The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1896-06-11
DUNDEE DAM PLAGUE
Passaic Pollution Commits
sion Listens to the Com
plants of Sad
die River.
WATER MoNopoLY's NEW POINT
Malaria Increasing and Improved
Property a Drug on the Mar
ket-Remedy Proposed.

| journeyed out to Saddle River yesterday
afternoon to get from the inhabitants
of that ancient Bergen county township,
who live upon the bank of Dundee Lake,
| some views upon the pollution OF the
river at that point. Dundee Lake is
nothing more or less than a huge mill
| pond, caused by damming the Passaic
at a point two or three miles below the
city line of Paterson. This dam is about
fifteen feet high and was built thirty
odd years g by the Dundee Water
Company for the purpose Of supplying
power to mills and factories. A broad
canal a mile and a half long carries the
water to the mills as far down is Pas
sale City. The water enters the canal
through a big stone lock which conveys
at once the idea that it was built for
the purpose of locking boats and yes
sells from the river to the canal. In
fact when the Dundee Water Company
was incorporated its charter gave 1t the
right to use the canal for navigation.
but the concern never awaited itself OF
that privilege. Some time ago an en-
terprising Patersonian thought he saw
great possibilities both for himself and
his city by establishing navigation be-
tween Paterson and the lower river, at
tempted to compel the company to open
the canal to vessels, but nothing came
of it. DR.. Marsh of Paterson and DR..
Herold of Newark were the members of
the commission who attended yesterdays
meeting. Mr.. Hunt. the other commits
sioner, was obliged to be absent. Arriv-
ing at Paterson the Commission took
carriages and were driven around the
lake. The most noticeable feature of the
trip to a stranger was the This place
for SALE This farm for SALE signs
which adorned every place almost on
both banks of the water. This was all
fhA aarA u fn ~ n " rnr M no.
cause nature has provided few more de-
sirable spots for residences. The high
sloping, thickly shaded banks. the broad
expanse of water stretching away to the
opposite shore, when a background of
farm land and wooded hills, making a
beautiful picture, makes an ideal place
for a country home. That that has been
appreciated in the past was demonstrated
by the handsome villas that have been
built along the lake. But most of these
yesterday showed all the signs of me-
elect. The lawns were overgrown with
rank grass and weeds almost hid the
pebbles and cinders of the paths. Fences
were in a ~dilapidated condition and the
buildings had a general run-down-at-the-
neel air. OF course this was not true of
all the elegant places along the water.
The natural pride and love of order of
the owners of some of the places kept
them in repair. The only place which
appeared to thrive in the immediate
neighborhood was a cemetery. As the
l o3Oh6 tIC OdAhh vi iliC
laks. close to the waters edge, the cause
of this neglect and di1apidation was APP
parent. The shore was thick with a
mass of scummy water which barely hid
the piles of muck and foul-looking mud
which even in the cool air of yesterday
| afternoon emitted a nauseating. odor.
"And that is the stuff Jersey City
drinks" said one of the party.
1t was explained to this keen observer
that the water had many opportunities
to purify itself before it reached the
Jersey City reservoirs.
"Well, I don't care if 1t does" was
his reply, latter seeing this / won't
drink water In Jersey City again so long
as it comes from the Passaic."
The Commission drove on to the Saddle
River township school house, where a
large number of the townspeople were
waiting to air their grievances. Charles
e. Martin, president of the Township
Committee, presided.
The first speaker was e. LIE B. Gardner,
superintendent of The Dundee Water
Company. He gave a sketch of the
founding of the water company and the
building of the dam. He spoke of the
delightful conditions which existed along
took place. he said. a decided change in
the water; 1t began to be offensive, but
did not ihterfere with the work OF the
factories, although most of the manufac-
turers haG to put in filters. Since then
it has been growing worse steadily, and
now 1t is SO contaminated that it is al
most unfit for use. In fact, dyers ami
washers cannot use it without altering.
Since 1891 the effects of the water upon
| the operatives of the mills to which it
furnished power was such that the win
dows in the mills have to be raised at
four o'clock in the morning to let out
the stencil which comes In the closely
closed rooms from the water in order
to make the buildings bearable, and even
after an that the stencil often becomes
so offensive that the operatives are
made sick. This was caused by the
sewage of Paterson, which was emptied
into the river just before it began to
make the Lake.
IN talking over plans for preventing
this Mr.. Gardner raised a question which
may give the Commission some trouble.
He said that If a lateral sewer was
built along the west bank of the river.
as had been suggested, for the purpose
of carrying the sewage below Newark
there was a question whether turning
the storm water into that sewer instead
of into the river wCuld not be q Aversion
of water. which would give the Dundee
Company a right of action against the
la1thorities. The company, he said, was
under contract to furnish the manufac-
turers below the dam with so much
power and If the sending the storm
water down past the dam in a pipe or
sewer would tend to lessen that power,
the would rave to protect itself.
arrang so that the storm water could
be carried Into the river.
Mr.. Gardner said IT the solid sewage
was gotten rid of at a disposal works
and the water clarified and returned to
the river 1t would be all right.
DR.. Herold asked Mr.. Gardner if he had
seen much sickness among the. operas
| tfves. Mr.. Gardner replied that the
| physicians had told him that there had
been an increase in malarial diseases
among the mill hands. Mr.. Gardner said
that the foul doors which arose from
the river had destroyed boating and
/ the refuse deposited in the river had
driven the fish almost entirely away.
DR.. s. r.. Moak, a physician who prac-
tees in that part of Bergen county. said
that he had been living in that neigh
borhood for five years and since he had
come there there had been an increase
in malarial diseases. The polluted con-
d.fion of the Passadc. he said, was re-
sponsible for most of those cases, at
any rate It was the prime factor in the
increase of those diseases.
Peter Doremus said he had lived IN
that reighborhood for seventy YEARS.
Lit used to. be a nice pleasant place to
live in, but during the past two wears
the great stencil which comes from thA
river makes it almost unbeatable. He
thoughtNlthat IL the water could RIM
/ over the{ lam more freely the condition
would bf Improved. He said the water
company had q Nat board on the top Or
the dam which kept back d foot 81
more apfl Water, which It had NO right
whateyed g De. The stencil, hi said,