The daily morning Astorian. [volume] (Astoria, Oregon) 1883-1899, 1899-03-16
THE EAST END WANTS
NO CITY Lrulrr PLANT.
Thinks water Commission Had Better
supply City with Water Before
Making Further Experiments,


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"The people In my section OF tho town.
said \ prominent resident " East Astoria
yesterday "cau anticipate exactly what
will follow II the council persists and the
water commission s weak enough 10 b.
used In RUNNING the city sull further In
debt to build an electric lght plant All
that pOrtlon OF the otiy known as Alder.
brook and a big part OF Adalr's Astoria,
was once supplied with fair quantity ot
good water by private system,
when tho water commission started
out TO plan tho new works they wcrr In.
duccd to adopt a system large enough 10
supply town ~ @NN inhabitants, al.
thought We wcrc n struggling COM
munity OF less than ouc.thrd that
number | insisted at tho time. without
avail that We were too poor TO build city
improvements for our srandchildrcn and
wanted the commission TO take prop>t
care " tho present generation and lei
succeeding ones look out Tor themselves.
as has been my own case with respect 20
my grandparents
"Rut, no, this would not DO for a city
I ehNhNANh w NAN ANNNNNNAN hA n EENAt
boom anticipated trom the prospective
building ot u railroad The result was
an expensive expert engineer was EN-.
poyed grand metropolitan system lad
out. and sANOo0 W bonds sold upcn which
the city Is paying an interest charge
represented by scale ~ water rates
I greater than Is collected | am told.
! from any corresponding community or
people In America. and all this because !
wo have waterwnrks built to supply SO |
80 people when We have hardly got 4
,hIr,ie,h OF that number OF eonsum.
erS
Nor Is this all The llt,lc water scr.
vice which We enjoyed In East Astoria
and which was entirely ample then, and
would be now FOR our community was
purchased ana abandoned by the water
commission and today our entire end o.
town nigh, bo destroyed by hrc without
any water 10 pu, Il out other than surh
as We could bail from the river,
TO all our plcadipgs FOR our right'u!
benefit In an improvement, Tor the COM
struc,ion and maintenance ot which We
are taxed and our property bound In
common with others deaf ear Is
turned by lhc water commission ON tn
ground that the city cannot afyord an
extension of the mains Co supply US with
water
"lt will DE- the same with an clrtuic
light system. Mr. Adams the commits
s,oners expert engineer. estimates ,h,r,
Is power enough 20 supply q, lights IN
view VI some other Wild estimates OF
that gentleman ,among others that he
could build the present system Tor tn
amour, actually aid ont Tor H. when q,
Is within public knowledge that the coz
tractors who did the work were broken
up and the highly moral community OF
Astoria Is now enjoying the fruits ~ tn /
labor ot hundreds OF poor workmcn 70 ,
whom thousands and thousands % dol.
lars OF unpaid wages are due and 90 ,
finally complete which a set OF bondsmen
In Portland had 70 10 down into thelr ,
pockets for other thousands ~ dollars ,
do not believe the city will Do able TO d
maintain one-thlrd " the lights promised {
These few lights will. % course. De 1
placed tn downtown locations and none I
OF tne taxpayers who support them at ,
either end OF the town will derive one ,
particle OF benefit from them. The re- ,
sui, will be that We will be subject TO
the double taxation involved lu paying
a private company for our lights. or
else Will have TO 10 without them To
my mind the idea Of a water commission d
which has failed to supply the city with
water undertaking 10 supply Il with |
lights. function entirely outside OF the
original purpose OF It's appointment Is d
supremeiy ridiculous
These objections are entirely aside
from the questionable propriety OF the
commission going into any Industrial
speculation. concerning which / See tho
Asrorlan has had much 10 say lately
There Is. perhaps one consolation W. y
people OF the Eas, End might have how
ever. II the commission Is coerced into c.
this foolish enterprise-lt would certainly :,
wind up It's career as an lndopcndent
body. | do not believe a single one OF =,
It's present members will survive the next n
term Of he legislature II It goes Into the
lighting business The politicians see M. p,
tie spoils In It's present legitimate oper. .
atIons, but let It buy It's dynamos and u
enlarge It's payrolls FOR the light business
and The politicians Will soon own IT, ~