The Bottineau courant. (Bottineau, Bottineau County, N.D.) 1895-1929, 1921-05-26

course of erection. But nature Is Feauy - 'cHu
help which would make the execution OF such q
project far easier than one might imagine offhand.
The walls of the gorge above Fosters Flats rise
sheer several hundred feet from the tideway' put
contiguous to the Flats the gorge is considerably
wider and on the Canadian side. especially, the
bank slopes at a comparatively easy graolenl'
terminating near the river in a fairly expansive
iow-lying area. At the same time, the rivers path
Is considerably narrower at that stretch OF ITS
run. Owing to this state of affairs, the Flats pre-
sent a strategic base of operations from when -
start the rearing of a dam. That Is to say, some-
thing like SO per cent of the contemplated struc-
ture can be completed on dry fand before any Of
the work trespasses upon the present course OF
the Niagara at that point. Let us be more spe-
ciics u
As designed, the dam has a spread in cross Sec
ton of about $50 feet at the base, and 80 feet or
more ct this lower portion will reach below the
line Of the riverbed and have its footing on the
underlying solid rock. With a total height Of 14O
feet, the dam will be of an extremely massive char
acter. The bottom section of the dann-at' least
that half Of 1t that will rise from Fosters Flats
will be pierced by large temporary openings of
culverts, and channels will be dug to them on the
upstream side to serve as sideways for the en-
tire volume Of the Niagara when it becomes neces-
sary to divert the river in order to bare the nor
NAL bed for building purposes along the line Of
the contemplated barrier. With this done. it will
tlel De a r6ldIVGly easy engineering ldSk U udH
the usual or natural water course to facilitate
excavating the rock and erecting that portion Of
the dam that will terminate on the American
shore. When the dam is finished, then the sluice-
ways will be sealed and the waters impounded
until they accumulate and carry the surface level
back from the crest Of the dam to the very foot
OF the. Falls.
AS most everyone knows, great quantities Of ice
are carried over the Falls and down the river dur
ing the winter and the breakup Of that rigorous
season. and the impact and the pressure Of these
foes must be withstood by any rigid obstruction
rising in their path. Therefore, 1t is essential
that these stresses be minimized and that the
currents be free to carry the Ice onward with a
minimum Of opposition while the bulk Of the water
is held in check. To this end, the dam will be
fashioned with long slopes on the up and the
downstream sides. ttas 4 I
The dam Will serve the double purpose Of I'M
pounding the waters OF the Niagara for a distance
Of nearly five miles and Of housing the great turbo-
generators that will transform the force fof those;
waters into 100000 horsepower OF electrical en-
ergy. According to the estimates, this undertak-
ing would involve q total outlay OF approximately
$1O0!OOO,O0O; and from start to finish would take
something like three years. On the basis of coal,
consumption previously cited Tor the development
would be tantamount to saving I6,OOO,OO0 tons or
that fuel annually. At 80 q ton this would repre-,
sent an economy Of $16OyOO0.OO0 every twelve
sInonth.ss But quite apart from these considerations.
there would be that inestimable gain iii the mat
ter Of electrical energy that could Sbe utilized Tor
innlmerable industrial purposes. Not only that,
motive impulse at a moderate cost would5 bei
available for domestic services 81 many sorts.
We, have led The world ia me varied character
and the magnitude Of our electrochemicaI indus,
tries, and we can maintain our position inf this
nS1no0 nn1v1 nv cna1finsnSvnw4xN ynrnuadr 1880 M .tr.