The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1893-10-03
coMPANY GUARANTEED NOTHING.
Th-refore the Defrauded Taxpayers Of
Tacoma Have NO Recourse

Therefore the uefrauded taxpayers VI
Tacoma Have NO Recourse.
TACOMA, Oct. Especial. l-Ex-Superin-
tendent c. B. Hurley. of the Ia,oma
Light and Water Company. was asked to-
day what he thought of Rudolph Her
ing's report upon the dow of the Patter-
son springs and the data furnished him
by Mr.. Sellers, the representative of Mr..
Wright. upon which it is said be based his
estimate. Mr.. Hurley said:
az have always considered Mr.. Herring one OF
tho best hydraulic engineers IN the country,
and man who could not be bought II be ac-
cepted the statements OF Ar. Sellers or anybody
else In making his report he. in my opinion
did very wrong thing. His reputation was at
s.ake..aud he should have learned the facts
himself Mr. sellers has studiei the formation
out there, and his estimates ought TO be very
valuable do .1ot believe the city can hold
the water company for the reported shorfsge
understand IL, but the average municipality
does not know much about what Ii does in such
matters When the water company wished TO
fad out the facts regarding the water supply in
this vicinity 1t engaged tse best EXPERT talen.
In the country TO do IL. Yes, OF course. the city
should have known just what IL was getting be-
fore it bought"
Even at the high figure paid, Mr.. Hurley
states that there was money IN the transaction
for the city. That is, there would have been
enough snd more money taken our for wa ter
service. 10 pay iutsrcst and operating expenses
provided the plant as sold was actually Is il was
represented 70 be II the city is 70 lose the 1n0oo
00o-gallon daily supply counted on and bargain
ed for from the Patterson and Thomss springs,
and has TO pay SIS 900 to secure supply else
where, 1t will virtually be that amount out
However. Mr.. Hurley still believes that much
more water can be had at Patterson springs BY
the building of cross section impervious dam
TO bedrock This will cost $500 or more. Re-
gaIding the rental ON the water meters which It
is proposed 10 place with some OF the larger
consumers, Mr.. Hurley has this 10 say:
..The water department, and not the con-
sumers. ought to pay the rental. favor meters
BY all means for a pumped supply and also for
q gravity supply. IL prevents waste, and the
waste throughout the United States amounts 70
from % to 50 per cent At Seattle the consumer
has - pay the meter rental and Tacoma is
about to adopt the seattle plan In cases where
a consumer demands larger meter than his
consumption warrants, then he should be
or number OF meters. II would cost. roughly
estimated So 0J 70 meter this city. The life of
q meter Is about twelve years"
II has been stated here that q shipload OF
water pipe ordered by the water company about
the time the plant was ordered sold TO the city,
and which should have bean part of the pnr-
chase, has never turned up, and the inference
has been that the company has it somewhere
out Of sight Mr.. Hurley says there was only
one cargo OF pipe. This. he says. was delivered
on the wharf, only to fall into the hands Of the
made their seizure of the disputed property hsld
by the company.
Under the management OF the city Mr. Hurley
says he Is aware Of how saving OF SIS COO could
bs made. which under the company's manage
ment was spent.