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 1 per cent on $2,000,000 par value of stock. Number of meters connected, 612. Number municipal are lamps, 347; incandescent lamps used for municipal lighting purposes, k. w. h., 1,845. Revenue, municipal, $179.23. Municipal heat and power, k. w. h., 19,247,500. Revenue from municipal heat and power, $83,521.85. Buffalo General Electric Co.-Power generated, none. Power purchased, 39,653,140 k. w. h. Power purchased from the Cataract Power & Conduit Co., 38,521,720; and Niagara, Lockport & Ontario Power Co., 1,131,420. Gross price k. w. h. purchased, $312,430.97. K. w. h. delivered to private consumers, 18,377,047. Two hundred and thirty-three thousand one hundred and fortyfour k. w. h. sold for commercial flat rate lighting which is not included in this item, the net revenue from which is $13,849.53. Revenue from k. w. h. to private consumers, $848,509.12. Maximum load kilowatts, 9,430. Date when carried, November 30, 1910. Divideuds, $222,440. Four dividends during year of 1 per cent on $3,724,000 par value of stock. Number of meters connected, 9,258. Number municipal arc lamps, 3,680; also 440 incandescent lamps used for municipal lighting purposes. K. w. h. municipal purposes, 5,586,497; includes 69,928 k. w. h. incandescent street lighting, 169,702 municipal building lighting, 47,758 municipal heat and power. Revenue municipal, $214,517.41. Municipal heat and power k. w. h., 47,758. Revenue from municipal heat and power, $2,724.24. Niagara Falls Power Co.-Power generated, 484,599,431. Power purchased, 99,928,778 k. w. h. Gross price k. w. h. purchased, $229,836.18. K. w. h. delivered to private consumers, none; 551,748,383 k. w. h. sold commercial, railroad, and other corporations for which a gross price of $1,486.935.40 is received. Revenue from k. w. h. delivered to private consumers, none. Maximum load kilowatts, 62,200; date when carried, December 5, 1910. Dividends, $335,000; four dividends during year at 2 per cent on $4,197,500 par value of stock. Number of meters connected, not given. Number of municipal arc lamps, none. K. w. h. municipal purposes, none. Revenue municipal, none. Municipal heat and power, k. w. h., none. Revenue from municipal heat and power, none. Yours, very truly, J. S. KENNEDY, Secretary. Mr. FRANK C. PERKINS, Consulting Engineer, Erie County Bank Building, Buffalo, N. Y. DEAR SIR: Answering your inquiry of the 14th instant, the report of the Buffalo General Electric Co. for the year 1909 shows as follows: Purchased from the Cataract Power & Conduit Co., 31,698,320 k. w. h., at a gross price of $259,337.25; purchased from Niagara, Lockport & Ontario Power Co., 732,780 k. w. h., at a gross price of $13,864.09. Total number of k. w. h. delivered to consumers during the year, 21,374,324; revenue therefrom, $964,799.54; miscellaneous revenues, $2,655.99. Maximum load, 8,300 kilowatts, December 23. Dividends during the year, four dividends, each of 1 per cent on $3,724,000 par value of stock. Increase in surplus during the year $27,573.49. Number of meters in Buffalo, 7,341; Lackawanna, 199; Blasdell, 11. Connected load, kilowatts: Buffalo, 22,622; Lackawanna, 257; Blasdell, 91. Cataract Power & Conduit Co.-K. w. h. purchased from Canadian Power Co., Niagara Falls Power Co., and Toronto Power Co., 181,531,061, for a total gross price of $724,649.06. Total number of kilowatts sold, 177,296,138, for a revenue of $1,210,880.33; miscellaneous revenue, $1,049.76; total revenues, $1,211,930.09. Maximum peak load not shown. Total dividends during the year, two dividends of 3 per cent on $2,000,000 stock. Increase in surplus during the year, $40,994.22. Number of meters, 530; connected load, 80,000 e. h. p. Number of consumers, 454. Niagara Falls Power Co.-K. w. h. generated, 417,256,803; purchased, 77,765,292. Sold, 458,481,883, for a revenue of $1,290,912.66, and miscellaneous revenues of $74,179.95, making total revenues for the year, $1,365,092.61. Maximum load, 60,000 kilowatts, December 10. No dividends. Decrease in surplus during the year, $239,646.69. Number of meters, 112; connected load, 70,870 kilowatts. Number of consumers, 29. Regarding your inquiry, "Total kilowatts capacity, generated or produced," I am unable to interpret this inquiry. W. J. MEYERS, Statistician. Very respectfully, ARGUMENT OF THE HON. FRANCIS LYNDE STETSON BEFORE THE SECRETARY OF WAR. MR. SECRETARY: By your invitation, the representatives of the