Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1894-03-21

The provision IN the army appropriation
bill which aims TO divert some OF this cfty's
water-supply to Fort Myer has resulted IN
cnce more calling attention to a matter
that ought to deeply and personally inter-
est every resident Of Washington. That the
furnishing of sufficiency Of water to the
military post across the river will diminish
the quantity coming into this city is a self
evident fact That Fort Myer should have
all the good water IT needs is another of
these things that Is beyond question. That
Washington should be deprived Of the
water 1t needs and pays for In order that
Fort Myer or any other water-lacking point
In Virginia may have enough is criminally
unreasonable. At this time the city's
vater-supply is barely Sufficient. and when
hot weather comes the Pr. are will be re-
duced to such an extent that thousands OF
residents here will be seriously inconven-
fenced and the health OF the community
threatened. Such a condition demands and
Should receive immediate consideration by
Congress. Col. George II. Elliott, the En-
gineer officer in charge of the Washington
Aqueduct, has written very strongly as TO
the matter Of raising the Great Falls dam,
and has made IL plain that such work
must soon be pressed to a conclusion or a
water-famine in the more elevated portions
of the city will inevitably result. In his
last annual report TO the Chief of Engineers
Col Elliott said that at that time 1.-The
conduit was therefore Din respect of its
6iameter) only about three-quarters full at
Its head. A similar deficiency now obtains
every year during the time of low water at
Great Falls, and at such times, the weather
sumption and waste in the city greatly in
creased. have found. ever since laid the
4s-inch main. that the height of the dam
Is not sufficient during a considerable por-
ton Of every year to enable the conduit to
deliver into the distributing reservoir as
much water as is now consumed and wasted
In the city, and at the same time keep up
the head in the mains to 140 feet above
datum. which is necessary for the supply
by gravity OF the high northern portions
OF the city and of Capitol HILL" 1t is rea-
sonably estimated that for the sum of $1O2,-
600 the dam can be raised sufficiently to
insure all the water-supply Washington
will need for some few years to come. The
amount IS small; the necessity for its e1-
penditure great Not 50 long ago Congress
took the bit in its teeth and ran away on
the subject of an aqueduct tunnel which
proved to be utterly useless, but which
cost the District of Columbia more than
a million dollars-a tremendous injustice
for which there has been neither apology
nor reparation. In view of this well-estab-
nshed fact the national legislature could
conscIentiously appropriate whatever may
be needed to raise the dam at Great Falls
ard to give the water chance to purify |
itself in settling reservoir without dis
turbing the District of Columbia by the
rendering of any bills. But such an equita- |
bic and eminently just action is not looked
for. Congress will feel quite virtuous II It |
appropriates in the regular way; and to
this course 1t is urged by the appeals of
all water-using Washingtonians.