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BEAD A LL THE NEWS OF THE
HAM AREA IN THIS WEEK’S
CHRONICLE—ONLY COMPLETE
COVERAGE PAPER!
V O L. 4, No. 41
Work on
Locks Gates
Progresses
THE
BONNEVILLE
DAM
CHRONICLE
CHRONICLE
HOOD
R IV E R
C AS C A D E
LO CKS
DESERVE V O IR INTEREST.
F R ID A Y , D ECEM BER 31, 1937
B O N N E V IL L E
Before and A fte r the Bonneville Lo.ks Closed
ADVERTISERS
Cascade Locks
Chosen as Site
For Big Plant
♦
♦
On or about January 5 the water
will be raised in the pool behind the
Bonneville Dam, army engineers
predict. This date, like those given
in the past, is not final. The exact
time for the resumption of river
travel which will be made possible
by the raising of the pool and by
putting into operation the locks will
be made Monday, it is hoped. •
The shimming of the huge 102-
foot gate leaves of the downstream
gate has been completed. Workmen
are now busy connecting the oper­
ating arms, which will open and
close the gates, painting the inside
surface of the gates, placing a bab­
bitt seal near the pintle bearing, and
in placing the J-rubber seal on the
bottom of the leaves.
This J-rubber seal is a huge piece
o f weather stripping that is placed
on the bottom of the leaves and
when the gates are closed this seal
is compressed between the base sill
and the leaf. It is called by this
name because it is constructed of
rubber and is made in the shape of
a “ J.”
All work on the gates will be fin­
ished this week.
Two sets of gates are being in­
stalled in the north side of the lock
chamber where the fishway comes
from the main dam, across the
powerhouse and into the locks. The
first set o f these gates, known as
regulating gates, are placed in rela­
tive heighth between the water in
the lock chamber when the lower
gate is open and the tail water to
aid the fish in the lock chamber..
When the lift is to made another
set of gates, known at the closure
gates slip into place blocking this
hole into the locks chamber entirely.
Stop logs, which have been used
as a cofferdam on the lower end of
Two weeks ago the Columbia river o i f Locks Island at Cascade Locks was a roaring, churning sea of white
the locks must be removed and sev­
water. Today, with the water raised 20 feet by lowering of the Bonneville dam gates, only a few white
eral other small jobs are to be wound
splashes remain, far out in the mid die.
________________________________ ____________________________
0 _________
_____________________
up.
In the location of the former rap­
ids at Cascade Locks, two small
rocks remai*. to be blasted, leaving
the channel nearly to full depth to
The Dalles.
♦
The Bonneville Dam Chronicle this
week received word from Ralph N.
Chipman, president of the Chipman
Chemical Company of New Jersey,
confirming eastern press reports that
his company is planning the erection
of a plant at Cascade Locks for the
manufacture of products used in the
eradication o f noxious weeds. The
information was in reply to a letter
sent by the Chronicle pledging the
support of the newspaper and the
community to such an enterprise.
Mr. Chipman writes: “ Our com­
pany has for two years investigated
thé northwestern country in order to
establish a plant, primarily for the
manufacture of Sodium Chlorate and
other analogous chemicals. W e se­
lected the Cascade Locks territory
because it seemd to be particularly
adaptable and in close proximity to
the dam. We would undoubtedly
want to own our own power line
from the dam. W e are purchasing
certain real estate, in the hope that
the government will see fit to grant
us the basic power rate applicable
to the bus-bar of the dam so that
we will not pay according to trans­
mission lines where the rate is av­
eraged for long and short distances.
“ Our company has for a long num­
ber of years imported foreign chem­
icals of this class because the for­
eign governments subsidized their
power to this class of industry. In
other words, we have had to com­
pete with foreign low labor costs
plus subsidized power. Our chem­
icals would be used largely by the
farmer and would aid agriculture of
the northwest, as well as of course,
the local communities.
“ Our raw materials would be
largely from the northwest.
We
would, therefore, aid mining and
transportation in the supply of these
raw materials.”
Chipman also stated that he was
(Continued on page Eight)
Biographical Sketch o f
Bonneville Pow er A dm inistrator
Game Officials
Request Public
Sentiment
♦
The Oregon State Game Commis­
sion will hold its annual hearing re­
garding angling regulations on F ri­
day, February 11, 1938, in its offices
in 616 Oregon Building, Portland, at
10:00, a. m.
A t this time the 1938 angling sea­
sons and bag limits will be deter­
mined, and sportsmen and others
interested have been asked to sub­
mit their recommendations in regard
to the following:
1. Is present trout season satis­
factory?
2. Is present trout bag limit sat­
isfactory?
3. Is closing of any waters rec­
ommended?
4. Is the opening of any waters now
closed recommended?
Recommendations in writing should
be forwarded to the office of the
game commission not later than Sat­
urday, Feb. 5, in order that they may
be compiled and submitted in ad­
vance to the commission for con­
sideration. It is assumed that any
organization not furnishing recom­
mendations will be satisfied with
such regulations as are made by the
commission.
All regulations made at this meet­
ing will be embodied in the 1938 an­
gling synopsis and changes there­
after will not be considered by the
commission except in case of emer­
gency.
J. D. Ross, recently appointed by
the secretary of interior to be ad­
ministrator of the Bonneville project,
was born 65 years ago in the province
of Ontario Canada. A fter an unsuc­
cessful quest for gold in the Yukon
had helped him conquer an early ten­
dency to tuberculosis, he went to Se­
attle, Washington, where eventually
he became head of that city’s elec­
tric power system.
