
lives near the produce garden. That
is the basic reason that in the older
! countries, industrsalism has settled
down In the fertile valleys, as rule.
There is also reaction factor here,
of course. and one commercial result
iof the Keokuk water power will be
to greatly increase the market for food
raised by Iowa. Illinois and Missouri
farmers OF course. a secondary
betterment OF market conditions for
the farmers of the entire country.
The Dam and the Farmer.
| BY making the farmer more prosper
Gus, this water development at Keo-
kuk will increase the prosperity of
every body eIse-and so one might go
on for long time without exhausting
the study of the effects of this un-
precedented utilization of natural re-
sources for the good of mankind
! am reminded that the hands of
the clock are steadily moving, and
that must condense into a skeleton
/ framework the direct commercial
value of the Keokuk water power to
manufacturing in Iowa and the rest OF
1 its so-called power zone
Population changes have created a
condition of instability in the geo
graphy OF manufacturing in the United
States, in addition to other moving
factors of location Today the eastern
part of the country is reaching out to-
ward the western part of this great
nation for the market for its factory
products and reaching with an arm
that has been stretched almost too far.
Factories and market must get closer
together. Production must cease feed
ing consumption through long tube.
Half the people of the continental
United States are now in the Missis.
sippi Valley, and in a quarter of q
century this fraction will be greatly
increased. Manufacturers are begin.
ming to realize that they should get
closer to the mass of population
In the center Of this vast, consum.
ing mass In the Mississippi Valley the
Keokuk dam has been built to gener.
ate quantity of electric current sufa-
Gent to do more manufacturing than
is done in the state of Iowa today by
all prime movers, water wheels or
steam engines But aside from mar.
| ket, the important factors IN manufac-
turing are nearness to permanent sup
ply OF raw materials, facilities for
transportation, cheap power the econ
omtos OF electric power, and home
conditions for factory workmen. These
have not been named in order Of i'm
portance upon which opinions may
differ.
Rich In Raw Material.
| Iowa and the Mississippi Valley, es-
pecially the states around the Keo-
kuk dam, are rich in varied raw ma.
terials in very large quantities. There
! Is wonderful network OF railroads,
and this Keokuk water power is stu
ated where it will always have the
benefit of the effect of river transpor-
tation on freight rates, which is real
now, and promises to become greater
soon.
1t is not necessary to tell body of
engineers that water power can not
be developed and distributed for moth
| ing, and that an installation costing
! S25,000,000 must afford proper re-
turn, not only to cover actual operat-
ing costs, but also to care for depre-
citation and expense of expert manage.
naent, as well as reasonable return
on the capital required for SO vast a
development
/ Situated as 1t Is In the heart of one
Of the cheapest coal areas in the coun-
try. the fact that SO large a quantity
has already been sold and has already
replaced existing and expensive steam
plants is conclusive evidence that the
new electric power has met the com.
petition and at the same time has
brought not only low power rates but
also material advantages to all within
its sphere of influence.
More important than the price per
kilowatt, are the other economies in
electric power available to the manu-.
facturer which are about dozen n
number and subject more adapted to
a convention Of electrical engineers
I! perhaps
Making the Home Attractive.
i Much Importance la being attached
today by the manufacturer to the en-
i yironment OF his employees at home. A
man satisfied with his home becomes
a permanent empioye; the permanent
employe pays the largest profit on his
salary It goes without saving that