The times-news. [volume] (Hendersonville, N.C.) 1927-current, 1936-02-11
NEWSPAPERS OPINION
SURPLUS POWER OR A YADsTlCK?

David Eilienthal, trustee VI ieiiieseee '"iieS
Authority some three weeks ago addressed the
American Historical Association meeting at ChaI-
tanooga on the work of the Authority IN the Ie1-
nessee Valley. He pointed out that Congress act
ing under the commerce clause had directed the
Authority to provide naVlgaOie chailflei
throughout the length of the tennessee hNer 1rohi
Knoxville to its mouth near Paducah' 900 miles,
and to provide for the control of flood waters
In carrying out this mandate tine BOARD mas
proceeded to the construction IN the main river Oh
a series of high dams and dams in canyons on trl-
butaries These dams with the wilson lam at
Muscle Shoals (already in operatlon) Will provide
control of water and minimum nlne-foot naVls~
able channel throughout the year. Here we nave
Mr. Lilienthal says, "a familiar and tradltlohal
function of the national government, the proVld-
ing of an interstate highway of transportation ana
the control of destructive waters on an interstate
stream. Everyone knows that when water 1aiIS'
there is power in that water, power that men nave
used from time immemoria So when IVA lets
water through these dams in pursuance OF us
constitutional functions with respect to navigation
and the control of floods, the question is not wheth-
err power should be develOped-the power IS there
by the mere fact of water falling"
All very clear so far. Observe now what follows
at is almost unthinkable that this power should
not be made available, since with relatively
small additional investment (italics supplied) 1t
can be harnessed and put to work. And that Is
precisely what Congress has directed should be
done The economy of such plan is apparent at
once. Under the so-called property clause of the
Constitution, it is our view that Congress has au-
thorty and wide discretion to provide for the dis
position of that natural property in electric power
The policies governing the sale of that public prop
erty of electricity as written into the IVA act as
amended in 1885 are comprehensive and have deep
social and economic implications"
Of that there is not the slightest doubt. Let US
look at some of them. Taking at face value the
theory that navigation is main feature of the en-
terprse (and swallowing that makes some demand
on the throat muscles), we are to spend huge
sum of money belonging to all of us to subsldlze
for the benefit of of US the most inefficient
and uneconomeal form of transportation in use to-
day-that on artificial waterways. Such a policy
may be traditional and familiar, but that it IS
wasteful and unfair is beyond doubt.
So much for navigation. Power production is
to be by-product to be secured by "a relatively
small additional investment" But we have been
told on very high authority that the sale of this
power at cost will provide "yardstck" by which
to measure the rates for power produced by prl-
vate companies And that it will be sold in direct
competition with the private companies wherever
possible. There undoubtedly "deep social and
economic implications" in that but all that can be
said of them is that they have precious little rea-
ton to anything resembling fair dealing. .-
The case is analogous to lumber company pro-
ducing lumber and sawdust alleging that the price
at which it sold its sawdust was yardstiek for the
price at which company producing nothing but
sawdust should sell its product
Everybody knows that from its inception the
IVA has been mainly intended for one purpose,
namely, the production of power to be used against
the private utility companies All the rest is sec
ondary, except as necessary camouflage to comply
with the Constitution and protect the enterprise in
the court of law. However this may be, it is clear
that surplus lie, by-product) power cannot be
'yardstick." however potent it may be COM
petitor of private power. D..
Which it is to be-surplus power yardstick?
-Thos F. Woodlock in Wall Street Journal.