New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1898-03-30
o,GRADY JAMS IT THROUGH.
PASSAGE OF THE GENEsEE RIVER sToH
AGE DAM BILL.

rp.ScYrsE-srATE MAY STILL
HAVE TO BUY WATER FOR
THE ERIE CANAL
Albany. March 20 (speciaD.-speaker 80
"tommed" the Gcnesee River ro"e'
~. so,,c,,ed members to vote for II. H's appeA'
-. Domocratic Assemblymen must nave oee.
S,auv nowerful. as few OF them 'o.eu
ooa,,s, tho measure. Only two Tainman' >'
were recorded in the negative ..o,-
r,a h,u was urged upon the favoraoie 49,
ton Of the Assemblymen under the PIC"
the Erie Canal would receive wafer -,
reservoir TO be formed by the cohs'i o'' -
dam at Portaeeville the Genesee n".'
Section 10 has been amended 50 that IL reau' 10
follows:
After the somPlesion Of the o1 said sba during each
cana. navigation season in each year thsre nsrIn
mold subject the Tequs,Cph Of ass the Of shs
arged Erie canal two thousand ead I'VE corPorSon
sha o wi,hou, expense TO the State at the 9pennnS
OF each canal season furnish water neeoeI d aiso
airing the same canal season further needed water
for the canal not exceeding one thousand y ha hu he
entitled 10 from the State for any additional
r and IL the s
Public Works. If. after filling the canal in the
spTns cno f dye hundred million cubic feet
q: wafer during the same canal season, the portion
heTeof not so used shall be credited to The canal, as
against said corporation and set on against any
excess of thousand hye hundred million cunIG
fec; used Which ii any may be used BY the State Without
in snS me on ea Such
shnU moi exceed two thousand five hundred million
cubic feet
Even this provision may still compel the State
~ buv water FOR the Erie Canal II 1t should be
greatly enlarged. The State would thus have
nnv Crq n
this corporation.
Section 6 still gives the corporation control OF
the water power Of tributaries OF the Genesee
This Of itself is an immense grant, much greater
than Is apparent from a casual reading OF the
act. Section Il says:
Said corporation shall have the right TO utilize
all the wafer Incidentally created ny me con- on
siruction OF said main dam or reservoir ana Ior
the purpose Of such utilization said corporation
construct maintain ana Tperae within 4d one
mile Of the mouth Of each OF such tributaries ana
The location Of the aforesaid main dam or reser-
voir all necessary power dams: subsidiary reser;,
disiributaries. hydraulic power raceways and all
other 5oT ere the said river
for the development Of hydrauc and ssctr,Tai
power and for the purpose OF making and transmit
ting compressed air and for other purposes.
Assemblyman Perkins, OF Rochester. the
main supporter Of the bill He said there was
and Rochester In March and April. when the
epring floods took place. the water ran to waste.
1t might be said that hundreds OF thousands Of
dollars worth of power was thus lost. The
only remedy to erect dam and store up
the water In 1895 bill was passed for the
construction OF dam at Mount Morris. but
Governor Morton vetoed II because he thought
private persons would be benefited more by II
chan the State. Now private persons were WILL
ing to pay for the dam. The State would have
the right TO take twice as much water as It now
took for the canal. Why. therefore. should he
not ask every man in the Assembly to support
the measure?
Mr.. Griggs Of Brooklyn said the bill was a
scheme to steal the Genesee River. The stream
was to be given to a private corporation. and
this corporation 10 say what the State
should pay for the water.
Mr. Oliver supported the bill on the ground
that Monroe County ought to nave what II
wants"
Mr. Litchard. Of Aliegany County. declared
that the Legislature had no right to take the
Genesee River. What does this bill do?' he
asked 1T makes the State Of New-York get
down on its knees and beg for water. 1t wipes
out n village: II destroys railroad facilities Il
renders region unhealthful which Is now
healthful" -
The bill was passed by a vote Of 1913 to "a
Speaker O'Grady did not vote Mr.. WE'LL and
Mr. Mahar were the only Tammany men who
voted against the measure. The other thirty.
two members who had the courage to oppose thi;
scheme were:
Boland. Cot,le Cowles Dale. Davis Ellis Fish
GrigGs. Hanna. Hi. Johnson. Kullman. Laimbcer
Litchard. I.owerthal Matteson. Palmer. Patton
Raplee. Segsberg. Simmons. Stoneman. Steiher
Tiffany. Tompkins. TrempeI, Van Hoesen. Vincent
Nroman. Weekes. Wright and Zimmerman.