Evening journal., 1899-01-26
THURSDAY. JAN. 90, 1899
FOILY AND GREED.


ing the Board OF Water Commissioners
Of the city OF Wilmington, have reach
ed the end Of their rope. They know
that the General Assembly. at its pres
ent session. is going TO call them C.
account for the system of extortion
which they and their predecessors IT.
office have, for many years, been prat-
ticing upon the water consumers Of inc
city Of Wilmington. Like all men VINO
find themselves in desperate situatione,
they are making strenuous efforts 10
extricase themselves from position
from which there is no extricauon
save by a so per cent. reduction II
the schedule Of water rates now in e.
feet, and beneath the onerous burden
OF which the water consumers are Ia
boring.
We wish TO caA to the attention OF
the members cf the General Assem-.
bly, the fact that we have dealt with
the Water Commissioners in a manner
which was strictly argumentative we
have not yet accused them Of extrava-
gance We have neither analyzed nor
attacked their salary or expense ac-
count. We have dealt with them ar
man TO man, and on figures OF their
own production. Now. what were those
figures, given out by the commission
ers themselves, mind. with the expec-
tation that every water consumer
would throw up his hat in the joyous
holiday season and shout: my, what
smart set OF Water Commissioners
we have, to be sure!" while the com
missionerB themselves would join IN
the g,ad refrain?
The commissioners spest SG2 900 10
support the plant as IL should be SUP.
pored.
They purchased sl2000 worth OF
pipe on "a low market" paid $3.50 q
ton 20 have Sc carted from the wharf
10 Ninth street basin, and there it Is
to-day in iu,l view Of every water con
sumner who passos that way. That
pipe was purchased with money col
lecied in 1888. and SEA the pipe itself
WIS not used In 1898. viii not be usca
SIN 1888. and all OF II may net be usoa
in 1900. There Is a demonstration os
business sense ON low market
Twelve thousand dollars. which ought
10 be in bank drawing per cent. in
terost, is lying ont in az open lot Ter
year and a-haf. drawing nothing
but rust and public attention. Is thar
an evidence Of the business ability
which the Water Commissioners felici-
tate themselves THAI they possess? ?
Here We have $40 in interest and the
cost Of hauling and storing charged
up against the low market. and there
are those who are acquainted with
the pipe market who d. not hesitate
% declare that the investment. so far
as the market was concerned, was in
no sense an advantageous one. Here
is the sum of $4,000 of the water
consumers money lying out in an open
lot. with the sn-w and sleet and the
rain and the sun Of from sixteen IL
eighteen months beating down upon
it, while they are paying more tnan
double what they should for the water
service, and from 8 to per cent on
their own Indebtedness. That was not
an evidence cf business sagacity Bun
tor that purchase the surplus would
have been $4,000 instead Il SS6 600
and the evidence Of extoruon would
have been greater on it's face than il
is to-day.
we have said that the rial expense.
Of the department for the year 1896
were S62 600. the $4,000 item not be-
ing a legitimate charge against tha
year. Now. what were the receipts? II
round hgnres $3.50 coo; and what IN
eurplus7 Eighty-aix thousand dolara
the $4,000 Nem not Considered. an
sssoee taking It into consideration
And what became Of this $50. .oOo9 I
was presented to City Cc=acr 10 NEE
general expenses which should b
borne equally by consumers and non
consumem of water. These arc III
hgires as supplied by the Water Com
missioners themselves, and they wi
net disoHn them
Now Tor q word direcs to the wat,
consnmef n lsss ycu not only pai
tne $4,000 necessary 10 meet IN fu
The expenses OF the Water Dapar
meni but ylu bought sl2O0o wof,
q pipe, and paid over in.o the gener
fund Of the city the sum Of Sss.O 90
You paid water rates which were
leaHf 90 per cent higher than the
should have been in 1898: now yl
are cai.ed upon - pay them again
iSe9 and ycu win be compelled 70
en unless y0p imrrsss UP Tia mer
bsrs c--shs -csreral Assembly the z
csss-ty C vctrz FOR q bill which ".
csnr,- tAeza three obstinate men
make : -eduction which they knc