The evening world., 1888-07-16
THATCOSTLY AQUEDUCT DAM
IS THE WORK AT QUAKER BRIDGE A MEN,
ACE TO PROPERTY AND BEALTHp

Engineer Horne,s Timely Statement OF the
Pending Dnpger-A Scientific Plan 70
Bring the Mater Down In an Open Cat
Less Costly and Moro Efficient than the
Dnms-Wretched Contract Work.
In view of the disclosures now being made
in the Senate Committees investigation Of
affairs pertaining to the new Aqueduct, IL
would perhaps be well for the taxpayers of
New York to take some me asures for ascer-
tanning the best, most expeditions and
cheapest means for procuring the water sup
ply for the new work.
1t is generally understood that IL will re-
quire six wears to construct the Quaker
Bridge Dam. The cost will be at least
$4,000, 900, and It will cost ut least $1,000 900
more for other matters connected with that
scheme.
In the construction of 1t the very best
meadow and grazing lands of Westchester
county will be submerged, q large portion of
the village of Katona, together with q valu-
able water power. will be destroyed, while
almost the entire village of Purdys and two
mill seats will be obliterated.
Then comes the Sodom Dam, the esti-
mated cost of which l do not know, but il liz
W Dc u large OIL uCtuIt, huu, u course, ex-s
pensive. Next comes the Muscoot Dam, the
top of which must be at the same elevation as
the Quaker Bridge Dam. and all the water
stored back of that, and which will comprise
q large proportion of all contained in the en-
tire basin, will avail nothing towards the
supply, as the State Board of Health requires
that portion Of the reservoir must be kept
full 10 the top of the lam.
The present or old Aqueduct carries all tho
water flowing in the Croton River for more
than one-half the year, and when the new
one is opened the time of having O surplus to
flow over the dam will be much less, n the
immense reservoir will only be filed ct
times of food and freshet, when the water
Is foul with oil manner of villa nous things,
so that in q quarter of o century you will
have the greatest cesspool in the world.
A much better scheme than that of build
ing the proposed big dams would undoubt-
edlv be to bring the water from the lakes in
the Adirondack mountains or that vicinity,
in the omen canal to the headwaters of the
Croton River or its tributaries.
This canal must necessarily be about one
hundred miles long, which would allow
500 600 per mile to bring its cost up to that
of the Quaker Bridge Dam alone.
The reservoirs are ready built by nature.
and will cost nothing but q charter or fran
chise, while the supply of water would be
pure and abundant, aud as laws have been
enacted to preserve the forests in that region,
the waters will in all probability be as plenti-
full as now.
The objection raised to the plan by an
eminent engineer OF the city in regard to sur
face water flowing into the canal is easily
terial excavated from the canal along the
banks, properly grading and either paving or
seeding 1t to prevent its washing oyercomes
Another objection by the same party in re-
gard to the water freezing as our great State
canals do has really no existence, it having
been already ascertained that there is fall
enough on the route to maintain q current of
three miles an hour, which would prevent
solid ice from forming except in extremely
cold weather.
two feet deep. it would not matter, as the
channel would have an area underneath the
ice to keep the Aqueduct filled to its utmost
capacity. Anchor ice would probably cause
some trouble, but only in the very coolest
weather, and then only where the channel is
crooked. This can very easily be taken care
OF by having basins excavated at the sideNof
the canal at convenient distances apart and
booms placed diagonally across the channel.
with a foot plank for q man to stand on and
rake the floating ice into the basins.
great consideration is that the water
flowing at the rate of three miles an hour
would come directly from its source to the
Central Park reservoir in its cri NAL purity
and sweetness, instead of lying stagnated for
months in the great cesspool of Croton
Lake.
About four months time and a compare
lively sma | expense would furnish surveys
showing the feas bility of the scheme and
of the actual cost of the work. Two and one
half years from the time of breaking ground
ought to complete it and give to the city the
benefit of the new tunnel. The work being
on the surface could be let in small sections
and pushed rapidly.
The two schemes are both practical, but
which one Offers the best results is not to be
decided by engineering skill alone, but q de-
cision in which good judgment and common
sense will be large factors.
There is another item of expense connected
With the Quaker Bridge Dam scheme. viz:
the new highways, bridges and railroads that
must necessarily be rebuilt.
had the houor to make the surveys and
compute the cost of that work, and my recol-
lection is that the estimated cost for labor
and material, right of way not included,
showed about $l5S, 900.
! completed this work to the entire salts
faction of my superior officers, and then for
a time don't think my services were of any
great value to the commission, no more so
perhaps than the services of the two principal
assistant engineers, who were appointed on q
salary OF $500 per month each about that
time.
However. I continued on the work hoping
to he placed in a better position. until the in
vestlgatlon of 1886 commenced, when l was
sent out on the line to inspect certain por-
tons of work and report on the same.
l did so. reporting things as l found them.
both defective masonry and cords and cords
OF small woods, and even small limbs packed
in above the tunnel arch which was still al
lowed to go on, and is now, 1 believe, being
pad for as rubble masonry.
l suppose that If l had been willing to at
tend rehearsals daily before giving evidence
during that investigation I might have re-
lained n L~osition, but l testified TO what I
know TO be true, and wa consequently
counted out. soon ascertained, from q re-
Ii bic source, that the so-called Craven gang
had got to get ouI. SO | rasinned 10 save