Waterbury Democrat., 1901-10-18
TRIP TO THE BRANCH.
Mayor and Other Officials Inspected
 the Work Yesterday.

 treet department, Superintendent <'Brien of the bureau of water, Health Officer c. w. $. Frost, Sanitary In spector Moses and the members or the board of public works, all chaperoned by Sheriff Mcdonald, visited the Branch reservoir yesterday and made a thorough inspection of the work now going on there. The party left here on the HIP a. m. train for Thomas ton and took 'bus from there to the reservoir. a distance of about four miles. The roads through that dis trict are in shocking condition, ana after going over them one feels that, after all we hear regarding alleged bad highways in Waterbury, still we have much better roads than our neighbors. Business is rushing at the reservoir, and although all the work will not be finished this year, yet 1T the weather holds out good until the latter part of December the dam Will be practically completed and the strip ping and cleaning will have progress ed far enough to admit of the flooding of as much of the land as will be nec- essary to insure the city lots of water for next summer The lots in the neighbOrhood of the masonry dam are dotted with shanties where the work men eat and sleep. and the number or Italian 1aborerS employed IS so great that one hears little else than the ltal- ian tongue once he enters the place until he leaves it.
 Work on the masonry dam is being pushed, but even so it is plain that It will not be completed this year. La throp & Shea of New Haven. the con tractors who are doing the job, appear to be giving the city excellent satls- faction so far as the character CT the work is concerned Although Wofk- ing on the dam looks like q dangerous occupation and many would not at tempt to walk across it. the contract ors have been fortunate ill not having many accidents since the work was started. the death of Michael White Of this city being the only untorIunate thing that happened there.
 The mayor and the engineer piloted the party across the dam to the oppo site side.where Contractor McManus Is putting the finishing touches on the earth dam While crossing the eertn dam Commissioner Mahaney notlceu volumes of water rushing out of the reservoir. and looking down at the white foam he exclaimed: Great ScottI There won't be a fish in the reservoir this winter. Everyone of them will be forced out in that cur rentr' This seemed to interest all and a short stop was made to discuss the situation. Mir Cairns explained that the water had to be kept down low enough to allow the work to be con- tfnued on the dam, and that ii some fish escaped he knew of no way or keeping them in. There appeared to be no way of keeping the fish back
 1.-- r1f caT0n did not happen to be on hand, and after chatting on the subject it was dismissed with this remark from MT Mahaney: "sNever mind, we'll catch them down the stream" In making the trip acr Jss the big dam Sher if Me Donald and Commissioner CheSsOn thought they felt the foundation give out and hurried back to the main road and sat on a rail fence near Milo K. Gray's barn until the others returned.
 The earth dam is a beautiful piece of workmanship and reflects credit on the engineer as well as on the con- tractor. It rears its head high above the water and looks so much like a fort that Commissioner CheSson thought it would be a capital place to train guns on any disease germ that might accidentally get into the reser- voir While making observations Commissioner Blakeslee rolled down one of the terraced embankments, and thinking he was being hurried into deep water, Justify called for assist ance. When he landed on dry ground he laughed and pretended that he was only trying to scare the crowd.
 Contractor McNiece is making com mendable headway with the stripping and cleaning and says he will have 1t all done by December 15. Some of the work is very difficult and is carried on with much risk of life and limb. In : corner bordering upon where Edward McManus is making a new road to take the place of the old one, which will be inundated when the masonry dam is raised to it's full height, MT McNiece lost two valuable horses. and the drivers came near losing their lives, too. The animals got into quagmire and were swallowed out of sight. The men worked their way to terra firma and then an effort was made to save the horses. They succeeded in getting their heads over the dirt. but that was all. They had to be shot and then hauled out with a derrick. Some peo- pie may think that cleaning the basin of the reservoir is an unnecessary out lay. but those who take that view of the matter should call there and take
 
 out of some parts of it and see how they would like to use water stored in it. McNiece has a big crowd of men at work and appears confident that he will be through by December 15, the time limit of his contract.
 Considerable work has been done during the past year on the residence of Caretaker Danaher, so that it is now a comfortable home and the place looks brighter and more cheerful than ever before On the whole the work of the past season at the Branch has been very satisfactory. and it was q pity that operations did not commence earlier SO that the mansOnry dam might be finished and the coping put on this fall. It is massive structure and this. with the other work on hand. makes things lively for the engineer, who spend the greater part of his time keeping track of what is going on there. He has a neat office on knoll by the roadside. overlooking the dam where all materials are tested and work connected with his department attended to.
 There is no truth in the rumOr of contamination of the water by typhoid fever germs. A couple of men who worked there were stricken with ty- phoid fever and are now at the hos pital. but they did not live near the Reservoir, consequently there is noth ing to fear The sanitary precautions Msr- <~f