Idaho County free press. [volume] (Grangeville, Idaho Territory) 1886-current, 1916-08-31
CHEAP power VITAL
TO new INDUSTRIES
How Modern Business Depends
on Electrical Products.

In the recent discussion of the water
power problem in and out Of Congress,
public attention has been directed to-
ward the use and value of electricity
Tor motive power and for lighting, and
latterly, for the manufacture of fer
tillzers and nitric acid for explosives
But these are only few Of the grow
ing demands for cheap power.
| Today the great steel mills of the
United States are absolutely dependent
upon the products of the electric fur
mace for alloys. The automobile manu-
facturer is dependent upon another
electric furnace product-aluminum-
for car bodies. The manufacturers of
steel products need these materials for
making tools, and countless factories
require abrasives which can not now
be 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 beaches produced by this
magic element; every user of soap pa
tronizes an electro-chemical establish
ment, as does every user of matches.
Gold and silver mining Of the West re-
quires electric products to assure a
profit, and of late 1t Is learned that
the United States, cut off from its sup
ply 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. It's develop
ment, when encouraged by the passage
of such bills as are now before con-
gress, will make the United States In
dependent of foreign sources of supply
and will 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, an(
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 mos
steel manufacturers. with the result
? that the Bessemer process Is fast be
coming obsolete. The essential ele
3 ment In the manufacture of armo
plate and armor-piercing projectiles
) introduced into steel by ferro-chromt
UNI, an alloy which is strictly an cleo
: trio furnace product. The Navy De
o partment calls for this type of stee
g and will have no other as armor plate
t Without this alloy our battleships Q
t recent date would be at the mercy Q
a hostile fleet, and the shells fired b
e our warships and coast-defense gun
would be ineffective against the armo
of modern enemy fleet.
: Ferro-chrome another product of til
! electric furnace, has made possible tn
:. manufacture of high-speed tools, whic
e have tripled the capacity of every m;
d chine shop in the world, and enhance
t the efficiency of every mechanic.
Q has cut to one-third the capital inves
ed In tools to accomplish given vo
. = ume of work.
:, In the absence of chromium, tunl
4 stem, vanadium and molybdenum, a
< alloys made by electrical processes, ii
n United States could not build moder
h battle ships and other weapons of nj
n tional defense, and large proportio
70 of our steel and metal working indu
tries and other Industries would reye
G to the conditions of twenty years ag
n The electrical industry itself Is large
II dependent upon silicon steel, whie
). does not age and does not wear out.
= There is no manufacturer of autom
y biles but who is today heavily Deepen
{. ent upon aluminium. The making
It automobile bodies utilizes more of th
D electrically produced metal than do
|. any other line Of industry. The devs
le opment of aeroplanes also calls f
g aluminium, and only with the abunda
Is production of cheap water power CT
70 the price of aluminium kitchen utensi
be brought within the reach of eve
= housewife.
= At the outbreak of the European W
70 the United States was cut off from t
70 supply Of Greek and Turkish emer
e Today the metal working industries
N this country are dependent absolute
r upon electric furnace abrasives, CART
Re rundum and alundum. The manufa
Is turer of agricultural machinery, loo
motives, firearms, milling machineI
Is automobiles, and countless other met
products must have these abrasive
and they can now be made only whe
water power is developed cheaply. c
off the artificial abrasives and for