Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1920-01-26
WATER POWER
LEG|SLAT ION
News Comes Again That
Water Power Legisla-
y ton Will Pass
lA Congress.
IS AN OLD STORY
Total Water Power Capac-
ity is 6O,7O0,OOO Horse
ss power.
Al
BY j. E. JONES,


the news comes from the capital of tn
United States that water power legisla
ton lis going to pass" For dOZel
years the public has been fed on prom
ises that something will be DONE" II
the last congress bill which had thu
support Of both the house and the sen
ate was tilibustered to its death il
the latter body, by that tireless talker
Mr.. LeFollette of Wisconsin.
The total capacity of all wafer pow
er sites in this country has been est
mated by the department. of agriculture
at 60,7OO000 water horse power. on.y
ten per cent of which has been develop
ed. 1t further appears that 7.2 per
cent Of the available wafer horse pow
el' of the United States is so situated
as to require federal permits for its
development, and that mere DIS per
cent is so situated as to he capable OF
developing under private ownership
and control. Several years ago iron
bound regulations concerning federal
permits were provided by congress, aud
the result has been that private CAPT
tai has not been venturesome enough
to tackle the problem of water power
development. Conservation. as prescrib-
ed in the days when Ballinger and Pin
chot entertained the country with their
quarrels. has stood so straight that 1t
has bent. over backwards. The coal
mines and oil fields which have had to
provide the fuel for the United States
have not kept up with the industrial de-
velcpment of the country. cessation
of coal mining for a short time-as IL
Illustrated recently-strikes terror to the
public Railroads must curtail their
passenger and freight business. steam
boats are restricted in the coaling OF
their bunkers. and manufacturing
plants are compelled to operate on part
time or suspend entirely. In normal
times we find that the public utilities
of the country are forced to struggle.
with the problem Of meeting the high
cost of living. largely because OF the
increase in the cost of power that Isl
necessary for their operation.
While the world is being made safe
for democracy, and new ideals are be-
ing beautifully supplied for the bettn'.
ment of the human mind, the remedy
that every one knaWs exists for clrfag
lot of unidealstic ills in the indus
trial system has not been applied be-
cause of the absence of the cooperation
OH the part of the federal government.
which for years has side-tracked the
development of the cOuntry's water
powers. The printed speeches made up
on this subject in the two houses OF
congress have consumed enough paper
/. to supply the entire country for months.
The legislation before congress Gre
ates commission. composed OF such
people as the secretaries of war. inter-
ior and agriculture. who will grant
rights to improve water power sites.
which may be held for period Of not
exceeding fifty years, with the right of
recapture by the government at the ter
mination of the grant. The legislation
is also intended to give preferen.ials to
municipalities, states and governmental
agencies, not only in the location OF
water power developments, but also in
the matter Of acquisition by them upon
the termination of the original grants.
Provision is also being made for the
protection Of navigation, and for tile
construction Of locks. The regulation
OF rates is to be directed by federal
government.
Needless to say. water power devel-
Opment will better fit America to con-
tinue its lead over all other nations in
domestic and foreign commerce.
through the simple facilities that will
be provided for increasing manufac- !
turing and transportation at home.
hyilrOelectric Plants in West.
The great west is eager for the de-
nf rs 81 and tha l1tiII- 4
cation of their power. While they have
been waiting these long years on the
national government they have, as a
rule, established public utilities com
missions. which have exercised full
power and control over local hydro
electric power companies, whose rates
they have fixed. III the absence of fed
eral laws, the western states have
sought to guarantee, insofar as possible.
continuous service to the consumers OF
power In the state of California. the
popular belief that the development OF
water powers would serve only for the
benefit of manufacturing institutions
and transportation has been disprOved
and Senator Phipps of Colorado has
yUfnted out to the senate that the Cali
fcrnia power companies are selling
more power to farmers than to all other
classes of consumers combined. He has
furnished the interesting information
that many hundreds of thousands of
acres Of land have been brought under
cultivation through the use of hydro
electric power i'll pumping underground
water for lands which the senator de-
ciared otherwise would today remain
as arid and unproductive as they had
been for ages past According to
Senator Phipps. the modern up-to-date
hydroelectric company develops Il
mountain stream to the limit of its
power producing capacity. and at the
very time or even before the building
of its first power plant on that stream
provides reservoir to hold back the
flood water and eIuatc the flow of the
stream"
Who Killed Cock Robin?
Arthur Brisbane. greatest of Amrri-
can newspaper editors. brains for Will |
liam Randolph Heart. fearless cham
pion of the common people and foe
to private ownership Of railroads. tells 1
in his To-day column of the conyen- u