The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-02-04
CUT LAHSOFS FLUHE.
Mayor Thompson Brings Force
Into Play.
WORK DONE YESTERDAY
GANG TURNED WATER TO CTTYs
CANAL.
Mr. Lsmson, OF Behalf of the Salt
Lake City Water & Electrical
Power Company, VIII Institute
legal Proceedings on Monday
offered No Resistance.

OHered No Resistance.
In pursuance Of a plan worked out
Friday night Mayor Thompson. Land
and Water Commissioner Westerfield,
WateTm9ster COndie and WaterwOrks
Superintendent Hines boarded The $50
Rio Grande Western train yesterday
morning for the Lamson power plant
station. Engineer Kelsey and AttOr-
ney F. s. Richards of counsel for the
city were passengers OF the train for
Provo and Lehi. respectively. and the
final rehearsal in the plot was gone
over before the train stopped right at
the power plant.
Handy Gang of Thirty.
By previous arrangement thirty able
! bodied men met at the city stables yes
terday morning at $50 Ito so Up Par
ley's canyon" as they We're led to be-
| lieve. Wagons were hitched up and the
gang was driven to Murray, where the
train was boarded Not until the gang
reached LamSOn'5 station did the men
know really where they were going or
what they were expected do.
No sooner had the train stopped than
the mayor and his staff officers and the
thirty men ahghted. The half dozen
men in charge of the power plant were
taken completely by surprise Presi-
dent Allen q. LsamSOn and SuDerinten-
dent J. L. Maginnis were in the city.
An effort was made to telephone them
Of the situation, but somehow the con-
nection had been broken.
Every one Of the citys men was
armed with a mechanics or laborer's
tool, and in a tWinkling q set Of tram
way rails was taken up running across
the big fiume which conveys water over
the river from the power plant tail race
to the city's canal. This trick was
turned none too soon, for the warning
had already gone forth from Foreman
Stiles Jones and wires were being run
to form a connection with the rails
With 10,GC0 volts of electricity playing
across the fIume il would have been
mighty risky business to tackle the
work, TO do which the city's force had
suddenly appeared on the ground.
Cut the Flume Out.
With the precision Of a trained force
the city'S men rushed to the east end
of the ftun.e where it discharges into
the city canal. In a couple Of hours
a section Of about eighteen feet Of the
fiume was cut out and thrown on the
bank and the impaired part Of the
canal bank was repaired, making it
stronger than ever
At the noon hour the crowd lunched
Commissioner Westerfield proposed
that WatermasteT COndis offer grace
for the tempting array of grub and the
accomplishment Of the work without
any show OF armed or physical resist
ance from LamsOn's men. But no one
seconded the motion and the crowd
stated their ample apPetites in print
tive fashion on the City'S domain
After luncheon a part of the gang
went up the river to the dam and ad-
Justed the head gates so that the entire
flow claimed by the city IS going down
the citys big ditch. unimpeded by the
action Of Mr.. LamsOn's representa-
tives.
Whatever water is now coming from
the power plant tail race is not the
city's.
Mayor Thompson and his staff ac-
companied the gang back to the city
on the 5:55 train. All felt well repaid
for the days experiences and the work
Tor which the wage GaTnerS are to be
fully compensated. Not a particle Of
resistance was offered by Lamson's
men.
The Mayors Justification.
In speaking Of yesterdays well ex-
ecuted play. Mayor Thompson said il
was done in pursuance Of authority
unanimously granted by the city cOun-
ell recently to protect the city's valu-
able water rights in Jordan river and
Utah lake The city" said the mayor.
has had the right for more than thirty
years to take a sixth of the rivers
flow out at a point further up the
stream where Lams0n is diverting the
flow for his power plant through the
Utah & Salt Lake Canal company's
canal This right is still owned by the
city and we propose to protect it from
interference by Mr.. Lamson or any
others.
Now however, the city's water
comes out at the lower dam If the
municipality should permit Lamson's
company to use the City's water. re-
delivering it to the canal from the tail
race, It would result in an estoppeI
whenever the city commenced to take
its water, as will be done soon, from
the highest point possible to effect the
exchange Of Big Cottonwood canyon
water owned by the farmers and to
enable the elivery of irrigating water
into the city as high up as Popperton
and Anderson's tower.
We are acting upon legal advice"
concluded the mayor, THE city sued
out writ Of injunction last week to
restrain LamSon'S company from in
teTfeTing with the flow Of the city's
water or infringing upon its rights In
cutting out a section of the f1ume and
repairing the canal bank we did what
any individual would have done under
like circumstance to protect his rights
in a legal way"
Lamson's Appeal to Court.
President Lamson said last evening
that he was not at all disturbed over
the city's play Of bravadO. ION Mon
day" he said. i viii commence suit
against the city to condemn a right of
way for the maintenance Of the f1ume
as it was before being destroyed to-
day and to restrain the city or its
agents from interfering with my com
pany's right to use the city's water for
power generating purposes"
This talk of our men patroling the
banks of the canal and pacing the
eompany's fume is all bosh." declared
Superintendent Maginnis. Not one of
our handful Of men was armed. Be
sides, we have had ho inclination to
fight, for this whole controversy must
be settled in the courts 10 have in
terfeTed with the work O. the citv's
men today would have been I'm con
tempt Of court, but next Saturday.
when the order to show cause comes
up for hearing before Judge Hiles why
the injunction should not be made per
manant, we believe our attorneys will
secure a victory. We are laW-abiding
and viii harm nobody and destroy no
property.
Before the injunction suit was COM
menced against our company the city
tried to steal march on US, but Com
missioner Wes1erfield weakened. They
went down there today expecting. evil
IDENTIFY, to meet with resistance. but
they were fooled.
I'm my opinion" concluded SuDerin-