588 



NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



So long as the possibility exists of a draft upon the river equal 

 to one-half of its minimum flow, this 2523 net horsepower is prac- 

 tically rendered useless to its owners by reason of the uncertainty 

 as to the exact time of the draft, or if not rendered useless, is far 

 less valuable than if it were absolutely permanent power. In 

 enforcing this view it may be pointed out that Rochester is a 

 manufacturing town, made up chiefly of establishments using com- 

 paratively small quantities of power at each place, but that the 

 power must still be continuous every day; that is to say, it must 

 be permanent power. So long, therefore, as one-half the total 

 minimum power of the stream is subject to stoppage during any 

 month, the manufacturers will preferably use steam power, on 

 account of its permanency, even at considerably greater expense. 

 Bearing on this view it may be pointed out that the use of soft 

 coal in Rochester for steam purposes is fully 500,000 tons a year, 

 which, at an average price of |2.40 per ton, amounts to the sum 

 of |1,200,000 annually. It may be considered settled, therefore, 

 that waterpower is valuable at Rochester, and that anything 

 which tends to reduce the permanent power 50 per cent is a 

 serious matter to the manufacturers of the city. 1 



Comparison of Mount Morris and Portage sites. As a further 

 point in the discussion of Genesee river storage, comparison will 

 be made between the Mount Morris project, storing 7,370,000,000 

 cubic feet at a cost in 1904 of about $3,500,000, and the Portage 

 project storing 15,000,000,000 cubic feet, at an estimated cost in 

 1904, of $3,250,000, for the purpose of determining the relative 

 commercial advantages. 



With the reservoir at Mount Morris storing 7,370,000,000 cubic 

 feet there is 282 feet fall, on which 7,370,000,000 cubic feet, less 

 the quantity required for the canal, may be applied for power 

 purposes. As already explained, the constant outflow from the 

 reservoir would never be less than 300 cubic feet a second. Con- 

 tinuous power development under this plan would, therefore, be 

 based on 300 cubic feet a second at Mount Morris, something more 

 than this at Geneseo and York, and on 600 cubic feet a second at 

 Rochester. On this basis of computation it appears that the total 



IThe new project for a barge canal does not contemplate taking water 

 from the Genesee river. This part of the argument is however allowed to 

 stand as an illustration of conditions existing in the State of New York. 



