The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1936-04-30
Washington
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ehS ASaoCAohAp VI ACoiuChL 4hoOSCNCil
There will be many who are now
doubtful as to their course who will
realign themselves with the New Deal
because they were originally Demo
Gratis and there will be many who will
again follow the Republican banner
down the stretch. But it seems to me
that three years Of Roosevelt probably
have established greater segment of
independent voting strength In this
country than had resulted from quar-
ter of a century Of partisan politics be-
fore. The situation must be construed
then as indicating that hereafter those
who stick definitely in party harness
will continue to stand hitched because
they have political aspirations and am
billions or because economic conditions
in their communities are better fos-
tered by the party with which they
have aligned themselves. Beyond that,
it seems to me, citizens, in most cases,
will vote in increasing numbers for the
man instead of the party.
At last, after almost two years of
promotion work. President Roose-
welt has aban-
'Quoddy Dream doned two of his
Drained cherished dreams:
Harvesting tn e
tides of Passamaquoddy bay in Maine
and construction of a gigantic canal
across Florida. The 'Quoddy project
designed to produce electric power in
quantities never before turned out, was
to cost $4O,OOO,OOO. The great job of
excavating a slit across the face of the
state of Florida to let ships go direct
from the Atlantic to the Gulf without
going around the toe of the state was
to cost S15OOOO,OOO.
Only small amount, that is, small
sum compared to other New Deal ex-
penditures, had been wasted on the
ship canal plans before it was tossed
into the limbo of forgotten things, but
something like S1O,OOO,OOO already has
been used in the attempt to make the
moon work through the medium of the
tides of 'Quoddy bay. Both projects
can be charged up to politics and ex-
periments and probably the country
will be better off to take the loss and
avoid the use of further money.
The President fully intended to go
through with his plans respecting
these two projects until he ran into
vicious opposition in congress. Too
many representatives and senators
realized that they were going to have
the names 'Quoddy bay and Florida
canal hurled at them through the COM
ing campaign if they voted their ap-
prevail by including additional funds
for these projects in the relief appro-
priations. / don't know what Is going
to become of the homes, the model
city, erected for workers near the
'Quoddy bay project. Photographs of
this village indicate it to be COM
munity of which any resident might be
proud. 1t was constructed to assure
the workers on the 'Quoddy project
comfortable place in which to live.
They still have the comfortable place
in which to live because the govern
ment still owns the homes but what is
to become of those people and what
disposition is to be made of the prop
erty is something else again. Thus,
development of electric power from the
tides of 'Quoddy bay has been an engi-
neering question that has ragged for
years as a controversy. 1t has required
frequently as a political matter but
never until the New Deal came in were
any tangible steps taken to install cleo
trical equipment in that bay where the
tides run higher than anywhere else in
the world.
Most engineers have contended that
it was impossible to place in the
bay equipment that
raced could function salts
Difficulties factorily while at the
same time produc-
ing electric current at rate that
would bring a return on the ire
mendous investment necessary. Fur
ther than that, no one yet has been
able to show where so much electric
energy could be marketed. The terri
tory is sparsely settled and the indus
trial production is small While it was
contended that limitless power would
bring industries into that section, the
indications were, even after actual
work started, for only a small incre-
ment in the number of factories and
other users of energy.
The 'Quoddy power idea probably
was the most fascinating and most
romantic of anything proposed by the
New Deal for the purpose of creating
jobs. Like the proposed Florida ship
canal, it held potentialities but those
whose opinions heretofore have been
sound remain unconvinced that either
the power plan or the canal for a short
cut across Florida ever could repay
the government for money spent there.
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