Evening star., 1924-02-09
HOUSE MEMBERS
VISIT GREAT FALLS
Impressed by Power Posi-
bilities-TyIer Plan Is
Outlined.

Advantages Of Great Falls as a site
for power developments for use in
the District Of Columbia and sur
rounding territory were explained to
a group Of members Of Congress to-
day, who visited the falls of the
Potomac river and inspected the pos
sibilities for hydroelectric develop
| ment. The party was made up of
I Representative Fred Zilhman of
Maryland, Representative r. Walton
Moore of Virginia, Representative
Thomas Blanton of Texas, Represen-
| tative Oscar Keller of Minnesota
Representative Hammer of North
OF Vermont. members Of the sub
committee of the District committee
charged with investigation OF the
Potomac river power development
Representatives Zilhman and Moore
are joint authors of a bill providing
House.
Maj. James A. O'Connor of the Army
Engineer Corps told the party that
under the Tyler plan for power de-
velopment two dams would be con-
structed on the middle part Of the
and one Immediately above Chain
bridge. Both dams would be lis feet
high and would develop $4,000 pri-
| mary horsepower. At Great Falls,
Maj. O'Connor said. the water would
be backed up over $4,000 acres of
practically virgin country. some of
which. however, is now in farms. The
lake thus formed. he added, would
extend for, thirty-three miles north of
Great Falls. within a few miles of
the proposed head dam near Harpers
Ferry.
The second, or lower dam, would
back the water up a distance of about
seven miles to within less than a
mile of Great Falls. Major OConnor
destroy the beauty of the. Falls nor
the gorge of the Potomac, but would.
on the contrary, make both more
beautiful by formation. Of two vast
lakes Of water Immediately above
Washington.
The members of the subcommittee
showed great interest in the proposed
developments and asked Maj. O'Connor
many questions. Representative Blan-
ton inquired why the natural power
now going to waste over Great Falls
could not be used by construction OF
a small dam at present. Maj. O'Con-
nor told the committee that the flow
over the falls is not always equal at
different periods of the year, and that
would be so small as to practically put
such a plant out of business.
He added that with the two dam
sites developed there would be con-
stant flow for power purposes of 5000
cubic feet per second.
Mai. OConnor declared that the Po-
tomac river gorge constituted one Of
the finest potential power develop
ment possibilities along the Atlantic
seaboard, and the members of the
committee appeared impressed with
his statements.
Representative Keller declared that
he was hopeful the day would come
when both power developments would
be constructed, and that when that
time came the people of Washington
and surrounding country could buy
electric power at figure in the
neighborhood of one cent per kilo-
wat.
He said construction of the two
dam sites and of generating plants
might not completely abolish present
steam plants in Washington which
could be advantageously linked up
with the hydro-electric developments.
Mr.. Keller compared the situation on
the Potomac river with that in the
province of Ontario, Canada. where,
he said, the people of the province
buy electricity furnished by the
waters of the Niagara river at IL
cent per kilowat.