The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1918-01-08
EF0KUK POWER
| WOULD SAVE MUCH
Energy From Dam Here That e
wasted Would Run All Plants in
St. Louis, According to
post Dispatch.
kAvE MUCH COAL DAILY
so,,.h $4,000 Tons Could be Con-
carved and,>coo Cars Per Day
Released for Other
Service.

rha Ct Louis Post Dispatch OF sun
-, Savotes a couple of columns TO
Wy .sns 10 the effect that Keokuk power
hst,s wasted would supply all on 81.
n n,';s, needs. The article claims that
coal saving would be $4,000 tons
a y month and would release 200 ears
NJ. trhe article which is written
staff correspondent of the Post
F,isnatch is reproduced here:
II the full power OF the Misslsslp p,
r,var which is passing through Inc
yonderful Keokuk dam were USED IN
he generation Of electricity 70 the
ranaeity of the power plant, the en-
ire electrical requirements OF ST.
ouis could be met without burning
AL ounce Of coal
Instead, two1thirds OF the mighty
rower OF the largest OF American
r,yers flows wastefully through the
Unused gates, doing nothing at
lime when every resource OF the ma
zion is being called upon for help In
ma country's emergency.
1900 Ton Coal Saving Daily.
CAPACITY use of the resource which
nature and engineering skill placed
almost at the door of st. Louis would
imam the saving of 1.500 tons OF coal
,,ch tiay. or $1,000 tons each month,
and would mean that at least zoo
coal cars used between the Illinois
mines and ST. Louis industries would
he released to serve the nations mu-
Nnitions plants, to convey coal to the
Iseaboard, to keep the stream of sol
oilers moving to the battle front and
l 10 furnish the power for the United
Estates navy.
The Keokuk dam was completed
lin 1918 through free grant by the fed
Ieral government to private capital.
lists, who pay nothing for the rights
lthey enjoy. Through its gates the
mississippi river pours water sui
Ificient TO generate 100000 horse pow
Ter of electricity. The amount gener,
lated never has exceeded $4,000
third OF capacity.
/ When the dam was constructed,
engineers laid plans for the ultimate
use of all the power which could be
generated by 1t. but they provided
Hull mechanical equipment for only
half the capacity. Fifteen general
|iIg units were installed, and founda-
|tions laid for fifteen additional units
Ito be Installed, the engineers explain,
when the demands on the plant jusu-
fled the expenditure of the money
necessary to buy the machinery and
build up the walls of the plant around
1T.
Purely Question Of Desire.
The use of the plant to capacity,
therefore, is not question OF avail
ability OF power, but becomes purely
|a question of desire on the part OF
those controlling the electrical indus
|iry of the vicinity of st. Louis, and
the financing Of the completion OF
fhe plant.
The Union Electric Light and Pow
er Co., since the opening Of the Keo.
kuk dam. has expended several mil
lion dollars in additional steam gen.
Grating machinery in its Ashley
street plant. and there has been no
aegotiation on it's part to obtain ad.
litional current which the dam so
Easily could supply Charles S. Ruff
yer vice president and general man
Eyer OF the Union company, in testi-
hony recently before the Missouri
pubic service commission, took the
position that there was no additional
[neoKuk power available for his com.
pany, saying:
me Quantity of hydro-electric pow.
II available from the Mississippi
liver is limited and no more can be
|sold than is available. We have pur.
|cnased all of that hydro electric pow
III which we can obtain and we have
|ulsposed of all that which we have
purchased.
many have drawn from this state
- snent the conclusion that all the pow
- which the Mississippi river would