The San Francisco call., 1897-02-26
II do not know"
WAS it previous to 1902"
81 have no idea"
"Wno has an idea ?"

81 suppose our secretary. 1 believe 1
stated before that am the engineer OF the
company and am ready to answer ques-
tons pertaining to my department. am
not real estate expert or bookkeeper.
"What is the total daily supply from
Pilarcitos, San Andreas and Crystal
Springs?'
at varies every day. We can count on
100000 gallons daily from those three
sources"
"What is the extent of those water
sheds?"
'In the neighborhood of thirty-seven
square miles or little over. Between
thirty-seven and thirty-nine square
miles"
"And you say the supply is 100000
gallons?'
mo. say that the amount OF water
drawn from those three reservoirs year In
and year out for the last six or eight years
has been in the neighborhood of Is, ,0OO,O 600
gallons daily"
DR.. Rottanzi then inquired about the
yield of the rainfall and was informed
that this varied a great deal. Each por-
tion of the watershed had different rain
fall. If DR.. Rottanzt wanted to know the
average fall for the last five years at
Pilarci.os, he could figure it out Rot
tanzi desired to know the average calcu-
lated in the aggregate for say thirty years
at Crystal Springs. Mr.. Schussler replied
that no record had been kept for so long.
The dam was only commenced in 1879.
The calculation was very complicated.
"I notice." said Rottanzi, "that you
have the comparative rainfall from Pillar
ctos and San Andreas, but not from
Crystal Springs"
"That is only approximate. In the
year 1S89-9U we had very heavy rainfall
so unusually heavy as to be nearly as
large as that of 1S6l-62. when the Sacra-
mento Valley was flooded. If you add
1889 80 to 1S90-9l you derive much too
high an average, because these heavy falls
only occur in twenty or thirty years. For
that reason, if l figure the average rain
fall in the watershed figure on the ordi-
nary and not the unusual years. Tell me
what document you have there"
"Oh," replied Rottanzi, II have your
document
What year was it written In ?'
"June 16. 1875"
"Well, in 1875 could not tell what the
year 1885 would bring"
This conversation continued some little
time longer. Mr.. Schussler explaining the
principle of rain absorption and eyapora-
ton.
In some years, he pointed out, larger
proportion reached the reservoirs than in
others, the difference VARYING all the way
from $40 of per cent to 81 per cent.
81 would make G suggestion" said Mr.
Schussler. IF you want to get at the
running expenses it will take a great deal
of time. Our secretary is here to give
such explanations as fall outside my de-
partment. l handed DR.. Clinton ; list
some weeks ago of the running expenses
under thirty-one headings. If you want
those headings explained l can go ahead
with them"
DR.. Rottanzi asked his estimate of the
value of the CaIaveras watershed to-day.
al told you BEFORE" replied Mr.. Schuss-
Ter, 'that 1 am not land expert 1 think
1t is worth great deal of money. l would
not dare to say how much because we
would probably get our taxes raised In
Alameda County. 1t is one of the best
purchases, including all of the Alameda
Creek and its water rights, that we ever
msde.'
DO you realize" asked Rottanzi, "the
amount of taxes paid by San Francisco
on that purchase of your company 2"
The witness urged in reply the import
ance of the purchase. "You cannot realize
it, he said, ''until you see how much
water can be drawn from it and the way
in which it has saved the City from the
consequences of drought. We have now
in our reservoirs a certain amount on
hand. If it had not been for our pumping
from these various outside sources to the
extent we did we would not now have so
much water in our reservoirs. If the Ala
media water had not been pumped it would
have run to waste in the bay"
That source, he said, could now be
drawn from to the extent of 13, TIC, 900 600
gallons altogether. He further discussed
the exorbitant prices exacted for land.
calculating that in one instance as much
as 81 and $5 had been paid per front foot.
You do not admit, then, that you have
possible supply of nearly 10000. .0O0?"
Mr.. Schussler replied in the negative.
1t had been proved, he said, that the
sources of supply contained in these water
rights were more incomplete than the
sources acquired at Alameda Creek, and it
was, therefore, decided that the taking of
water from the latter was a necessity.
You need not shake your head,' he OBJ
served 10 DR.. Rottanzi; that is a fact"
You formerly paid me the compliment
of saying that was an expert calculator" +"
rejoined RottanZi, smilingly, "but see
that l am not in it with you. see why
you are employed by the company"
Mr.. Schussler, resuming his testimony
without further questioning, said that
when the company was organized it was
merely required by law to supply the
citizens with water, nothing whatever be-
ing said about pressure. II the water
were delivered at the level of the
sidewalk they would be with the
limit of the law. The luxury of a high
pressure was the item involving SO
much OF the expense, necessitatipr
as 1T did four or five pumping stations
He claimed credit for the company on the
score of the care bes towed upon pipe con-
struction and the subsequent renewal of
the streets ana sidewalks. Capital, he
continued, was the most cowardly thing
IN the world and would not move unless
it could get a safe rate of interest. Mr..
Schussler proceeded to argue at some
length that any reduction of interest by
the board on the companS's shares, to say
per cent, would only hurt the investor.