Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1895-12-02

and 1t Is safe to assert that every shallow
well in densely populated metropolitan
| district Is. or soon will be, menace to
| the public health"
Twenty-nine water meters were placed on
premises during the year, making the num-
Der of meters in use at the end of the
| year 202. 1t was desired to extend the
| meter service for all consumption of water
for commercial purposes. and generally to
| all large consumers, as the law contem-
| plates. An objection by the consumers to
the introduction of meters is the first cost
| of good, reliable meters Of sufficient ca
| pacity. Private ownership of meters has
| proven unsatisfactory for the public in
| tereSts. To obviate the objection, and to
select, own and control the meters. the
water department proposed to buy Them
only requiring the consumer to pay Tor
| erection and maintenance The controller
1 Of the treasury decided, however, that the
consumer should. under the law, provide
the meter as well ss place and maintain
| 1t. Rigid measures as far as legal. were
then applied. with the result that since
June 80. 1895. ITS additional meters have
\ been put in use.
| making water main assessments invalid
| where laid by the Commissioners and not
| by the water registrar. an office which mas
| been vacant for several years. has result
| ed in a severe reduction of the expected
| revenues of the water department, and
| will thereby curtail intended extensions of
| the service. The granting of authority in
| this case to make reassessments appears
| just to the property owners who have
| paid their assessments and otherwise prop
| en-, and may obviate the necessity of an
appropriation from the general revenues
| for the aid of the water department
| The urgent needs of the water service
are greater supply of water and especial
| ly greater facilities for bringing water to
| the city, and thus restoring water pressures
to what they were in 1890. when the forty
| eight-inch main was laid The area which
| could and should be served by gravity Is
bounded by elevations of about 100 rect.
| But from lack of sufficient pressure there
| Is a continuing expense of pumping Tor
| the area above the eighty-fve-feet con-
| tour. The gravity area Is gradually being
| further contracted from increased draft
| on the mains and consequent diminution of
pressure.
Street Lighting and Inspection of Chs
| and Meters.
| Proposals were rnceived, after advertise
| ment, for lighting the public lamps by min
| eral oil and naphtha only. No proposals
| were received for gas or electric lighting.
| A contract was made for naphtha lighting
| at ST. per lamp per year for burning from
| forty minutes after sunset to forty MN
| utes before sunrise. or 3,S2S hours per year.
Such lamps were substituted for Oil lamps
previously used. The naphtha lamps are In
| alleys and outlying districts, and numbered
| at the end of the year S6S
| Gas ugntER was COntlIueu. Dut Hol iii
| der formal contract. The gas COMPANIES
insisted upon payment of the maximum
price. 5000 per lamp per year fer the min
imum period, 5000 hours, as named In the
| appropriation item, with an allowance or
| deduction from such period of one hour per
night for times of lighting and extinguish-
ing. The Commissioners Offered to make
| this allowance oEe-half hour. The offer
| was declined. The period of full burning
| of the gas lamps which actually obtained
for the year was EGGS hours. and the num-
| Der of lamps a, the end Of the year was
613S
| The exiting service of arc lighting In
Washington was likewise continued with
out formal contract. Eight lamps were
sions making the number in service at the
end Of the year 33s. The average price
paid was a little less than 40 cents per
lamp per night. the maximum price named
in the appropriation act. The time of
lighting was reduced in nearly the same
ratio below that to which the maximum
price applied. viz from sunset to sunrise
or 1900 hours per year.
| The gas and electric lighting companies
failed to submit bids for the fiscal year
1896
| cepted for naphtha lighting. This is an in
| crease of s. over the price for 1875. not
| withstanding that the new specifications
| secured an Increased number of lamps of at
least 49, and a decrease of period of burning
. from 3S2S hours to $500 hours, with an
allowance to the latter period of one-half
| hour per night.
| Two thousand seven hundred and thir
teen gas meters were inspected and proved
| during the year. The average candle pow
err of gas supplied by the Washington Gas
| Light Company was 1853 candles: that sup
| piled by the Georgetown Gas Light Com
| pany was 1857. Sulphureted hydrogen was
| found present on many occasions in the
| Washington gas. This offensive and dele
| FERROUS impurity is not included in the list
| of impurities named for supervision In the
| act of 1874 regulating gas works.
| Excess of ammonia was found in the
| Georgetown gas eight times, ard excess OF
| sulphur twenty-nine times The Commits
sioners renew their recommendation of last
| year for the enactment of bill increasing
| District and limiting its price to private
| consumers and in public buildings to 81 per
| thousand cubic feet.
| Sewer Department..
| A feature of last years sewer construc-
| ton was a more extended of concrete
| in large sewers. In concrete sewers the in
| vert surface is of vitrified brick; the re-
mainder of the sewer is entirely of concrete.
In eacn case bids were less for the concrete
sewer than for the brick sewer.
| Besides the work of cleaning and repair
| ing sewers, replacing INSTRUCTED sewers and
building relief sewers and main and branch
| sewers. the following named larger works
| were constructed:
The 9th and 18th street trunk sewers
| southeast were extended to tidewater. The
| authorized part of the large Easby's Point
| sewer, whose construction has been under
| the continuing contract system for two
| years, was substantially completed. This
part extends from the Potomac river at
| Easby's Point, passing south of the old OBJ
| servatory site and across the White Lot to
| 18th street west and Pennsylvania avenue
| The sewer receives sewage and drainage
from territory whose northern limit is at
| Iowa circle and eastern one at eth street
west, and diverts to the river the principal
part of the sewage which was formerly
emptied into the 1Ith street canal. The
| Rock creek intercepting sewer was extend
| ed to the Geological Park from next below
| Woodl ey road; construction is now in prog
, ross on the part through the park to the
outlet of the Piney branch trunk sewer.
The last District appropriation act made
| provision for n part of the Rock Creek and
| b street interceptor of the adopted plan of
| Sc wage disposal for Washington. This part
| will extend from near Q street to G street,
| where 1t will temporarily terminate at the
| Potomac river. The construction of these
| links along Rock creek will complete a con-
| tinuous sewer of large capacity from the
| Rock Creek Church road to the Potomac
| river. which will carry the principal part of