Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-02-08
Commissioners Submit Measure for
Removal of Overhead Wires.
ELECTRIC LIGHTING ANDPOWER ONLY
Similar Action Respecting TeIe-
graph and Telephone.
CAPTAIN BURR'S REPORT

In response to the reference to them of
House bill 6455 to authorize the United
States Electric Lighting Company and the
Potomac Electric Power Company to ex-
tend their conduits In the city, the Dis
trict Commissioners have submitted to Con-
gress the draft of bill which they recon-
mend shall be substituted therefor, requir-
ing all overhead electric light and power
wires, excepting house connections from
alley poles, now in existence in or over
any street. avenue, road, alley, highway,
park or reservation within the fire limits
of the District of Columbia shall be re-
moved within one year from the passage
of the act.
The bill submitted by the Commissioners
they explain, relates only to overhead troll
ley wires and underground conduits for
electric lighting and power purposes, but
a similar bill, they state, will be submitted
by them at an early date, which will relate
to telegraph and telephone wires and con-
duitS.
Assistants Report.
Accompanying the bill transmitted by
the Commissioners was the following re-
port by Captain Burr, one of the assist
ants to the Engineer Commissioner:
II have the honor to make the following
report upon the accompanying bills-Senate
2745 and H. r. 6455-relating to the subject
of electric lighting wires and conduits in
the District of Columbia, and to recon-
mend that the accompanying draft of a
hill, entitled An act for the removal of
overhead electric lighting wires in the
District of Columbia and for other pur-
poses be recommended to Congress for
passage a substitute for the two bills
just referred to.
The proposed substitute for the two
bills mentioned is intended to cover as
f,l1x, hn AF fl,1
moval of existing overhead electric light
iEg wires within the fire limits of the Dis
trict of Columbia, and to the utilization
of the present system of underground con-
Quits to the fullest extent practicable. 1t
also provides for the maintenance and
extension without the fire limits of the Dis
trict of Columbia of existing overhead
electric lighting wires. For this purpose
the owners of overhead electric lighting
wires within the fire limits of the District
of Columbia are required to place them
underground within one year from the date
of the approval of this act, and the Com
missioners are given power to remove these
wires at the expense Of their owners in
case the latter fail to do so.
Authority Is given for the construction
of Conduits necessary to receive these over
| head wires, and such additional wires as
II ay be reasonably expected to be needed
in the near future. Provision isalso made
for the utilization of conduits to their full
est extent by the issuance of permits for
for overhead distribution in the interior
of squares adjacent to conduits. 1t is
believed that some provision should be
made for the extension of existing con-
Quits, but the section providing for such
extensions is left blank in order that it
may be filed in by Congress as it may
deem wise and proper. =
Object of the Substitute.
'It hardly seems necessary to enter
largely into the reasons for, the passage of
the proposed substitute. Its main object is
to place underground existing. overhead
electric light wires and to permit the peo-
pie of the District to obtain full benefit of
conduits which are now or may be here
after placed underground. Although I'M
foreground conduits for distributing electric
light and power have been in use in this