Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-03-12
MESSAGE FROM THE MAYOR.
Believes That an Issue of Sewer Bonds Acetves Another Setback.

Believes That an Issue of Sewer Bonds
 is Not Needed-The New Charter Re-
 Aceives Another Setback.
 Mayor Kilduff presided at the meeting 1 of the board of aldermen last night. The following petitions were referred to the sewer board: Of Belinda Donegri. for sewer in Camp street, and of George B. Brown for permission to tap the water main at it's terminus on North Main street, | A petition was received from Mrs Martin Hellmann asking for the payment of S342, fl expenses incurred by the city attorney in foreclosure suit brought by the estate of the late Tax Collector Martin Hellmann, The matter was referred to the board of finance.
 4 recommendation of the committee on additional water supply that 1000 be offered to James Roberts and $4,000
 to Catlin Brothers as payment in full of all
 damages for the diversion of water
 at the West Branch was adopted. re-
 commendation of the board of finance that
 it be authorized to make a temporary loan
 of $50, 900 was adopted.
 On motion of Alderman Halpin. second
 ed by Alderman Condon. the recommends
 ton of the board of road commissioners
 that Washington street, between Baldwin
 and Dublin streets. be laid out and that said
 layout be referred to the board of compen-
 sation for an assessment of benefits and
 damages, was adopted.
 The proposition of J. s. Newell to &C.,
 cept s, ,000 in liew of all damages occasioned
 by rhe change of water course was ac-
 cepted.
 On motion of the two aldermen from the
 fourth ward so much of the report of the
 law committee as related to James Hart
 nett who asked,for damages for injuries
 received on Liberty street, was reconsid-
 cred and the matter referred back to the
 law committee.
 Mayor Kilduff offered the following
 message in reference to the matter of
 bonds for sewage disposal:
 To the Honorable Court of Common Coun-
 Gil:
 Gentlemen-Thism matter has run along
 in a sort of an easy way, everybody taking 1t for granted on the say-so of interested parties, and able attorneys, that the city is
 guilty. and the only question is, in what
 way it shall act to repair the wrong 1t IS
 doing. I have been willing to permit ap-
 application to be made to the legislature
 for permission to issue this large amount
 of bonds, with the thought that we were
 not committing ourselves to anything in taking these formal steps to what the fu-
 ture might show we might have to do. am told however. that it is being said that the city is forejudging the case, and that it is slipping along into a position from ! which it cannot extricate itself except by } the full shouldering of responsibility for taking care of our sewage in a way to please those living below us on the Nauga- tuck river.
 In view of this impression which is get ting abroad that the application for per mission to issue these bonds will practical ly mean that the city must issue such B bonds, and that it so admits itself as liable
 in thIs matter. I wish to urge upon you the desirability of withdrawing the appli- 3 cation for the right to issue these bonds. | The city has on hand tremendous neces- sary expenses, and it cannot afford to 7 take on other expenses unless necessary.
 It desires to treat all men fairly, but it must remember that it has some rights of
 itself Now that the question has come
 up in this way, think it time for the city
 to stand squarely up in defense of it's own
 rights. and in the maintenance of its prop n CT position.
 The question of the disposal of sewage , will always be a troublesome one where : ever there are people. The lonely dweller , in a waste territory has no trouble from n other peoples sewage; a community has f the aggregated rights of individuals; man . has certain physical necessities; these be- e come rights; if you kill the man, there is O no further question as to where he uses
 these rights. Factories have their refuse I that must go into the streams; you can stop
 this by shutting down the factories. A f community has to have sewage, and it be- | comes greater. The men can be killed 5 the factories can be shut down; the eom- | munity can be moved away, and then there
 will be no trouble about sewage. The
 Naugatuck rlver is waterway. built by
 God and by nature, for the carrying away
 of Waterbury's sewage; 1t is not a flat and
 listless stream; it is a bright and rushing
 river with a good incline, and especially
 adopted to the need of this place, and lei t alone, with the water let to flow as God
 and nature have arranged for it to flow . there will be DO trouble from Waterbury,
 sewage to anyone.
 > The situation has greatly changed fron
 the time that man could build dau : across such a river, and claim that he had " rights which were greater than any Othel rights. Thy guilty party in this matter is . not the city of Waterbury; it IS the people = at Platt's Mills. and at other places dowI n the stream who have erected dams across : the river. They have a dam which stop a everything sets the sewage back and holds
 it there, and then they smell of it and they
 don't like it Let them tear down thei
 dam. and>fet the refuse go on down th'
 sound; let it go where it will for all o l. them. They should not stop it. If the! r. stop it they should do so for their owI le pleasure and not for our expense. s It is said that they have 'prior right Is to their dam there. I say that the law o Is the country is based upon the idea of th' le largest liberties to the individual consis Nt tent with the general good. Now, shal le half a dozen people settle down there ant n erect barrier which causes a nuisance t. e. this whole city of Waterbury, and clain le that their little petty right is greater thai l. the practical necessities and rights of thu r. city of Waterbury? The Waterbury sew
 age now flows in good order into the Naug
 atuck river, where it has a right to go, ant $ where it will make no trouble if left alone @ There Is such d thing as greater public Is rights brushing aside minor individua m rights, and if such rights as the claiu ss against this city in thls sewage bushes
 could be maintained by individuals in diff
 ferent ways, there would be no city gov G. ernment here at all, nor would there b' l. any government anywhere. That is wha B We have a government for; to decide upor ,r the greatest good to the greatest number of With these people at Platts Mills, who d. t. not like this sewage. I have sympathy ts I have sympathy with anybody who Il , bothered with anything. but I cannot con 10 slider their interest as amounting to mucl t. compared with the great interests of thu ic growing place; nor can I sit idly by and @ permit this matter to run along. as if tn " city was committing some great wrong n when believe the wrong is on the othe a- side. and that power should be secured if es through the city or town authorities, Wa ,e terbury st present has not already sucl al power, and we should cut hole througt
 Al T "A GaWn EN l- barrier that any private parties may see fi al to erect or maintain, that will cause on