The San Francisco call., 1898-02-02
Little Pumping Episode Which .-- Also Failed to Be Shown
 :: as Expense.
DANGEROUS IGNORANCE.
old Members of the City Council
 Show Rernarkable Want of Knowledge.


 finances of the two Oakland water
 companies: which the reports filed with the City Clerk of that city last Mon-
 day do not show.
 For instance there is nothing in the report of the Oakland Water Company showing the amount of money paid for [ waterbacks for the stoves that have
 been injured by the alkali in the water. Notwithstanding this discrepancy 1t IS | a well known fact that when subscrib-
 CTS have complained that the water was ruining their stoves, the president of the company promised to replace all the Waterbacks that were injured.
 Not only did he make these promises,
 but it is said by those who are in a po-
 sftfon to know that the: promises were
 so we'll fulfilled that. for while it looked very much as if there would be
 deficiency in; the funds of the com.
 pany because of the frequent demands
 for making over stoves. : l. Then, again, there is nothing in these
 reports to show how much money was f paid out for negotiating loans of vari- ous sorts or for selling stock, yet 1t is well understood that both companies | have paid good commissions to various I. people for their assistance in obtain E.ing financial aid for the *erstwhile War ring corporations. s. 2. 4 E.. For instance it is reported, and on very good authority, too, that 8 gem tleman named Moffatt got quite a lit- l:tle%sum of: money and would have got. ten quite deal more had he succeed ,Io ,f ,af ba nol
 Water Company unfoaded upon the E1city for the neat sum of $6,000,0OQ. Of course the fact that the plant was not l worth one-sixth of that sum made mo i. difference. in the contract. Unfortu-. |: :nateIy for the plans of the company l. and Mir. -Moffatt and MT. Dargie a re- l:form Council took hold of affairs and l. the whole matter fell through. It fell !: through so far: in fact that the conn pany was compelled to sell water in orr l:der to keep up appearances. These lit [ tie things will happen. to prevent pro- tmoters from. carrying out their Had it not been for the reform Coun- f*cil putting a stop to the proposed sale, Lit is possible that the. Contra Costa r Water Company would not have had time. to get that large centrifugal I.pump to work on the pond where the | Oakland artesian wells are located. :. It may not be generally known, but 1t is a fact, that the artesian wells which are supposed to supply a perpet- .ual and unlimited quantity of water of l the purest sort are located in a little |. fresh water pond at the mouth of & creek which ;rushes down with such l force that it keeps the salt water of the ]: ocean out; of the wells. The encroach- | ment of the sea upon these wells has l been noted, however, and the result l has been that 1t was necessary to dig 1 other wells farther back from the in- l coming tides. ':
 The little fresh water pond in which
 the wells are located is a delusion and 1 snare so far as keeping the water in l. the wells free from saline. pollution is
 concerned, as was exclusively shown 1 when the Contra Costa Water Com pany took it upon itself. for the good
 of the public, of course, to see just how
 much of a defense the pond was. This ] friend of the public, at considerable ex- pense, sent across the bay to San Fran
 cisco and hired one of the largest cen 1 trifugal pumps. A corner of the pond
 was leased and the pump set to work. From late in July until early in Octo- Der, in the year 1895, the residents of 1 the vicinity were annoyed by the con- stant humping of the big pump, but what was a little annoyance to few when the welfare of whole commun- l:ity was at stake? The pump kept on, and suddenly the people who wereac- customed to the clear and pellucid water of the Oakland Water Company began to get: a bad taste; in their mouths, and many dinner was spoiled and many a man used words that are considered improper in polite society, and rushed to the nearest dispenser. of ,I,v fs iy,n fn tired feeling from his mouth. The wa ter was decidedly brackish. The pumps had done their work well, and the fresh water pond had disappeared in the bay and the salt water had come in and contaminated the wells
 The Oakland Water Company's wa ter had been proven bad by that great friend of the public, the Contra Costa Water Company.
 Had Moffatt and Dargie attempted | to make that $60O0,000 sale and incl
 dentally rake in that s200,000 the Con- tra Costa Water Company, in the ordi-
 nary parlance of the day,wouldn't have done thing to the sale. = The company that had those artesian wells then has the same wells now, and in the present: agreement" as 1t is called by President Dingee, the com-
 pany which. posed as the benefactor of the public at that time, and the com pany which was held up as a horrible
 example, now lie down peacefully to-
 gether,. and have formed a combina- ton. or "agreement," which means that the city of Oakland is in danger.
 1: The people have great. confidence in the personnel of the City Council, but
 stranger things have happened than
 that people have trusted officials; to ] their sorrow. If the indications as
 shown by interviews go for anything