The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1900-08-16
THE RESERVOIRS.
Newark's Inspection Party
Finds Pequannock Much
Lower and More
Muddy.
ENGINEER WON'T TALK
Conference Held at New
foundland Thorough
Clearing Neces-
sary.
ENGINEER WON'T TALK


NEWARK, Aug. 16, 1900-Chandler w
Riker, former Judge Child and Cortlandt
Parker, of counsel for the city in its suit
against the East Jersey Water Company
hel6 conference on some of the law
points in the pending action at Browns
Inn. Newfoundland, Tuesday might AT
the conference were Commissioner Gar
rison, of the Board of Works and Morris
r. SheTerd, engineer of the city's de-
partment of water.
The lawyers, with Commissioner Gar
rison and the engineer of the water de-
partment left Newark Tuesday and re-
mained over until yesterday.
They do not seem to desire as much pri-
vacy as the Engineer of the Water De-
partment evidently desires to impose on
them and yet they are supposed to know
more law than the Engineer.
That official is evidently afraid the East
Jersey Water Company has detectives on
his tracks and he appears to be Of the be-
lief that reporters are emissaries of the
corporation.
He refused to even give an itinerary of
the trip he had arranged for the lawyers
Tnat would be information for the East
Jersey Water Company, he said Re-
porters were absolutely unwelcome and
We're uneourteously informed to that eff
feet.
After the visitors had scrutinized CAMS
tear reservoir Tuesday, they drove to the
motel at Stockholm. After being fortified
oy dinner the inspection tour was re-
sumed. Oak Ridge reservoir was the next
objective point. 1t had been practically
dry for about fortnight. The small.
shallow stream that tumbled along its
stony bed in the centre of the big basin
two weeks ago, had shrunk to what might
almost be termed definition of straight
hne-length without breadth
The visitors entered the reservoir bed
near the inlet end of it and drove close
to two of the worst of the bogs described
In the News" last week. The bogs were
still in disgusting condition Only in the
most sandy areas was the reservoir bed
free from vegetation. In many places and
for long distances the horses hauling the
visitors carriage moved through grass as
high as their knees.
Aside from there being less water there
was no change from last week in the
filthy condition of the west arm of the
reservoir. Its bottom was mucky and
swampy and contained unsghtly yegeta-
ton. The water still left in it was dirty
and stagnant. Down at the entrance to
the narrow cut in the rock leading to the
outlet gates, the water looked only a trff1s
better than it did week prior There was
less of the green scum than was noticeable
then. At this particular point there is a
heavy oak beam that stretches across the
mouth of the rock-ribbed channel 1t is
intended as a skinner for the surface of
the water 1t was without an opportunity
for occupation yesterday. The surface was
the water was at least two inches below,
its under side. The surface Of the water
in the channel Immediately in front of the
outlet gates had green scum on it that
was most unpleasant to look upon
OF the two water pockets, close to the
bottom of the dam, on its inner side the
water in one of them was covered with a
nauseating yellowish scum. The water in
the other, though alongside of the first,
seemed clear
The tops of the outlet pipes were palmer
to the sight than ever yesterday. At
point 100 feet beyond in the deep, narrow,
tertuous channel that has been cut in a
high mass of slate rock a big bowlder,
dslodged by climatic conditions, lay in the
bottom of the channel. partly choking it.
Oak Ridge reservoir drains an area of
twenty-six square miles, yet yesterday all
the water that was passing from it to
Newark flowed through little opening in
the weir that was about six inches square.
This shows how remarkably dry the res
ervoir is at present.
From Oak Ridge the party drove to
Clinton reservoir, which, with the excep-
tion of the small quantity of water com
ing from Oak Ridge, is now Newark's
chief source of supply. Clinton is seven
miles above the Macopin intake, has
water surface of 423 acres, and a capacity
of 3,518.000000 gallons. The water in it
had fallen about four feet below the level
existing at the last inspection made by
city officials, a week ago. Then the odor
of the water that was flowing through
the gully below the outlet was like that
of sulphurettc hydrogen. Yesterday
there was much Improvement in this re-
spect. The defects in the spillway, over
flow channel and dam had not been reme-
died
Soon after the inspecting party got to
Browns Inn, late in the afternoon, Allan
S. Lozier, one of the assistant engineers
of Newark's Water Department arrived
there with two assistants. The new ar
rivals brought with them a transit and
other necessary adjuncts for making a
survey. Yesterday they were at work in
Oak Ridge reservoir, making survey of
the Objectionable bogs in it.
One of Mr.. Lozier's assistants is young
son of Harrison Van Duyne, former pres-
dent of the Board of Works He was re-
Gently appointed by that board at a salary
of $50 month. The oth@r assistant,
Charles R. Sherrerd. a resident of the
West, is a nephew of NewarlS's water de-
partment engineer. Young Sherrerd has
been doing general work with the engi-
neering corps at the cty's new storage
reservoir at Cedar Grove since June 20 He
Is seventeen years old and is studying civil
engineering at the Polytechnic Institute,
Troy, N. x IN the fall he will return to
the institute as a sophomore. For the
present he is on the city pay roll at 81. rs
per day.
In view of the Objectionable condition
of the bed at Oak Ridae. one Of the para
graphs In the contraat between the city
Il