After thirty years of service, he
was arbitrarily discharged by Mayor
Frank Edwards just a day before
Seattle’s voters were to ballot on
turning over all power construction
to Mr. Ross’ department. That night
he went on the radio and urged the
voters to support the proposal des­
pite his abrupt dismissal. They did.
A few weeks later Seattle citizens
held a special election and recalled
Mayor Edwards for his part in the
ouster. The first act of his succes­
sor was to reinstate Mr. Ross.
During his short “ vacation” from
the superintendency of the Seattle
public power system, he was invited
by the Power Authority ,of the State
of New York to become consulting
engineer on the St. Lawrence W ater­
way Project. While serving in that
capacity he met Franklin D. Roose­
velt, then governor of the Empire
state. They became close friends and
exchanged views on all aspects of
the power problem.
In 1935 Secretary of Interior Ickes
called Mr. Ross to Washington to
assist and advise him on the electric
power construction program o f the
Public Works Administration. When
the Holding Company Act was
passed by Congress a few months
later, the President appointed Mr.
Ross to the Securities and Exchange
Commission to supervise the regis­
J. D and
. Ross,
Farmers
Oilmen Await
Opening Event
tration and regulation of corpora­
tions of that type. He occupied that ♦
Opening of the navigation locks of
position until October, 1937, when he
was named Administrator o f the Bonneville dam next month will
mark the coming-of-age of a thriving
Bonneville Project.
Mr. Ross' entire career has been new Oregon and Washington indus­
devoted to the production and dis­ try-inland transportation by water
tribution of electric power—both hy­ of petroleum products.
The development is an important
dro and steam. He never tires of re­
futing the contention that waterpow­ one, both for Pacific coast gasoline
er is more costly than steam-gener­ and oil marketers and for inland
ated energy. He says that any en­ empire farmers.
The former are expected to take
gineer who makes the statement that
steam is cheaper than hydro is advantage of the cheaper transpor­
"either hopelessly ignorant or sub­ tation to meet the growing competi­
sidized” On the Skagit River in the tion offered by Montana and W yo­
northwestern comer of the State of ming refiners for the markets of
Washington he has been supervising eastern Oregon and Washington and
(Continued on Page Five)
the development of one of the largest
hydroelectric plants in the country.
In the scenic setting of Seattle’s 1
hydroelectric plant at Diablo Dam, I
Mr. Ross has laid out a picturesque I
wonderland of tropical palms and
plants. From his father, William Mc­
Kenzie Ross, he received an endur­
ing appreciation of trees and flowers,
and each summer thousands of tour­ ♦
ists come from all over the west to
'Phe Bonneville P.-T. A. will hold
see to botanical gardens he has laid its regular meeting at 2:30 p. m.
out deep in the Cascade Mountains, next Wednesday, January 5, at the
within sight of eternal snows and icy school auditorium.
glaciers. On the steep hillsides he
A panel discussion of particular in­
has cultivated plants and ferns na­ terest to parents and teachers of
tive to tropical jungles, and brightly transient children is being arranged
colored squirrels from Brazil and by Mrs. Fred Downing, program
Mexico leap from the lofty fir trees chairman.
that surround the canyon. At night
Hostesses for the afternoon will be
a flood o f colored light plays on the mothers o f the eighth graders,
the dashing majesty of Ladder Creek Mrs. J. F. Dow in charge.
Falls as it cascades downward from
“ What School Should Mean to
the glacier five thousand feet above. Children,” from the January issue
The entire scene is enhanced by mel­ of the National Parent-Teacher mag­
odies from Strauss and Wagner and azine, will be the subject of discus­
other music masters that reverberate sion at the study group at 1:30 p. m.
between the granite walls—electric Mrs. C. J. Rabideau is to be the
(Continued on Page Eight)
leader.
P .-T. A. Group
Will Meet
January 5
MARRIAGE ANNOUNCED
Mr. and Mrs. W. O. MacKinnon
announce the marriage of their
daughter, Leva Marguerite MacKin­
non, to Henry Phillips o f Carmon,
Wis., son of Lenore Phillips and the
late Casper Phillips.
The young couple were married at
Stevenson, Wash., at the home of
Dr. and Mrs. H. R. Brown, Dec. 28,
1937.
Ballot Favors
‘Bonneville' as
Lake Name
♦
With 149 ballots cast so far in The
Chronicle’s straw vote on naming the
new lake formed by Bonneville Dam,
Lake Bonneville was far in the lead
with 59 votes. Columbia Lake was
second in yesterday’s counting with
28, followed by Lake Waucoma. with
20. Seven votes each were recorded
for Lake Cascade, Lake Roosevelt
and Lake Oregon.
New suggestions since the last is­
sue of the Chronicle which have been
credited with one vote each are Lake
Hood and Lake o f the Gods.
One family in the dam area was
unanimous in choosing Lake Bonne­
ville and sent in seven votes to add
to the total for the leading term.
A ballot form will be found on page
3 o f this issue, on which any one in
the dam area may record his choice
and forward the ballot to the Sun
Publishing Co., Hood River, Ore.
W E ATH E R REPORT
Following is a record o f rainfall
and temperatures in the dam area
for the past week, as recorded by C.
A. Saunders at the Cascade Locks
government station;
Max. Min. Prec.
Dec. 22 . . 42 36
Dec. 23 ... 40 32 .06
Dec. 24 .. 40 33 .75
Dec. 25 .. 43 32 1.8
Dec. 26 .. 47 # . 1.13
Dec. 27 .. 56 34 2.62
Dec. 28 . .. 62 54 .39