Theodore
Schad
But the fact that it was getting me back in the water resources field didn't really
enter into my decision. However, I had worked on flood control with the Corps
and working with water had a lot more appeal than surveying for chemical
warfare depots.
So the appeal of working on irrigation, of going out West--I'd never been out
West-and also of getting into the professional category made my decision
easy, particularly because I was mad over there being somebody else hired, and
paid more money than I was getting, and deciding he was going to do my work
over. Thus, it didn't take me long to accept that job. And by early October, I
was on my way to Denver.
When I got there and reported for work something happened that changed the
plan. When I reported for work they said, "Mr. Schad, we're sorry, but your
physical exam doesn't permit us to approve you for field work. Of course, I
said, "Well, I've been doing field work all summer, doing surveying. They
still didn't approve my doing fieldwork, so I took the alternative position they
offered in the Spillway Design Section.
So I started to work for the Bureau of Reclamation in October 1940 in the
office of the chief engineer. And it turned out to be very interesting work.
When I went out to Denver even though I'd lived away from home down in
southern Maryland surveying for the power lines, I felt that I was all alone and
a long way from home. In those days, it took the better part of four days to
drive from Baltimore to Denver. There were no interstate highways. You drove
U.S. Route 30, because that was the only one that was paved all the way.
Route 40 had one section in Kansas that was still gravel at that time. Maybe
some of the southern routes were paved all the way. I don't know.
So, I took the Lincoln Highway which passed just below Chicago and after
crossing Iowa went up the Platte River valley and through Nebraska. At some
point west of Ogalalla, Nebraska, I felt a great thrill when I started going up
the hill, climbing out of the Platte valley on to the high plains. It just seemed
that you went up and up and up and up, as the road leveled and then rose
again. And I just felt as if I were going up to heaven, there was such a feeling
of exultation. It was so wonderful I still remember the feeling today,
years
later, driving
miles an hour-everybody always drove
miles an hour then
when you got out of the city-there were no speed limits on the open road.
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