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278 HISTORY OF LOS ANGELES COUNTY

Consequently, in May, 1914, an additional power bond issue of $6,500,000
was voted for the purpose of extending the development work and also
for building or procuring by negotiation a distributing system in the city
itself . .
. Los Angeles is already finding that her municipally owned, almost inex-
haustible and cheap water· supply, together with unlimited and cheap
electric power, is to be the deciding factor in making of Los Angeles one
of the large manufacturing cities of the United States. Other contributing
factors, of course, being the climate, which makes almost continuous work
possible, and the harbor, which provides shipping facilities to and from
all parts of the world.
In the old days, Los Angeles, tied down by coal at $9 to $11 a ton,
could not compete as a manufacturing city with districts having cheap fuel
available. Then came the year of California oil development which reduced
the price of fuel more than half, and manufacturing began to show its head
as a possibility. Now the city is entering on its third year from the basis
of manufactures, and power development and distribution now make
possible successful competition in manufacturing with any city in the
United States.
This, therefore, is practically the story of the Owens River Aqueduct.
But the mere relation of the facts leaves out much that the imagination
must supply. It was a bold stroke. Courage of the very highest order was
necessary even to merely consider so gigantic an undertaking. It is not
every city of the size of Los Angeles in 1905 that would have had the
vision to go 250 miles afield over strange deserts and under mountain
peaks to corral a river and lead it captive to its gates.
But it is achievements of this nature that have made Los Angeles what
it is today and what it is to be tomorrow.