Niagara Falls Power Co. and the Canadian Niagara Co. now appear before you upon their appiication for your permit to transmit from Canada and to receive in the United States electric power generated in Canada from the works of the Canadian Niagara Co., to an amount not less than that indicated in the report of your engineer, Capt. C. W. Kutz, enlarged in accordance with the views of the American members of the International Waterways Commission. Under the act of June 29, 1906, adopted upon the report of the House Committee on Rivers and Harbors, presented by its chairman, Judge Burton, after protracted hearings and personal inspection, you were authorized to grant permits in the aggregate for the transmission of 350,000 electric horsepower from Canada. Of this amount the transmission of 190,900 electric horsepower is to be permitted after practical experience shall have demonstrated the effect upon Niagara Falls of transmitting 160,000 electric horsepower from the Canadian side. Your engineer, Capt. Kuiz, and the three commissioners, who at the hearing before you on July 12, 1906, were justly termed by Mr. McFarland, "the very able governmental commission which has looked into the physical details of this question," have investigated the conditions and have submitted you their reports that your discretion may be exercised to the extent of now permitting transmission of 160,000 electric horsepower, with conditional enlargement as stated by the American commissioners. Their calm, lucid, and impartial report upon this point has stirred to opposition Mr. J. Horace McFarland, president and spokesman of the American Civic Federation, some of whose extraordinary statements may well be considered at the outset, for if well founded the allegations of Mr. McFarland would preclude any transmission at all. At the hearing in July, Mr. McFarland referred to himself as a "white blackberry," and as the "lone representative of the people." Since then and since the reports of your advisory officers he has "gone to the country" with printed broadsides for the newspapers, intended to induce letters and telegrams to you to overrule your advisers, and making allegations so violent and so inaccurate, that, as I suggested in July the source from which they emanate can not be regarded as strictly responsible; that is, as feeling bound to substantiate them. This charge is material and proper for present consideration, for, if well founded, it must relieve you from the necessity of giving serious attention to his heated appeal, or to "the flood of personal letters" thereby invited. Of course, the burden is upon me to support this charge of irresponsible and inaccurate assertion; for at the July hearing, referring to Mr. McFarland's extreme statements, I said that if the effect upon Niagara were to be as serious as he anticipates, I should be with him entirely. Therefore, it is due to the gravity of the interests involved that I should indicate some of the important errors of Mr. McFarland doing grave injustice to men not less honest than he. SOME MISSTATEMENTS BY MR. M'FARLAND. 1. Mr. McFarland states that the Canadians already have cut off 500 feet of the Horeshoe Falls "to accommodate a power company," and again "to give a better chance to one of the power companies." This statement is absolutely untrue, and upon July 12, 1906. Mr. McFarland was informed of that which is the truth, namely, that whatever was done in this particular was done by the order of the commissioners of the Queen Victoria Niagara Falls Park not for the purposes of any power company but for 1 In his excess of zeal in a cause which in its intention is highly meritorious, Mr. McFarland has made attacks upon our companies so unfounded as to compel me to dissect and to refute them. This necessarily gives to my remarks more of a personal turn than I desire, for I understand that Mr. McFarland has been and is a useful public citizen. I have nothing to say in derogation of his character or his motives, though in this discussion, like the cowboy in the Western mining camp, he does seem to be "uncommon free with his gun." 2 These are the same gentlemen to whom in his third emergency call, dated November 19, Mr. McFarland refers, as "the corporation-favoring International Waterways Commission." No one now or hereafter, not even upon careful investigation of this question, can venture to differ from Mr. McFarland's decisions, without attracting his virulent comment. |