Evening star., 1915-03-29

here have been reduced from six feet to
thirty inches. The thickness of their
walls has been correspondingly In
creased. for the taller the column OIL
water the greater its pressure. Where
the pipes emerge their walls are six
inches thick and of good wrought steel
The water in the great pipes is di-
vided into smaller streams. Each of
these Is led
Water Is Led into tur
Into Turbine Wheels. '.ne mne,a =, j..
directed against the little cups that
set that mechanism to work. Each ap-
plies a pressure of 900 pounds to the
square inch on those cups, and II Is
the business of the machine to convert
that power into electricity. y mans
hand thrust into this stream would be
torn from his body. If one should at
tempt to cut il with an AK that tool
would not penetrate the stream quar-
ter of inch before 1t would he
broken from it's handle and the WELD
ers arms dislocated
This little power house on the edge
of continents rim thus changes the
mysterious thing, electricity. After this
power Is generated it Is passed through
the converters and transformers and
put in the proper shape for transmits
sion. Fifty thousand horsepower is
here converted into electricity. A few
thin copper wires carry it over the
mountains to Mexico City. There it
pulls 800 modern street cars that fur
nish transportation for city greater
than Washington. 1t lights that ro-
mantle structure. the Palace of Cha
pultepec, and the somber front of the
Sacriffcisl stone, most treasured relic
of the national museum. 1t has brought
a flood of light where once police
mans lantern was the only competitor
to the little square lights that were
hung out of second-story windows to
keep away the evil spirits
But the tourist who visits NecaNa is
to have some very unusual experiences
in getting about the place. This is
truly the region of perpendicular dis
tances. When he has finished his in
spection of the great dam and reser-
voir the method of getting to the
power house is full of thrills. He has
got to get down that 1900 feet. He
follows his guide and is led out upon
platform. Presently this begins to
move and is swung clear of the ground.
crane describes a half-circle with its
arm and the platform is swung out into
the open. The same thing has happened
to it that you have seen happen to
swinging clear of wall of a building
in course of construction. The platform
is suspended in midair and let down
over cliff. There is "A preliminary
drop of $50 feet. 1t is followed by an
other of $50 feet. The platform swings
down into the eternal shade of the cliff
side, among the ferns that cling to it,
past the birds that nest on its sides,
parallel with the waterfall that is
blown out like veil and drunk up by
the wind before it reaches the bottom.
1t is no mean experience in transporta-
tion.
Yet this is but one of the thrills ad-
ministered by the engineers at NecaXa.
One may go down to the power plant
by the drop over the precipice and re-
turn through the bowels of the noun
tain. The tunnel which accommodates
the water pipes in their trip through
solid rock is of sufficient size that a
tiny track has been laid in it and a
most peculiar car for the accommoda-
tIon of passengers is hauled over that
track by cable
The car is not more than two feet
high and will accommodate three or
four passengers. who are required to
lie fat Then a lid is put on. SO that
the nervous passenger may not put up
his head and have it knocked off by
contact with the top of the tunnel.
Among the force at Necaxa this car is
called the coffin When it starts on
its way it mostly stands on end The
passenger is plunged into abysmal
darkness. He realizes that his only
companions in this tunnel are the pipes
which contain the water that is under
such intense pressure. His only chance
of getting out is the cable that pulls
him. He wonders what would happen if
the cable broke or a pipe burst
Arriving again on the level of the
dam, some one inquiries about the pos
sibilitics of get
Bungalow Village ting luncheon. The
on the Heights. ,hare 1u.re Is ' c,mn. .
house In the village in which the men
responsible for this enterprise live.
The village is at the top of the hill that
rises at one end of the dam. Here,
again, in this land of perpendiculars,
arises the question of transportation.
1t is solved by the descent of a bucket
such as are used in lowering workmen
into mine. In this new adjunct to
up-and- down travel the visitor is lifted
to the top of mountain where he
discovers bungalow village of very
American appearance. There are II
score of homes here, for the men who
have families. and a clubhouse for the