Evening star., 1916-08-13
WATER POWER BILL
IS LIKELY TO FAIL
Senate and House Conferees
Deadiocked on Three In
portant Points.
IMPROVEMENTS HELD UP
BY DELAYS IN CONGRESS
Many Development Projects Wait
Only on Sanction of Federal
Government.

There seems to be very little chance
for the enactment of the much-dis-
| cussed water power bill' at this ses-
sion of Congress, because Of the Diff
ference Of opinion between the con-
ferees representing Senate and House
of Representatives on three vital
points. There has been no water
power legislation affecting navigable
streams for several years, and during
that lapse of time many of the larger
navigable rivers of the country have
been chosen by various water power
development concerns as likely streams
on which to build huge dams to raise
millions of horsepower of electric
power to run untold trains, and drive
untold factory wheels and light untold
cities and towns. All these water
power developers are clamoring at the
doors of Congress for the passage of
an act which will put these water
power companies to work, and the re-
suit has been the two water power
bills-one by the House and the So
called Shields bill in the Senate. Each
body has passed its own bill and now
comes the deadlock.
Three Snags in Way.
The conferees between the two houses
have practically Strengthened out all
differences except these three immova-
BILE snags:
The first one is the Sherley amend
ment to the House bill allowing the
Secretary of War to fix the charges
and change them from time to time
on the various projects to be con-
structed on the navigable streams of
the country The Senate will not ac-
cept this amendment
The second is the amendment by Rem
resentative Esch of Wisconsin, giving
the Secretary of War the power to
call upon the constructors of the dams
at any time to place additional locks
In the dams. The Senate argues that
this would put a damper on possible
investments in water power projects,
because of the uncertainty Of the thing
The House replies that the Secretary
OF war should be given the right to
keep the streams navigable and that
this power should be granted The
House bill permits the concern to make
It's charges for power on the amount of
the end of fifty years allows it to get
PACK from the government such money
Tor locks as it has spent.
House Jealous of Power.
The third difference is the Senate in
sistence that the Secretary of War
should be allowed to grant permits in
stead of Congress. The House thinks
that the people of the country should
have the say" as to what concerns
should be granted monopolies in water
power and insists that a separate act
of Congress be written on the statute
books for each concern allowed to dam
navigable stream for hydro-electric
purposes.
Already we have lost our heritage
as nation in the coal. gas, oil, timber
and mineral lands with which we were
so bountifully blessed" said Repre-
sentative John Esch of Wisconsin in
discussing the water power question
These are already in private owner
ship or in the control of syndicates with
the right to exact such prices as they
see Mt. Water powers constitute the last
of our great natural resources still
within government control. The lessons
of the past and our experiences result
ing from our profigate policy with
reference to our other natural re-
sources ought to make us resist to the
utmost any effort that would deprive
the government of any of it's rights in
connection with the development OF
water power. We have no right to rob
the next generation of it's rightful in
heritance. We have no right to trans
NIT to it a natural resource whose
ownership in private hands may prove
burdensome and oppressive"