The Grangeville globe. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho) 1907-1922, 1916-11-09
CHEAP POWER VITAL
70 new INDUSTRIES
Nou Modern Business Depends
On Electrical Products.

ward the use aAu s"AuC VA CAcSbAiSlty
~ motive power and for lighting, and
,stterly. for the manufacture of fer
,lIxers and nitric acid for explosives.
M, these are only few of the grow
Iur demands for cheap power. as--'
Today the great steel mills of the
rn,ted states are absolutely dependent
mon the products Of the electric fur
maze for alloys. The automobile manu-.
,scturer Is dependent upon another
eleetric furnace product-aluminum-
far car bodies. The manufacturers of
steel products need these materials for
making tools, and countless factories
reouire abrasives which can not now
he imported, and which are produced
in the United States only by electric
processes Without acetylene gas and
graphites, also electric products, many
industries would be crippled.
Turning to the products of electro
chemistry, 1t is found that the surgeon
and the doctor look to electric plants
FOR chloroform and disinfectants; the
cotton and the paper manufacturer
need the bleaches produced by this
magic element; every user of soap pa
tronises an electro-chemical establish
ment as does every user of matches.
Cold and silver mining of the West re-
ouires electric products to assure a
pront. and of late 1t Is learned that
the United States, cut off from its sup
Div Of German dyes, finds itself de-
pendent upon other electric products
to supply, in part, the deficiency.
These are but few of the Industries
depending upon cheap power for sue
cess. The power is here. Its develop
ment, when encouraged by the passage
Of such bills as are now before con-
gress, viii make the United States In
dependent of foreign sources of supply,
and win reduce the cost to the consum-
er of countless articles Of everyday
use which, to his mind, are probably In
no way associated with hydro-electric
development.
The manufacture of steel is the great.
est of all American Industries, and
better steel is made in electric fur
naces than by any other known proc
ess. Today electrically produced ferro-
silicon Is used as an alloy by most
steel manufacturers. with the result
that the Besserher process is fast be.
coming obsolete. The essential ele.
ment in the manufacture of armor
plate and armor-piercing projectiles is
Introduced into steel by ferro -chromi-
um, an alloy which is strictly an cleo
tric furnace product The Navy De-
partment calls for this type of steel,
and will have no other as armor plate.
Without this alloy our battleships of
recent date would be at the mercy of
hostile feet, and the shells fired by
our warships and coast.defense guns
would be ineffective against the armor
Of modern enemy feet.
Ferro-chrome, another product of the
electric furnace, has made possible the
manufacture of high-speed tools, which
have tripled the capacity Of every ma
chine shop in the world. and enhanced
the efficiency of every mechanic. 1t
has cut to one-third the capital invest
ed In tools to accomplish a given vol
ume Of work.
In the absence of chromium, tung
stem, vanadium and molybdenum. all
alloys made by electrical processes, the
united States could not build modern
battle ships and other weapons of ma
nonal defense, and q large proportion
q our steel and metal working indus
trles and other industries would revert
% the conditions of twenty years ago.
inc electrical industry itself is largely
dependent upon silicon steel, which
aoes not age and does not wear out.
There is no manufacturer of automo-
oles but who is today heavily depend
ent upon aluminium. The making of
automobile bodies utilizes more of this
eectrically-produced metal than does
any other line of industry. The devel-
Opment Of aeroplanes also calls for
aluminium, and only with the abundant
PRODUCTION of cheap water power can
.ne price OF aluminium kitchen utensils
oe brought within the reach of every
housewife.
AT the outbreak of the European wal
tne United States was cut off from the
supply OF Greek and Turkish emery
Today the metal working industries OF
'nls country are dependent absolutely
upon electric furnace abrasives, carlo,
1undum and alundum. The manufac
'urer OF agricultural machinery, loco
mouves, firearms, milling machinery
automobiles, and countless other metal
pfoducts must have these abrasives
anu they can now be made only where
Mater power is developed cheaply. Cut
w the artificial abrasives and force
.ue automobile manufacturer to GO
uacK to the grindstone. at the same
.me eliminating the other products OF
saeap power = aluminium. high-speed
s'eeL and special steels-and works
Anich produce 800 ears per day would
e able to turn out less than 100 cars
very twenty-four hours with the same
.orce OF workmen. This would NEAR
~ increase of price that would carry
ne automobile beyond the reach OF
thousands who now pmnloy and enjoy