observer of the falls that no appreciable change has been caused to the scenic grandeur by power diversions. Nevertheless, by an appeal to prejudice these agitators have brought forth denunciations from the press and have falsely created the impression that the two American companies have made and are now making an "attack" upon Niagara; that because they are seeking to have the treaty provisions observed and confirmed by a new act which shall replace the mere conjectural provisions of the temporary measure, known as the Burton Act of 1906, with an act that shall recognize the limitations considerably, conservatively, and expressly fixed by the treaty, they are asking authority for unlimited diversions with a view to further installation. The cry has been put forth that Niagara is again in danger, although that question has been scientifically passed upon and the provisions necessary to avoid such dangers were fixed and established by the treaty which it is now sought to have enforced. They ignore the fact that the Niagara Falls Power Co. have not made any additional installations since long before the Burton Act was passed and that its installation is for only one-half the capacity to which it has a right under the law and that it only asks here for a small fraction of the increase fixed by the treaty in order properly and economically to operate its installation. They fail to recognize that that company, from the very start, has studiously and consistently and continuously shown its regard for the scenic grandeur of the falls, even at expense and loss to itself, voluntarily incurred before others had raised the question of scenic grandeur. No one has more appreciation or regard for the beauties of Niagara and for their preservation than the officers and stockholders of this company. Its contest here is not antagonistic to the cause of scenic beauty but for another grandeur, the utilization by man and for the benefit of man and communities of the energy which is daily going to waste over the falls; not all that energy, but only such use thereof as is, in fact, and as has been found by scientific investigation to be entirely consistent with the preservation of scenic beauty and of every other public interest. The industrial grandeur which they stand for is not inconsistent with the cause of scenic beauty, but it is one which appeals to the highest sense of beauty, power, and achievement. Mr. H. G. Wells, in Harpers' Weekly of July 21, 1906, said: "The dynamos and turbines of the Niagara Falls Power Co., for example, impressed me far more profoundly than. the Cave of the Winds; are, indeed, to my mind, greater and more beautiful than that accidental eddying of air beside a downpour. They are well made visible, thought translated into easy and commanding things. They are clean, noiseless, and starkly powerful. All the clatter and tumult of the early age of machinery is past and gone here; there is no smoke, no coal grit, no dirt at all. The wheel pit into which one descends has an almost cloistered quiet about its softly humming turbines. These are altogether noble masses of machinery, huge, black, slumbering monsters, great sleeping tops that engender irresistible forces in their sleep. They sprang, armed like Minerva, from serene and specu lative, foreseeing, and endeavoring brains. First was the word and then these powers. A man goes to and fro quietly in the long clean hall of the dynamos. There is no clangor, no racket. Yet the outer rim of the big generators is spinning at the pace of a hundred thousand miles an hour; the dazzling clean switchboard, with its little handles and levers, is the seat of empire over more power than the strength of a million disciplined, unquestioning men. All these great things are as silent, as wonderfully made, as the heart in a living body, and stouter and stronger than that. * * "When I thought that these two huge wheel pits of this company are themselves but a little intimation of what can be done in this way, what will be done in this way, my imagination towered above me. I fell into a day dream of the coming power of men and how that power may be used by them. * * * "For surely the greatness of life is still to come; it is not in such accidents as mountains or the sea. I have seen the splendor of the mountains, sunrise and sunset among them, and the waste immensity of sky and sea. I am not blind because I can see beyond these glories. To me no other thing is credible than that all the natural beauty in the world is only so much material for the imagination and the mind, so many hints and suggestions for art and creation. Whatever is is, but the lure and symbol toward what can be willed and done. Man lives to make-in the end he must make, for there will be nothing left for him to do. "And the world he will make, after a thousand years or so. "I, at least, can forgive the loss of all the accidental, unmeaning beauty that is going for the sake of the beauty of the fine order and intention that will come. I believe-passionately, as a doubting lover believes in his mistress-in the future of mankind. And so to me it seems altogether well that all the froth and hurry of Niagara at last, all of it, dying into hungry canals of intake, should rise again in light and power, in ordered and equipped and proved and beautiful humanity, in cities and palaces and the emancipated souls and hearts. of men. ** * Prof. Walter Frewen Lord said in the Toronto Mail and Empire of December 4, 1906: "I went over the Niagara power plant at the Falls the other day. It was a revelation to me. The cataract was wonderful, of course, but it struck me that the work