The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1894-02-16
The Newark Water Swindle and Its
Warning to Jersey City.

Warming to Jersey City.
A despatch from Paterson, pub
lished in THE NEWS yesterday, told
of the organization of the New Jersey
General Security Company with a
capital stock of So, 900. 900. of which
$500, 900 is paid up. The incor-
porators are George F. Baker. H. c.
Fahnestock, James A Garland, j. T.
Bartlett and Garret A. Hobart. The
projects of the company, among other
things, look to taking an interest in
city water supplies.
This is quite a pointer for Jersey
citizens. 1t behooves Mr.. Lebbeus b.
Ward, Mr.. James M. Flemming, DIR.
Gordon and others who are sincerely
opposed to the schemes of the swindle-
Gates to rub their eyes and get wide
awake. In the last few DAYS there
have again been murmurs of water in
the inner circles of municipal politics.
The very devious course of Max Sal
niger in trying to smother the Board
of Trade State Commission bill has
aroused general suspicion. There is.
besides, q we'll defined understanding
at Trenton that Hobart, having
for once secured a subservient
Republican Legislature, has a bill
ready for passage which will make it
impossible for Jersey City ever to get
a water supply on a public ba sis.
When his bill goes through, no choice
will be lett us between the reeking
Passaie and the old Bartlett swindle
cate. and we may as well surrender at
once. This incorporation just perfected
with it's very suggestive backing and
its big capitalization just falls in with
the current rumors The situation is
serious, we believe, and we are sincere
in warning the public to keep a watch
full eye on the neal future.
Onr Contemplating" sister across the
Passaic, is affording US a sad example
now Of the fate of cities which put
their trust in swindlecates. The City
of Newark has already paid out
81, DOC, 900 on account of an alleged
water supply. furnished to it by the
East Jersey Water Company and the
Lehigh Valley Railway Company. 1t
is pledged to pay So, 900, 900 more in a
few years time, when it is to finally
take title to the water plant
and rights and control of their
operations. The source of supply
thus sold" to Newark is the Pequan-
mock water shed, which for years Mr..
Bartlett tried to foist upon Jersey
City at his own inflated figures. The
companies contracting with Newark
covenanted to provide a supply
equivalent to 80, 600, 900 gallons of pure
water per diem-the Pequannock ca
pacity, we believe. is far in excess of
this amount-and the water works
were in all respects to be of ire
p~roachable excellence.
About the time when the 81, 600, 900
payment was Maidstone eighteen
months ago-it was conclusively
proven that the companies had de-
faulted upon every provision of their
contract which was applicable at that
time. The quality of the water was
bad, owing to bad construction of the
works, the daily flow was far below
the contract requirement, owing to
insufficiency in the works, and each
summer brought danger of a water
famine, owing to almost incredible
en- cheering errors in the location and
construction of the storage reservoirs.
This shameful d~efalcation or the part
of the companies did not prevent the
shameless Newark officials from MAX
ing the $4,000, 600 payment in Newark
CITY bonds. Only a few days ago. we
noted that the Lehigh Valley Rail-
road Company had sold So, SOC, 900
worth of them in Philadelphia for
about par.
In the last few weeks, the whole
unsavory topic has been raked up
again by the atrocious attempt OF the
Newark city ring to make the city
make good the ~defalcation of the East
Jersey Water Company by construct
ing a new storage reservoir within the
city limits at a cost of at least a mill
ion of dollars. It is unnecessary for
us TO go into the details of the Ivy
Hill scandal. Every newspaper reader
is familiar with it. There is also talk
OF constructing an additional pipe
line from the pequannock watershed
to supply the deficiencies of the So
600, 600 contract one at the expense of
the city, and we are privately
informed that there are designs
afoot to build new storage reservoirs
in the valley of the stream to remedy
tile blunders Of the Lehigh Valley
engineers. In short, there is every
reason to believe that, by the time the
process is complete, Newark's water
supply will have cost her from 3D.
900. 900 to Sf5, O00, 900, and we are as
sured by competent experts that the
sum total results could have been Sc
cured with honesty, skill and proper
economy for less than the 81. 600, 900
already paid.
The Newark Board of Trade is deep
III