Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1924-12-28

| general dlStrlDutlon and utilization
| of energy"
While looking far into the future
for a comprehensive plan of power
development, Mr. Merrill is one of
! those practical experts who believes
we should "act, act in the living,
| presence" He hopes to have worked
out during the coming year a COM
prehensive study Of river plants, en-
phasiZing that our rivers, while bet
ter adapted to the needs of the peo-
pie than those of any other country,
are not adequately used-just as
| President Roosevelt complained to
| Congress 16 years ago.
| We have had a hit and miss de-
velopment of our waterways, he COM
plains, both for transportation and
| power, only occasionally have we
anything like a definite plan for US
ing them for both purposes.
| For ten years, from 1907 to 1917.
Senator Newlands worked persist
emily for passage of legislation ia
| vored by the Inland Waterways Com
| mission, which was finally adopted
| as an amendment to the rivers and
harbors act for creation of a water
ways commission which would bring
| into cooperation and coordination
| the engineering. scientific and con-
| Government for preparation of re-
! Communications to Congress on a
| comprehensive plan of waterwaySNand
water resources of the United States.
The United States was then called
| upon to devote it's energies to win
| ming the World War. Three years
| later, when the Federal Power Com
| mission was formed, some of it's du-
| ties and powers paralleled those
n mot or toe irN,,
| so Congress repealed that section of
the rivers and harbors act creating
| the waterways commission.
1t is estimated that some 1900
miles of river in the United States are
suitable for power development and
| for a form ofSnavigation appropriate
to such power development, with no
less than 100000 potential water
| horsepower.
Now, Mr.. Merrill argues that it IS
| universally recognized that the flu
| ture of American industry and trans
portation is dependent upon the use
| of electric energy, and that in the
| production of such energy water
power should be used to the full ex-
tent of its economic feasibility. He
| urges that Congress should grant
adequate authority under the Fed
/ eral water power act to carry out tn e
program so long advocated by Presi-
| dents Roosevelt and Wilson and ap-
proved by Congress seven years ago,
at time when war conditions pre-
vented the legislation being carried
| out.
Legislation is now pending in Con-
gress which would make it possible
| for this work to be done, and the
| Federal Power Commission has ad-
vised Congress that 1t "believes the
| need for comprehensive plans of com
| bined power and navigation use Of
our rivers and for increased produc-
| ton of electric power has never been
! so urgent as now" and that it be
| lieves the cost of such plans would
| be returned many times over in the
creation of new national wealth, and
| that to fail to act when means are
| available without the necessity of
| calling upon the Federal Treasury
| would evidence serious lack u
| business foresight"
| Leaders in Congress have for the
| last six or eight years been watching
| the devoted work of O. c. Merrill
| backed by expert knowledge of the
| legal, financial economic and techni-
cal problems related to the subject of
| power development on a gigantic ma
| tion-wide scale, and they are agreed
that few men in the Federal service
| are doing their own particular job
| any better than Merrill is doing his.