The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1922-11-04
SHOALS
WORK RESUMED
ON WILSON DAM
About 1900 Men Already at
Work With Others Now
Being Employed.

FLORENCE. Ala, Nov. 4.ZThe
roar of construction work on the
great Wilson Dam at Muscle Shoals
is again sounding through the val
leys and over the hills along the
Tennessee Rtvr. The federal gov
eminent has stepped in to rescue
from possible decay the specta0,l.
lar wartime nitrate and power
projects. which sprang up almost
overnight. involved In the build
ing of what will be the worlds
largest water-power dam.
United States army engineers,
who have Just been furnished with
$S,10O,000 in congressional appro-
priations, are once more proceed
ing with the work OF Harvesting
the mighty waters OF the Tenn
essee under a government program
which provides for the completion
OF the Wilson Dam. the installa-
ton Of machinery and the furnish.
ing Of electrical Juice" by the
late winter OF 1925 or the early
spring Of 1926.
This program is so definite that
the Army Appropriation Bill to be
introduced in Congress December
is to contain an item making
availsbel S7,5OO,0OO addit onal for
the work for the fiscal year 1928
"a. They will require but $7.40O.-
600 more after that, for the fol-
lowing fiscal year, before they
have finished job at the dam and
. power house, and. be ready to turn
the switches That send out the
electrical current.
Tho army engineer dam build.
ers do not vex themselves with the
question OF what is to become OF
the electrical energy to be har
messed from the waters OF the
Tennessee, sometimes swollen,
angry and turb.d. To the army en-
giner dam builders 1t makes no
difference whether nltrates are
made here; whether fertilizer Is
made here: whether the Tenn:
essee River Is to move the street
cars in distant New Orleans;
whether 1t drains tho swamps OF
Florida with cheap power. He
does not concern himself with the
quts.on Of whether a woman with
an up to date electric hair curling
iron in Noble is to benefit nor
whether the farmers In Mississ-
ippi, Tennessee and Alabama Is to
light his premises. pump his
water. or drive his machinery with
the electrical energy which is to
; coma from the Harvesting OF he
watefs now to be brought under
the guidin ghand Of man. Questions
such as whether Chattanooga,
Memphis, Pensacola. or other
communities&arc to use the cleo
trical energy from the Tennessee
finally for cheap power for manu-
featuring purposes are questions
/ which give the army engineer dam
b1ilde" no concern whatever.
F.! Work Once Halted
all these army dam builders
have known or cared Is that they
have been halted In their work
since April %, 1921. by lack OF
money. when the damb was one
third completed. ut which time the
air began to be filled viii the
roar, not of dam building, but Of
/ who should finally use tho dam.
( The armistice had come. Appro.
pr.ntions had dribbled for while.
then completely stopped. Armed
seatries faded from the picture al
, the great work. The dam BULL.
ers were obliged to turn their
backs on their wartime picture OF
! furnishing nitrate for explosives
for the army In France by means
Of the water power OF the Tenn
essee, which had called into be-
Ing the plans for the dam. For a