Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1923-06-09
ROTARY CLUB
(Continued from PaQe Ono

demonstration for the baseball game
| than that of last fall at the Cony-
Skowhegan grid clash is assured.
| In the time allotted him. Mr.. Wy
man gave q very comprehensive and
instructive as well az entertaining
| talk on Names great water powers
developed and undeveloped. He re.
| ferred to the ancient and crude
! Harvesting of the rivers and streams
! to furnish power for grist mills
and said that the first use of really
| efficient equipment was about "
| years ago. He showed how the New
England rivers. particularly fr
Maine. are favored above most other
| sections by. the lake storage at theil
| sources.
The speaker pointed out that in
| the last ten years there has been
great development Of storage pro-
| jects in the western and southern
| sections of the country. putting New
England into the second class in this
| respect. AS an illustration of the
| small proportion of Maine water
power resources developed, Mr.. wy
| man said that on only three rivers
| Is this power developed above Is
| per cent of its capacity,-The Pre-
sumpscott. and Union rivers and
| Messalonskee stream.
AS an impressive illustration of the
! possibilities in water storage Mr.
| Wyman told the Rotarians that L.
/ 200, 100000 kilowatt hours can be de-
| veloped with storage at the Forks
on the Kennebec at the same cost
that only 100000 kilowatt hours
can be produced without. Maine has
if developed through storage control,
power enough TO operate all the in
| dustries In Maine and most of those
in all New England, as we'll as to
run the railroads. The kennebec
river can produce the cheapest
| power in the United States with the
one exception of Niagara Falls. The
kennebec is at present only about
| one tenth developed. If controlled
through proper storage, the Kenne-
bee river could produce the power to
operate the Maine Central. the Bos-
| the Boston and Albany Railroads.
The Rotarians learned a great deal
about the cost of electric power to
the consumer by Mr.. Wyman's out
line of the cost of the various stages
of producing that power from the
place of generation on through the
step ups in voltage and transmission
lines. and supplemental steam manu-
facture.
Mr.. Wyman showed why 1t was
not expedient to develop electric
power for household heating pur-
poses. He showed the Rotarians
how an unreasonable prejudice had
been created against the expectation
of surplus power. and emphasized
the importance of getting the water
power question out Of politics. He
briefly reviewed the history of the
Kennebec Water Storage measures
bfore the last legislature, and defin-
ed the difference between the orig
inal bill and that later drawn pu but
never presented.
In closing Mr.. Wyman said that
complete development Of this, the
only resource undeveloped in Maine
would cost s150,O0O,OO0 and would
provide employment for many men.
He lamented the fact that Of this
years electrical engineering school
graduates at the University Of Maine,
100 per cent have indicated their in
tention OF locating with concerns
outside the confines Of the state
wherein they were educated.
The meeting closed with the sing
Ing of ono verse of America.