Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-01-08

Two features of the District appropria-
tion bill reported to the House yesterday
are of great general interest, viz, the
practical proposition toward increase of
the citys water supply and the effort to
reach solution of the garbage problem.
Tie question of a sufficient supply of pure
water has of late been made prominent by
neutrality-suspicious. shortcomings, so
Ii was with real interest that the people
of the District who reside on the higher
levels read of the committees recommen-
dalton of an appropriation of S125UO0 for
raising the height of the dam at Great
Falls. The necessity for this has often
and strongly been presented to Congress
by Col George III. Elliot the engineer
officer in charge of the Washington aque-
duct. In his annual report of operations
during the last fiscal year. Col. Elliot
stated that during the past summer COM
plants OF the scarcity OF water were many.
and that they came not only from the
higher parts of the city. supplied by grav-
ity. but from other portions of the Dis
trict whence complaints have never before
issued. Since then the area of high serv-
Ice has been steadily extended. and, as a
matter of course, there has been decrease
in the pressure. In the report referred to,
Col. Elliot says:
Il should further remark in connection
with this subject that the object OF rails
ing the hei d of water at the intake OF the
conduit is to increase the velocity through
the conduit. and thus enable IL TO bring
more water down from Great Falls and in
to the distributing reservoir, to the end
that the water in this reservoir may be
kept up to it's proper height of l45 feet
above datum IL may be found. however.
that even with the water in the distribut
ing reservoir at this height. 1T will not re-
store the preSSureS in the city (which by
reason of the rapid increase in consump-
ton and waste are constantly falling) to
what they We're when the iS-inch main,
which L laid in 1890. was first put in opera
ton. In this case it will be necessary at
orce to finish the tunnel connecting the
distributing reservoir with the new reSer-
voir near Howard University. or to lay
another 4S-inch main from the distributing
reservoir to and through the city. 1t should
be understood, however. that neither of
these is the alternative of raising the dam
at Great Falls. which must be done in any
case and with the least delay practi- |
cable"
The bill. however. makes no provision for |
doing anything with the Lydecker tunnel |
perhaps because the committee thought a |
little procrastination might be excusable |
under present Treasury conditions-but the |
authorities should do their utmost to per-
suade the Senate committee that there
walton of the tunnel proceed. to the end
that it may be utilized In some way, while
the work of heightening the dam is being
carried on. 1t may be that Congress will
not at this time listen patiently to a propo-
sition looking to the refining of that SER
pentine hoie-in- playground which will al
ways be Lydeckers most fitting monu-
ment. but there Is no reason why the
mains needed should not be laid In the tun-
nell The expense of pumping out and
keeping comparatively dry that structural
great. while the advantage of having the
mains where inspection would be easy is
surely evident enough to merit general in
dorsement.
The provisions of the bill as to the col
lection and disposal of garbage place in
the hands of the District Commissioners
authority that properly applied can hardly
fail to bring about better state of at
fairs than any this city has known in all
the history of its refuse-handling troubles
The choice between the modern methods
of cremation and reduction is left entirely
to the Commissioners. while what appears
to be a sufficient sum of money is appro-
priated TO put the tentative reform in
good working order. AS soon as the bill
becomes a law-it may be at an earlier
date-the Commissioners will doubtless in
vestigate as to methods of disposal and
as soon thereafter as possible will put in
operation the plant they deem best suited
to the surrounding conditions.