The mirror., 1920-02-12


RGgHSGO was the first we had to lessen
the burdens of the human race and is the
most natural and economic source of power.
A good many of us will remember the
old grist mill which still exists in few
rural communities, to which the grain was
taken to be ground into flour and feed and
whose machinery was operated by the force
of water, and it is big step from these
primitive mills to the immense electric tur-
bines which are in operation today.
The old grist mill was located alongside
a river with at least fair and steady fall of
water and dam was built across the river
and from short distance back canal was
dug to the MILL The backwater from the
dam passing into the canal and back again
to the river below the dam had more or less
of fall and therefore force to it. This
force was transmitted by paddle wheel in
the canal to the mill and the crude machi-
merry was thereby operated.
The next step forward was the locating
of these mills at waterfalls along the rivers
and in this manner taking advantage of the
natural fall of the water and also as with
the greater fall of water more force was de-
veloped and there has always been constant
demand for more power to operate our in
dustrial plants.
As time went on, it was learned that
there was a great deal of waste power with
the old fashioned paddle wheel and by Amer
can inventive genius, the method of obtaining
this power was entirely changed so that in
modern water power plants there is very
little loss
The present day water power plants
are located at waterfalls where there is con-
siderable of drop to the water, the old
canal still remains, but from the canal the
water now passes through so-called tunnels
into turbines and after passing through
these turbines is released at the base of the
falls.
These turbine wheels are either con-
nected direct to the machinery for the opera
ton of the plant or to electric generators
and in this manner the power may be trans
mitted to any point within several hundred
miles at which it is more convenient to use;
this latter method being the one most COM
monty used today as our water power plants
are generally located at points undesirable
for manufacturing purposes, although we
have examples of both methods in use in the
Twin Cities, as without water power it is
doubtful whether Minneapolis would have
become the center of the -four milling busi-
ness, which had its origin and is still main
tained to a great extent by the power de-
rived from St. Anthony Falls. We also
have located there, electric power stations
which derive at least a portion of their
power from the Falls to supply the surround
ing country with light, heat and power.
These water power electric stations are
called Hydro-Electric plants and it is only
within comparatively recent years that these
plants have been put into operation.
believe that the greatest assembly of
these Hydro-Electric plants is located at
Niagara Falls, as this is one of our greatest
water falls both as to volume of water and
also as to the height of the falls and it is
through these immense Hydro Electric
plants that very large number of manufact-
uring establishments who use considerable
electric power have located at that point.
These great Hydro-Electric plants also fur
nish very cheap light, heat and power to the
cities and country for many miles around.
Water power has also recently been
used as the power to electrify a considerable
milage of one of our great trancontinental
railroads, which is planning on extending
this electrifcation throughout the Western
mountains, and in this way eliminate the
task of hauling coal great distances for their
locomotives, and thereby relieving themselves
of an immense transportation problem. The
electric locomotives are enabled to move lar
ger and heavier trains and this is particularly
an important item on the heavy grades which
are necessary in the mountain country, and
fully believe that this power to be the solu-
ton of one of the great problems in rail-
roading through the mountains.