Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1921-09-01
HARVESTING OF THE WATERS.


of the Trail" | gave description o
our camp in the mountains, intending
to follow it up with description o
the great power plant adjacent thereto
but the great mountain forest fire in
terrupted, and then followed my Letter
on the homecoming event. Now as
take Up the the broken thread of des-
cription, | wish to assure my readers
that, as | hope to give vivid history
of the marvellous development and har-
Messing of the mighty water powers Of
this section of wonderful California,
that in doing so | have no axe to grind,
am not boosting for any company, or
corporation in particular, and have not
an acre of land for sale, but as | loved,
and still do love, my native state Of
Wisconsin, so have learned to love
my adopted state, and feel that am
qualified to write somewhat of its mar
velous developments along certain lines,
for have lived for greater or lesser
time in seven different counties of the
state, have travelled through its seven
hundred miles of length, been a close
observer and have taken part in some
of its activities.
| bulieve the readers of The Tribune
are broad minded enough to rejoice
over the great things that are being
accomplished in the many sections of
our broad land, for most assuredly what
benefits one section to some extent, at
least, is benefit to all, and in no other
line of endeavor is this more true than
in the one am going to write about in
this and perhaps some future letters,
that of the great water powers of Cali
fornii, and the San Joaquin Valley in
particular.
mo state outside of this should feel
livelier interest in this marvellous devel-
opment than old steady going Wiscon-
sin, for the reason that very large
portion of the millions that are being
spent in the electrical development goes
direct to Wisconsin. for in this great
power plant that | am going to tell of,
as we'll as most of the others through
out the state, there are attached to the
enormous machines and delicately con-
struqted devices plate with bright
hra aeNi affairs az foiinw9
"Aiiis Chalmers Hydro Electric Co,
Milwaukee Wisconsin
As stated in my former letter, this,
the Kerckhoff camp and power plant,
is reached by the snake like, five mile
road from Auberry. There is is no
road from the camp down to the power
house. Neither could there be one con
structed because of it's being located at
the bottom of the canyon, and the de-
scent almost precipice. There is
cable inclined railroad twelve hundred
feet in length and having drop of 325
feet in.that.shor distance. This is OPP
Grated by a rs horse power electrical
motor. | can assure my readers that
the first descent down on the cable car
gives one a real thrill, for in places you
feel as though you might be in danger
of swinging off into space. All the
enormous machinery, and all of the ma
teriaI for the power plant, except the
stone, was landed down over this cable
road, spieces. --machinery weighing 80
tons were landed down without hitch.
When-a third of the distance down one
has full view of the whole panorama,
looking down.upon the power house, the
dashingNSan Joaquin River hedged in
the narrow defile of..mighty granite
walls, its bed continuous mass Of boul-
ders. 1t is beautiful sight at any
time butiespecially at night when the
great power house is illuminated by
the many electric lights inside and out.
Two sides of the power house is blasted
out of the solid granite walls of the
mountain, the other two sides are Of
reinforced concrete. 1t is 100 feet
long byf40 feet wide and AZ feet high
above the floor Of the generators; the
turbines are still below that level. The
plant is fitted with the most modern
and expensiyesmachinery and sends out
over the wires over fifty thousand horse
power of electrical energy. A remark
able feature is the fact that with al
this vast machinery in motion one car
almost hear whisper in any part Of
the building, the machinery runs sC
smoothly. The water for propeling al
this is from the San Joaquin (pronoun
ced San Wau-Keen) river which flow
down this canyon past the power house
but which is controlled by dam three
and one half miles above the plant anC
is conveyed three and one half mile
through tunnel lSxl8 feet in siz'
through the solid granite of the noun
tain.
At the outlet Of the tunnel the waite
! enters three steel tubes or penstocks
as they are termed, feet in diamete
and $50 fl. long, which conveys tn