The San Francisco call., 1898-01-18
LOS ANGELES PEOPLE ARE
 NOT FOOLED Company's Offer to Sell Not in Good
 Faith. Same Old Cry Has Been Raised Many a Time
 Before. When the Corporation Is
When the Corporation Is Pressed It Makes Pretense
 of Yielding.
TO BIND CHAINS CLOSER.
Mayor Snyder Will Not Stop Until the People Have Worked Their
 Will.

LOS ANGELES. Jan. 1.-The publi cation in The Call this morning of the position in which the city of Los An geles finds itself, as regards the public ownership of a water distributing plant, has already borne fruit. This is despite the fact that the paper contain ing the first comprehensive review of the matter that has ever been printed has not yet reached this city.
 At 10:10 this morning a messenger arrived at the City Hall in breathless <'haste. He carried in his hand letter addressed: Hon. F. M. Nickell, chair man of the Water Supply Committed" The messenger was in a great hurry to find Councilman Nickell. He delivered the message and a few minutes there after MT. Nickell; as chairman of the tVater Supply Committee. submitted to the Council the following communica- ton from the City Water Company:
 We received your note of December 2s. 1887. and have been desirouS of making reply thereto at the earliest moment practicable.
 city, the question of how to approach this matter in the event we can agree upon prices. The legal difficulties of carrying that agreement into effect are, as we are advised, considerable, and it is de- SlTes dl ll6 SdulS lIiu6 we UcBOllaI0 Wlln you as to terms, to also negotiate with you as to the mode of carrying our con Clusions into effect, should come to conclusions.
 "One of our attorneys is absent but will return shortly, and if agreeable to your committee we would like to have you meet a representative or representa- tives to be appointed by the companies in a short time for the purpose of con- sfder1ng these questions. Senator White, one of the attorneys, will be In the city some time, about the middle of February, and we should like to have matters in such shape that he, in connection with our attorneys here, may determine on the legal proceedings to bring matters be- tween us to a conclusion.
 Representatives will be appointed by the boards of directors and we shall in- form you at once who they are, and a time can be arranged to get together and discuss the plans of procedure and that it may be submitted to the attorneys for the respective parties for their consideration as to its legal feasibility.
 ''We desire also. if we can agree upon terms, to bring the.matter to a conclusion at once, and to that end we are working with our stockholders and endeavoring to get the consent of all of them that will authorize us to carry the transaction into effect as soon the proceedings neces- sary for that purpose can be taken; and we have strong hopes that in the course of the next five or six weeks we shall have the consent of all of them.
 IS. H. MOTT, Secretary
 This communication is the first result of The Calls exposition of the local wa ter situation. AS soon as The Call ap- peared on the streets of San Francisco this morning, the secretary here was immediately informed by wire of what q it contained. It was then that the characteristic communication giver above was forwarded to the Council post-haste. The people of Los Angeles however. thoroughly understand tn, Water Company's tactics, and thi! communication carries absolutely nt weight whatever.
 The popular feeling Is most concisel. stated by Mayor M. P. Snyder, who il talking about the latest communication this evening said:
 Tt is but illustrative of the method of the Water Company in the past II blocking the will of the people. The have always claimed they were read and desirous of bringing about nego tiations whereby the city would com into possession of It's plant at any earl date Then, through their news papers, attorneys and understrapper generally, they have always imme diately set about to block every possi ble settlement which could be obtained In this latest communication. whic has been sent forth. and which in m Judgment is the result of The Call work. there is absolutely nothing new Whenever we have in the past succeed ed in getting matters down to poin where the Water Company was com pelled tostlo something, it has invaria bly set forth that some o1e or the othe of Its attorneys was absent from tn city, and that for that reason 1t coul not proceed. The directors now clair that Senator White is away and tha therefore they are privileged to della matters. They all knew White was go < ing to be absent from the city durin ' the session of Congress, and it is prob able he will continue to be away fo some time to come, as this is tho lon session of Congress.
 "Rut this water question has got t