The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1892-07-21
EAST JERSEY CLAIMS.
Why the Company Cannot be
Paid by Newark for
Water.
CONDEMNATION PROCEEDINGS
The City Paying Out Money for
Pumping-Coyert Threats.
specfal to the Jerseu Citu Ms,r..

NEWARK. July 20, 1892.-Pequannock
water still flows through the pipes of this
city. The quality has greatly improved.
and little fault has been found with the
water for several weeks. 1t will continue
to flow in spite of the insinuation in Pres
ident E. P. Wilbur's letter to the Board
of Works:-"Nothing under our contract
calls on US to continue furnishing water
without receiving pay thereof" " This may
be construed as a covert threat, but it is
doubtful if the East Jersey Water Com
pany will go any further than possibly to
openly threat to cut off the water if the
four million is not paid. Should the
water company put the threat into exe-
cutior, there can be no doubt that the
Chancellor would interfere. 1t costs the
company no more to allow the water to
flow than it would to have the pipes
empty. The keepers must be retained at
the reservoirs, and, as far as can be seen,
the operating expense is the same wheth
er the water is running or not.
NO CLEAR TITLE ITSELF.
The company does not yet own under a
clear title the water it is delivering at
Newark. There are other claimants to
the water and their rights are now pend
ing a decision. 1t is Newark and not the
water company that is endeavoring to as
certain what these rights amount to and
how much must be paid to the claimants,
although the East Jersey Water Com
pany, under its contract with the city.
must foot the bills.
If the East Jersey Water Company does
not own clear title to the water, how
can it sell to the city and demand imme-
diate payment for what some otner par
ties claim a large interest in? 1t could
sell the reservoirs, the lands, dams, gates,
right of way ana the big pipe, but the
water it cannot sell until 1t has first ac-
quired clear right to it. The works it
wants pay for have not been completed
according to the specifications of the con.
tract, and the pipes have not been tested
by the city's engineers.
OILERS AT BELLEvILLE.
Ever since the water was turned on in
May there has been continual doubt about
the permanence of the flow, and fires
have been kept burning at Belleville,
where full force of men is retained.
The only saving to the city is in coal not
consumed. The wages of the men go on,
and the boilers are kept hot SO that steam
can be gotten up in a few minutes. Then
a large section of the city which is cover
ed by the special high service has never
been supplied by gravity from the Pee
quannock source, Water from the Pc
Quannock River has been served, there to
be sure, but all Of 1t has had TO be pumped
into Roseville after flowing into the cis-
terms at the Clifton avenue pumphouse
near Branch Brook. One big pump is con-
stantly running for the special high SER
vice, and it is not yet known by the city's
engineers whether the gravity flow can be
depended upon to supply that part of the
city. Enough pressure has not been put
upon the three-foot pipe running from the
H1llAViiI6
Orange avenue to demonstrate this phase
of the problem. 1t is said that the water
company has not yet dared to put tha
requisite pressure on. For two weeks.
while the, gates in the three-foot pipe
were being changed, the water was
pumped into the South Orange reservoir
through its old channels, but it was Pc
quannock water, and in spite of all these
defects and difficulties President Wilbur
demands pay for it, and says in his
letter.
WANTS LONG TEST.
''1n so large a contract as this, it Is inn
possible, short of test of years, to de-
termine all questions that can be raised.
but the material fact remains that our
works are completed, were completed in
the time called for in the contract, and
are delivering water to you which is of
the quality and quantity called for by the
contract"
The matter of settling the question of
making payment to the East Jersey
Water Company lies with Colonel E. L.
Price, City Counsel Guild and ex-City
Counsel Coult They have held confer
ence with the engineers employed by the
city and will shortly hold another. Then
they will be ready to report to the Board
of Works
The matter of settling with the mill
power owners on the Pequannock aud
condemning their water rights is pro-
crossing. The Commissioners are Henry
w. Miller. of Morristown, Chairman;
Frederick Garfield, of Dover, Secretary;
aud Frederick Adams, of this city.
On July s the Commissioners met at
Butler. aud. after organizing, rode to
Macopin intake reservoir and back. On
the return trip, they visited the Two paper
mills, the excelsior mill and the Butler
Hard Rubber Company's extensive plant.
Another meeting will be held in the near
future with counsel present, and testi-
lnony will probably be taken.