Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1918-09-24
IS new YORK WORTH WHILE,
fser Tremendous Wssfe 81 Power,
Tabor end Massrisl a Matter of
National CSncern.

Her Tremendous Wssfe 81 Power,
Tabor end Massrisa a Matter Of i
National cancern.
For hundred generations human
:ts has baraened Itself with toll ana
drudgery that nature stood ready to
perform, freely and efficiency, when
ever the harness was made ready Tor
her; ana, notwithstanding our much
heralded modern inventions, only an
insignificant part of our great natu-
raj reservoirs of power is being used
by us. f91E#a
Here ard there water has for gen
erations been allowed to turn the
wheels Of some little mill or factory
nut The enormous power Of our riv-
ers is even now almost entirely vast
ed. and the constant intellectually
great and universally available
mower of solar heat is still unused
by us, while the lives of many thou
sands of our people are being con-
samed il the ardueus labor of ex-
tracing from the bowels of the earth
vast quantities Of coal for power pur-
poses. Moreover, a very large per-
c4ntage Of this coal IS consumed by
our railroads in the transportation of
such fuel to 'manufs curing plants
and industries hundreds of miles dis
tant from the mines, thereby causing
;. hinge waste which could be almost
!. entirely saved by locating such in
G,,stries in the vicinity of our natu-
ral power resources or by converting
such power into electrical energy and
, transmitting it by cables to the
; POINTS where needed.
In the maintenance of a big city
like New York there is an enormous
waste due to the concentration OF mil
lions of PEOPLE at single point on
the earth's broad surface, far remote
e from all readily available sources OF
= ,cwer, without any regard for the
5 economic loss involved. Had the
d American people stopped to thini
n there could hardly have been such
: nonstrous economic biunder as New
. York City. with it's huge waste O.
5, human and mechanical energy, du'
" tc the fact that all of the coal ant
l. raw material needed by it's thousand:
y Of industries for power and othel
e manufacturing purposes, as we'll a:
/, ali Of the food, fuel and even thu
I, drinking water neededefor its people
must be brought from remote points
Then, too, New York City not onl!
lacks sufficient supplies of power
and raw material for it's industries
: and food for it's people, but it alst
n, lacks space in which to accommodate
d It's vast hordes Of humanity. The lit
. tie plot of ground into which its mil
y ;ons crowd themselves is hardly suf
j, Ecient for comfortable standing room
and is utterly Inadequate for neces
IS sary travelling, working, and living
/ purposes; consequently large num-
< ters of structures have been built
10 many stories into the air and also be
meath the ground, for use as dwell
ings, stores, offices, factories, etc., ant
: for this purpose immense quantitie
n of wood, stone, brick, iron steel ant
i other building supplies and equip
is ment have been consumed; likewise
- in order to increase, is far as pos
. sible, the city's utterly inadequatN
transportation facilities. many over
kcad and underground electric line:
. have been constructed---all of which
has greatly added to the enormou:
total of New York's waste.
The transportation of hundreds Of
o millions of tons of fuel, raw material
d machinery, food, etc, from far-dis
IS tant points to New York for manu-
d featuring purposes and the mainte
/ nance of its workers, and the re-trans.
d portation of the resultant Tanufac.
r TIRED products back over practically
: the same lines for purposes of distri-
t Luton ard consumption, seem al
X most as absurd and economically in
: Gefensible as it would be to grow
e grain for Cairo in the middle of the
e Sahara Desert and to transport the
necessary seed, water, food, agricul-
= taral implements, ETC.. by camel
through rhat great barren waste, in
stead OF growing the grain on the
:. banks Of the Me where it receives
necessary moisture through the nat.
ural rise and fall cf the water and
where seed and other supplies are
readily available.
Surely, conditions causing such
t1froo Llo