of man in harnessing it was far more wonderful. It seemed to me the greatest thing that was ever attempted the greatest thing on earth." Rev. J. N. Hallock, D. D., said recently in the Christian Worker and Evangelist: "A new Niagara, harnessed,' but not hushed, with its beauty unmarred and its torrential fury undiminished, now greets the astonished eyes of pilgrims to this picturesque region. The hand of the engineer has left the mighty cataract untouched, while adding to the attractiveness of nature's greatest wonder. Niagara is practically just it is was 10 or 20 years ago, impressive in its combination of picturesque beauty and awe-inspiring grandeur. The rapids and whirlpool still excite the admiring wonderment of men. But there is much more than the Falls and the scenic beauties of the river to interest and charm those who visit this new world Mecca. "I am not sure but that the popular apprehension regarding the possible destruction of the Falls by the water companies has increased the tide of travel in this direction this summer. Thousands of persons no doubt actually believed they were gazing upon the cataract for the last time. Natural Niagara is still a spectacle of beauty and power; industrial Niagara is a wonderful demonstration of man's mastery over the forces of nature. The works of the engineer which use the waters of Niagara River to drive the wheels of industry are even more spectacular than the cataract itself. * * * "After rushing the turbine wheels beneath these power houses, developing a total of 110,000 horsepower, the water passes through a tunnel a mile long under the city of Niagara Falls, and empties into the lower channel under the first steel bridge. Over 1,000 men were engaged continuously for more than three years in the construction of this tunnel, which called for the removal of more than 300,000 tons of rock and the use of more than 16,000,000 bricks for lining. "As these power houses represent the first attempts to harness Niagara upon a big scale and embody the latest achievements of electrical engineering, they are visited yearly by thousands, and form one of the attractions of the Niagara regions. "It is in no small measure due to the energy, courage, and perseverance of the directors of the Niagara Falls Power Co. and their associate engineers that Niagara Falls owes its present importance as an industrial center. "Upon October 4, 1890, ground was broken at Niagara Falls, N. Y., for the initial power installation of the Niagara Falls Power Co. The trial development was for 15,000 horsepower. At that time three small towns, with a combined population of less than 10,000, were contained in the limits of what is now the city of Niagara Falls. The assessed valuation of all three towns was about $7,000,000. Five years later the first electrical power from the initial installation was delivered commercially to the Pittsburgh Reduction Co. for the manufacture of aluminum. To-day, 16 years after the breaking of ground for the tunnel, the aggregate amount of power developed by the Niagara Falls Power Co. and its allied interest, the Canadian Niagara Power Co., is about 160,000 horsepower, with additional capacity in course of construction amounting to 60,000 horsepower. Niagara Falls is now a city of almost 30,000 inhabitants, with an assessed valuation amounting to over $20,000,000. Such in brief are some of the results accomplished by the men and engineers who harnessed Niagara Falls. Less than 4 per cent of the total flow of water over Niagara Falls has been diverted by these companies and its beauty and grandeur are unimpaired." The establishment of the great works of the Niagara Falls Power Co., the pioneer not only in the establishment of great hydraulic and electrical units, but the first projector of extensive power transmission in America, brought forth the following comment in the New York Tribune by Mr. Royal Cortisson, an art critic of the first rank: "Being utterly ignorant of these things, I won't commit the impertinence of pretending to appreciate the genius embodied in those colossal fabrics. All I can tell you is that they made me feel as though I was looking on while some unthinkable Olympian went gloriously mad, in a kind of divine frenzy, and expressed himself in terms raising the art of the Egyptian temples to a higher power, giving to things of overwhelming bulk an immeasurable life and purpose, and somehow putting over them a glamour of the subtlest delicacy and charm. It was like a fairyland created for the pranks of the high gods. It was like a force of nature tamed and held by a silken thread. I won't say it was like the most wonderful thing in the world. It is itself the most wonderful thing in the world." THE CAMPAIGN OF SCARE. It is a significant fact that during hearings extending over two weeks, given the widest publicity, there appeared before this committee only two persons who had any other suggestion to make than that the full limitations as to diversion and as to importation, allowed by the treaty of 1909 should be the basis of the proposed act of Congress. The first of these was Mr. Spencer, who claimed to be a photographer and engineer, and who explained the extent of the natural erosions of the Horseshoe Falls, and who pretended to state that the change in the appearance of the crest of those falls, which had developed in the past 20 years, was due to artificial diversions of water for power. The value of his evidence, or lack of value, was shown by the fact that he claimed that the baring of the crest upon the Canadian side of the Horseshoe Falls which enabled the Canadian park commissioners in 1902 to