The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1897-03-09

The East Jersey Water Company
through its counsel, Collins & Corbin, this
morning sent the following commnnica-
ton to the Street and Water Commission
ers:-
New York, March s, 1897.
To the Board of Street and Water Com
missioners of Jersey City.
Gentiemen-In our communication of
June 3. 1886, we notified you that we had
succeeded in bringing the flow of water
In the Pequannock works up to 45.6 mill
lions of gallons per day, which enabled
Jersey City to draw therefrorn more than
was originally contemplated it could draw
under the contract of October Il, 1896.
The city during that month of June drew
day.
We also notified you that we were COM
pleting second main and that when it
was completed, we could draw from the
Pequannock watershed so millions of gal
Ions per day The second main was COM
pleted and put in use August 3o 1886, and
the company has had, from that time to
the present supply averaging more
imam 90 millions of gallons per day for
the use of Newark, Jersey City and the
other towns supplied from said works.
We warned you at that time that with
the increasing demands of Jersey City
and Newark, our works, built to supply
5O millions of gallons per day, would soon
prove to be insufficient. We called your
attention to the fact that as Newark and
the other towns had the first right to
draw. any deficiency there might be
would necessarily fall upon Jersey City.
AS matter of fact, since the new
water supply was put in Jersey City's
average daily draft has greatly increased,
surprising all previous estimates For
the past three months 1t has been as fol-
lows
December. 2s.4 million gallons per day.
January. 30.2 million gallons per day.
February 29.1 million gallons per day.
IN 1e-fs f,fr ,te,,r
in addition to the demands of the other
towns, we have drawn during the winter
more than SO millions of gallons per day
from the Pequannock watershed AS our
right to draw therefrom is limited to an
average of so millions of gallons per day
throughout the year, and as the Pequan-
mock water works are calculated to fur
nish but so millions of gallons per day, it
an average draft of so million gallons per
day for the year last past, and thence
forth cannot draw more than SO million
gallons per day.
1t is therefore certain that the Pequan-
mock works alone will soon be insufficient
TO furnish to Jersey City all the water
the city will require. Probably by the
be compelled to limit Jersey City's draft
OF water from the Pequannock works
We Will draw from the works during the
year the full average of so millions of
gallons per. day, and Jersey City shall
have all that this amount will afford
after complying with our other contract
obligations; but that is all that can be
supplied from these works by us to Jersey
City.
When the time arrives for limiting the
supply, your city will, of course, be COM
PEELED to supplement it by pumping at
Belleville, or in some other manner
Months ago we made several suggestions,
either of which, if accepted, would have
given Jersey City an entire supply, by
adding near Little Falls, to the present
partial supply, water of unexceptionabIe
purity. These suggestions the city has
never replied to, and they are not now
open for acceptance.
We have been supplying water to the
city for fourteen months, the contract
price of which is considerably in excess
of $3.50, ,000-from which we voluntarily
abated S52, ,000-and we have never re-
ceived dollar from the city.
Nevertheless, we expect to continue to
fulfill the contract of October II, 1895, for
temporary and partial supply, to the
end of it's term.
Our object in writing at this time is to
again notify the city that there is a
limit to the supply of water on which
they are now drawing, and to give warn
Ing that the limit will very soon be
reached.
Respectfully yours,
THE EAST JERSEY WATER COM
RAINY,
By w. H. coRBIN. Attorney.