The herald., 1898-06-05

day of October 1896.
On October the 18th, 1896. the city attor-
ney, in writing, notified the Los Angeles
City Water company and the Crystal
Springs Land and Water company of said
resolution, and demanded compliance
Herewith, delivering a copy of said reso-
luton to each of said companies. Neither
Of them ever uttorned to said city for said
water or any part thereof, or ever agreed
to pay any rental for the same. After the
passage of said resolution, and ever since
said notification, up to the present time,
the Los Angeles City Water company has
continually taken from the Los Angeles
river, at point above the northern bound
ary of said city, for the purposes OF dis
trbution and selling the same In said city.
a quantity of water varying from 400 to
1000 inches, measured under four-inch
pressure.
On the 10th day of April, 1870, the COM
mon council of the city of Los Angeles
accepted, and the mayor approved, the
following report:
| ITO the Honorable, the Mayor and Com
mon Council of the City of Los Angeles
and the Los Angeles City Water Com
pany:
1.-THE undersigned, commissioners duly
appointed on behalf of your honorable
bodies, to adjust fix and establish the rates
and charges of the Los Angeles City Water
company Ga corporation duly Incorporated
under the laws of the State of California
for the purpose of supplying the inhabi-
tants of Los Angeles city with pure, fresh
water) respectfully report: That they have
established water rates and charges for
domestic purposes. taking as guide. as
near as can be, the charges and rates for
domestic purposes charged in July, 1865
That your committee have also fixed the
rates and charges for other reasonable
objects and purposes, and report as fol-
lows, to-wit:'
Then follow the rates agreed upon.
The commissioners referred to in said
report had been previously selected two by
the city and two by the Los Angeles City
| Water company.
In June 1871, the city council, on a report
of a committee constituted similarly to the
| one above mentioned established the same
rates as those established in April, 1870.
On the 18th of August, 1874, committee
| constituted in the same manner, and for
| the same purposes as the committee al
| ready mentioned, reported that they had
| established water rates and charges for
domestic purposes, taking as a guide. as
| near as possible, the charges and rates for
domestic and other reasonable objects and
| purposes charged In July, 1865 The report
| was adopted and a committee appointed,
in conjunction with the city attorney, to
draft an ordinance embodying the rates
| fixed in said report, and thereafter, on
August goth, 1874. an ordinance so drawn
was adopted by the council of said city and
| the rates established by said ordinance
were the same as those established in 1870
and 1871.
| Since and including the year 1880 the city
council of the city of Los Angeles has in
| February of each year passed an ordi-
nance fixing the rates to be charged by all
corporations and persons within said city
supplying water to the inhabitants there
of, to be In force for one year. from and
including July l, which rates have been less
| than the rates charged in 1870 as contained
in the ordinance hereinbefore mentioned,
and the Los Angeles City Water company
| has collected the rates thus fixed by the
| city of Los Angeles, and no more, but. in
the year 1895. the council of the city of Los
| Angeles passed an ordinance fixing the
rates to be charged for water for the year
commencing July l, 1896, and ending June
30, 1897, at less than they had ever been fixed
before, and suit was then brought by the
complainants herein, in this court, against
the city of Los Angeles. to set aside the
said ordinance, and, in February of the
year 1897, the city Of Los Angeles passed the
| ordinance, which is assailed In this suit
making a still further reduction in the
| rates.
The action of the Los Angeles City Wafer
company in collecting the rates fixed
by said several ordinances, constitutes
the only acquiescence Qf it be an acauies
cence) In the action of said council.
II the rates established in 1870 were col.
ected for the year beginning JULY 1st. 1897
and ending June 3Oth, 1898, the revenues re.
ceived by the Los Angeles City Water COM
pany from said rates would be more than
900 in excess of the amount which would
be received under the rates named in the
| ordinance of February, 1897.
In January. 1882, the Los Angeles, Citv
Water company furnished 10 the council
of the city of Los Angeles a statement of
its transactions for the preceding year. pro-
testing, at the same time, against the es
| tablishment of any rates less than those
which were in force at the date of the
lease hereinbefore mentioned, to-wit: July
22d, 1865
In January, 1888, said company again fur
nished said council with a statement show
ing the names of the consumers of water
the rates paid during the yea preceding
the date of the statement, and also an item
lied statement Of the expenditures made
for supplying water during the year pre-.
ceding, but expressly denying any legal
right on the part of the council to demand
said statement or to fix any rates less than
those which were in force in July. 1868.
Similar statements, accompanied by sim
ilar protests, were made annually there
after, up to and including the year, 1889. and
since that time unverified statements or re.
ports. showing its receipts and expenditures
\ have been made by said company to the
city council each year
Article XIV, Of the present constitution of
california, adopted in 1879, is as follows:
ARTICLE XIV-WATER AND WATER
RIGHTS
"Section 1. The use of all water now an.
Ipropriated or that may hereafter be ap.
Ipropriated for sale, rental or distribution, Is
hereby declared to be public use, and sub
iect to the regulation and control of the
state in the manner to be prescribed by
law; provided, that the rates or compersa
tion to be collected by any person, com.
pany or corporation in this state for :he
use of water supplied to any city and cohniy
or city or town or the inhabitants thereof
shall be fixed annually by the board of su.
pervisors or city and county or city or towr
| r. mi halx of