fill in 250 feet of that crest line for the purpose of improving the scenic effect of that Falls by obliterating certain thin streams which existed only at times of high water, was caused by artificial diversions for power when as a matter of fact the artificial diversions had not begun at that time. The only other person who appeared to advocate a retention of the provisions of the Burton Act or anything less than the limitations of the treaty of 1909 was the civic association, through its president and its secretary. They made the same arguments as were made in 1904 and 1905, before any official investigations or reports had been made. During the hearings before this committee these officers neglected to bring before this committee any evidence, even by the way of statement, in support of their contention or in opposition to the contention of every other private and public interest which was there represented, the producers and consumers upon both sides of the riverthe State of New York, the city of Buffalo, and the cities of Windsor, Ontario, and Detroit, Mich., and others-all urging an act confirming the terms and limitations of the treaty. The record made by these hearings was conclusively against the contention of these agitators and in favor of that made by all the representatives of both public and private interests who appeared before the committee. The record speaks for itself, but with this the civic association was not content. It set out deliberately to throw a scare into the members of this committee as well as into other Members of the Congress. At great expense and with a great deal of labor, as one of the officers has since boasted, it was arranged that this committee and other Members of Congress should be flooded with letters and telegrams in order to overcome the cool and deliberate judgment of the committee, which it seemed, could reach only one conclusion from the evidence which had been brought before it at the appointed place and time. The result was a deluge of communications, by letters and telegrams, solicited and procured for the purpose of creating an impression upon the members of this committee that the public were interested to prevent any extension of the present legislative limitations. There is in fact no such public interest or public demand for any restrictions narrower than those contained in the treaty of 1909. The public interests and demands may be evidenced by the fact that on the evening of January 26 last the author of the Burton bill had been for some days announced to deliver a public lecture upon conserva tion, with particular reference to the preservation of Niagara Falls, in a large hall in Brooklyn, N. Y., with a seating capacity of about 3,000. There were by actual count just 47 people present, including the stenographer who was sent to make a verbatim report of his address. Through the same influences have resulted misrepresentations in the public press in regard to these hearings, against which some of those who appeared before you have been obliged to defend themselves. We may expect that such methods will be continued. But the public have a right to expect that, upon the record which is made at these hearings, this committee will act judicially, fearlessly, and independently and frame and recommend an act with provisions sufficient properly to carry out the provisions of the treaty and which at the same time shall be sufficiently protective of all the public and private interests involved. . The CHAIRMAN. The hearings on the Niagara Falls power bills are now closed. Congressman Smith desires to present resolutions by the Board of Trade of Niagara Falls, which the reporter will incorporate in the minutes. BOARD OF TRADE OF NIAGARA FALLS, N. Y., Hon. CHAS. B. SMITH, Congressman, Washington, D. C. SIR: Inclosed resolutions adopted at a general meeting of the board of trade, held Tuesday, January 23, 1912. Yours, respectfully, CHARLES WOODWARD, Secretary. Resolved. That the board of trade of the city of Niagara Falls, N. Y., in meeting assembled, hereby favors at amendment to the Burton Act, which will allow the diversion of an additional 4,400 cubic feet of water per second from the Niagara River for power purposes. Resolved, That if such additional diversion be allowed by Congress, the city of Niagara Falls make such arrangements to be represented before the officer or body having power to grant permits for diversion of such additional 4.400 cubic feet of water, to protect the rights and interests of the city of Niagara Falls in respect thereto, and to obtain such determinations as shall be for the benefit of the whole city. Resolved, That a copy of this resolution be sent to the Member of Congress from this district for presentation to the proper committee in Congress having the matter under consideration. CHARLES WOODWARD, Secretary. STATE OF NEW YORK, PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION, SECOND DIstrict, Mr. FRANK C. PERKINS, Consulting Engineer, Erie County Bank Building, Buffalo, N. Y. DEAR SIR: Below please find data asked for per your postal card of January 21, 1911: Cataract Power & Conduit Co.-Power generated, none. Power purchased, 219,165,196 k. w. h. Gross price k. w. h. purchased, $759,829.96. K. w. h. delivered to private consumers, 70,380,534; also 113,177.447 k. w. h. sold to railroad and other corporations for which a gross price of $694,083.38 is received. Revenue from k. w. h. delivered to private consumers, $628,116.90. Maximum load kilowatts, 46,170: date when carried, December 6, 1910. Dividends, $150,000; four dividends during year, one of 3 per cent, three of 13 per cent |