The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1917-11-23
MECHANICAL. POWER, FROM
WHATEVER SOURCE, GREAT
LY NEEDED FOR SUCCESS
Food and Men Alone Cannot Win War
in Which the United States Gov
eminent is Now Engaged
IMMEDIATE DEVELOPMENT ALSO
LuTELY NECESSARY
Milford, Pa. Nov. 10. 1917

Milford, Pa, Nov. 10, 1917.
Special to the Ocala Banner,
The great war in which our nation
is engaged will be won not alone by
food and men, but by mechanical pow
er as well. Without mechanical pow
er we could not make or move the
weapons with which we fight-guns,
ammunition, ships and supplies. Our
national resources OF power, whether
from coal, oil, or water power, are ma
tional war necessities. We need them
to win the war.
In this gigantic struggle our secu--
ity requires us to use all these grea.
resources, and to use them wisely and
well. The people of the United
States own some fifty million unde-
veloped water horsepower, or about
enough to run every train, trolley,
factory, mill, mine and electric power
plant we have.
For ten years the friends of conser-
Walton have urged the development
Of public water powers in the public
interest But development has been
held back by little group of water
power magnates and their friends in
congress who have blocked all legis-
lation which would not give them
these valuable properties forever and
for nothing. 'y,sM
Today, when the nation needs all
its resources, the same men who have
been blocking reasonable water pow
er legislation own and are holding
millions of water horsepower undevel-
oped and out of use while clamoring
for more.
The time has come when such OBJ
struction threatens the nations safety
and success. We need the develop
ment of these powers in war even
more than in peace. At the coming
session of congress sound water pow
er legislation should be enacted as a
war measure, based upon principles
believe to be briefly as follows:
1. The thing to do with water pow
er is to develop it. Whatever retards
or restricts the development of public
water powers on terms fair to the pub
lie is against public policy and hostile
to the general welfare.
2. Water power belongs to the peo-
pie. The sites where it is produced
should always be held in public hands,
for only so can effective control in the
general interest be secured.
8. Where public development is not
desired, the right to use water power
sites should be leased for periods long
enough to permit sound, attractive
and profitable investment, but never
longer than fifty years. At the end
of each lease all rights should return
to the people who gave them.
4. In order to protect the consumer
against extortion, rates and service
should be regulated by federal author
ity when state or local authorities fail
to do so.
5. Reasonably prompt and com
plete development and continuous de-
velopment and continuous operation,
subject to market conditions, should
be required. Already millions of wa
ter horsepower are held out of use to
further monopoly by private corpora
tiens.
s. Corporations or individuals who
make money out of rights granted by
the people should share their profits
with the people.
7. The public has a right to COM
plete information about every bust
ness based on the use of public prop.
erty.
This is no time to give away public
assets necessary for the welfare OF
our people both in the war and after
the war; and we should no longer toll
crate the selfishness of private inter
ests which take the dog-in-the-manger
position that they must have these
water powers on their own terms, or
no one shall use them at all.
AS the president has said: .sThe SUI.
preme test of the nation has come. We
must all speak, act and serve togeth.
err"
Sincerely yours,
CLIFFORD PINCHOT.