The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-04-19

EAST JERSEY SUITS,
The Bigelow Bros. Claim
Against the Big Water
Company.
UPPER PEQUANNosK CASE
What Is a Water Right Worth
Newark a Party to the Suits
Probable Compromise.
UPPER PEOUANNOsK CASE

condemnation of the water rights In the
Pequannock river above the Newark in-
take controlled by this firm, was to have
been taken yesterday, but the hearing
was postponed until April %, as negotia-
ions are in progress for a settlement OF
the case out of court. Just what the ma
ture of the settlement will be is not
known, but it is understood that the Conn
pany will make some payment, for the
rights to regulate the flow of the stream
as it passes, and that the Bigelows. for
a nominal payment, will lease the use of
the water for power for a period of years.
The Newark Cali gives this account
of the proceedings
Action was taken in the premises in the
name of the City of Newark. as is pro-
vided under the contract between the city
and the East Jersey Water Company. The
Commissioners appointed by the court TO
conduct the proceedings were Frederick
Mishwitz, of Millington; Frederick 4.
Busch, of Dover, and George Fl. Ross, Of
Morristown. The first hearing was held
on April 6, at the Board of Trade rooms
in this city. There was little ex-
pert testimony given. A map of the prem
ises was submitted and full explanations
were made as to the location of the land
and water rights to be condemned. The
various c~onveyances were explained,
showing the rights of the owners in the
property, and measurements made by En-
gineer Herschel for the East Jersey
Water Company were submitted, giving
the fall and the estimated power avail
able for use at the point in question.
The Bigelow Brothers operate a sawmill
on the premises, and have for many
years. They have very little bondage. A
dam only eighteen inches high is thrown
across the river and just above this dam
the water is diverted into a raceway lead
ing to the pond that feeds the mill. The
dam extends diagonally across the river
and is about fifty-five feet long. The pond
from which the water is drawn to feed
the mill is very narrow and long, and the
dam which holds the water in check is
along the side of the pond. The flow of the
river is scarcely interfered with at all
either by the dam in the river or by the
pond, and if the sawmill is in operation
the water that is diverted from the river
tor this purpose flows directly into the
river again ar a point a short distance
below the mill.
just above the Bigelow establishment
is the pond and grIst mill formerly the
property OF the LaRue's, but now owned
by the East Jersey Water Company. The
property and water rights OF the LaRue
mill was purchased by the East Jersey
Water Company when the work for New.
ark was flrst begun. TheLa Rue pend is
a very large one and is directly IN the
course of the river. Owning that property
and the water rights the East Jersey
Water Company is at liberty to regulate
the now OF the river. as It pieases. AL
times of heavy rains, the storage reser-
yCtrS abnKa where the water TOR the
Newark supply is compounded, can De
closed SO as TO collect a larger volume OF
water for storage III needed, and the flow
Of the river confined. only to that section
of the drainage area below the storage
reservoirs.
Such regulation of the flow OF the river,
the Bigelows claim, interferes with their
rights. They insist that they are entitled
to all the natural flow of the river below
the La Rue dam, and that any Interior
ence with the How above is an infringe
ment.
AT the time the La Rue purchase was
made the East Jersey Water Company
did not consider It necessary to consider
the Bigelow rights. 1t was thought that
the flow of the river. to give Newark a
regular supply of water. would be sufi-
cient for all the requirements of the Bige-
thought otherwise. Testimony was given
at the public hearing relative to the
value of those rights. The East Jersey
Water ~ComDany's engineer testified that
NY dClddl l3tdSA III lax Litg d2lLCA 0il& c
tween the height of the water in the PEN
stock and the raceway when the turbine
wheel of the mill was still. was about
eight feet and one-half: when the wheel
was in operation seven feet and three
fourths.
F. M. Ward. a millwright of Newton,
testified that for forty years he had had
experience in the erection of mills oper-
ated by water power in the northwestern
part of the State. He said he had exam
ined the Bigelow operty for the East
Jersey Water Company. He Went into
detail as to the condition of the buildings,
the character OF the machinery in use,
and what it was capable OF doing. He
estimated that twenty horse power might
be in use at the mill, and making what he
considered a fair allowance, the buildings
and tools were worth 81, 200 ors1, 500. Mr..
Ward insisted hat the water power had
ceased to have value. He testified that
dozens Of mills operated by water power
in the northwestern part of the State
had gone out of existence, and that port
able steam saw mills were taking the
place of saw mills driven by water power.
A number of witnesses appeared for the
INSTRUMENTATION of theirs. Testimony
was given tending to show the large
proportions of the work done at the saw
mill; the Importance OF the section OF
Morris County in which the saw mill is
located, as a lumber producing country;
its past and future; the value Of the
power derived from the water rights: how
that power has been interfered with by
the interruption of the flow of the river to
store water for Newark. 1t was claimed
tha the power might be developed up to
fifty or sixty horse power and that not
less than thirty-five or forty horse power
is now in use.
1t was stated that when the flow Of the
river was not interrupted, during nine
or ten months in the year., the volume of
water is Even in the dry
months six or eight hours work could be
lone every day. The Bigelow saw mill
could be operated longer than the La Rue
grist mill just above. At the La Rue mill
water might be held in check until the
min pond was full, and then the supply
exhausted, because a grist mill must run
continuously, while in a saw mill the pow
err is shut off turned as needed to
operate the saw.
1t was claimed that the power at Bige-
lows was more valuable than the La Rue
water rights, as the former only had a
fall Of about six feet, but at Bigelow's,
when the turbine wheel was. in operation,
the fall of water was nearly eight feet.
A nephew Of La Ruess testified to the
price paid for the La Rue property and
water rights by the East Jersey Water
Company. Counsel for the Water Com
pany protested vigorously. and claimed
from hearsay evidence, it should not be
given at all. The counsel for the com-
Dany promised that Ii the Commissioners
desired to know the price paid for the
La Rue plant by the East Jersey Water
Company he would obtain the exact fig
ures from the
But the protest was OF no avail. The
Commissioners said that they could see
no harm in hi witness answering the
Question put to him, and SO the witness
said that his uncle had old him the com,
water rights. The witness further said
| that he now leased the property and THE
use of the power from the East Jersey