New-York tribune., 1902-02-17
TO FIGHT THE BURR. BILL.
COMMISSIONERS DOUGHERTY GIvEskHTs
ARGUMENT FOR DRAWING WATER
FROM SUFFOLK COUNTY. \

before the Senate and Assembly committees
when the Morgan measure for the repeal of the
Burr water bill comes up. These two officials
in about so many words. take the position mat
Brooklyn must have at early date about one
hundred million gallons more of water daily,
that the supply must from Suffolk County
and that unless the legislature is prepared to
see a water famine in Brooklyn the coming
summer with tremendous financial loss on the
part Of thousands Of property owners Win
dwellings in some Of the higher parts or the
city. where the reduced pressure would be felt
first steps must be taken Immediately to repeal
the Burr bill This measure it is charged was
passed by influences backed 10y the Ramapo
Water Company. the latter company desiring
TO force on Brooklyn water contract at proht-
able rates Commissioner Dougherty was asked
last week by a representative of The Tribune to
furnish a statement with reference TO the water
supply of Brooklyn backed by data from Chief
Engineer De Varona. that he would be willing
TO stand. by. He complied with the following:
The biz introduced by Assembyman Morgan is
undoubtedly passed to prohibit the former city OF
srpiHi from suffolk County shortly before the
i,@ inc enr,neers Of the brooklyn Water Depart
Inent and by William r. Worthen. an expert. re
FOR the augmentation of Brooklyn's existing sup
plies These reports were most th0Tongh ana ,iH eH
Gata regarding various new water sources but
computations
methods of procuring water and of the expense OF
conEeying the same 10 Sr9okyha iH 40 li, f fur
rish satisfactory additional yield Were re- Stlptk MOI,
IL in Connecticut and largely in New-iork and
the Ramapo watershed which lies both in New
The likelihood that interstate complications
Eht r ZEN Sr Me RIVER Teeons was ponsd out in
reports. which were supplemented 5y "a an
must have been evident to the people oa of sRfoi6 IN TX
that direction and therefore. under the guise OF
general law. and with the aid of the sinister m
Interested in depriving New-Nork and Brooklyn
% a+1r @ and compeiing sIrrends.r TO the Ramapo
company on its terms. the act now sought TO
In effect it prohibits any cay eontainips I pop
and living within forty miles of neghborinS
county from drawing upon the surface streams
OF ne county shall. by certificate. provided in
nle "a e 80 oIr1 nIabitants Argument is un-
necessary show that this bill must have been
-9 r drfd baTs enabled Brooklyn to secure from
sYfopS abundant supplies of water for least a
generation come. The engineers proved That
draw enough water to interfere with the normal
Teqnlrenends OF SuolH Iatai frtstrsfed bV the
passage of the sO-called Burr law.
,reter far bayond that which the maximum Weld
Of her present watershed could furnish have since
been verified. Year after year for several years
efforts have been made at Albany TO repeal this
iiberal and unjust measure. but they have been
futile In the interval tI1 & the R b Of 1nrn
watershed for relief has been demonstrated Care,
from various public spirited bodies. Among others.
the Merchants Association and lawyers OF emi-
York could not rely on the waters flowing from
ries from other States for future supply. Recently
the courts have so decided. Possible relief from
Supplies such as the CatskiH region. the upper
ae and f the the be
available for ten years TO come, for as every one
be solved but also storage reservoirs must be
convey the water TO- NeWYork And when it
reaches the East River before BROOKLYN can OBJ
tain relief the water must he carried in pipes under
adeouate supplies from distant localities and in
Producing them into the distributing mains. even
decade. and more time will be absorbed before
saP Pe The of sFpenn bst Msn
haitian should eke out Brooklyn's shortage from
the Croton system is iGle because it is a demon
strable fact that the Croton system @ under exist
the growing population or Manhattan and The
BY a logical process Of exclusion Brooklyn is
forced to turn TO Suffolk COUNTY If her immediate
age Of water cannot be depcted but must be left
TO the imagtnation i The simple question 10 my
utter impossibity of obtaining the Immediately
than sufoik County. be prohibited from entering
that county which has abundance of super
out the slightest detrment her soil any OF
her interests supply her populouS neighbor? II is
York stands ready TO reimburse all proprietors for
population OF Suffolk County does not believe.
exceed seventy thousand persons. and II is scat
Tered over about twelve hundred square miles Of
II in the present conditions it were a question Of
the enactment OF the Burr law. cannot believe
tnat i any renresentatlve OF any other county or
resentstves OF Suffolk County. If an unjust law
has been enacted. if Brooklyns situation is not
feigned. but real; IL distress from water shortage
Will soon be suffered in that borough. If ready
relief is possible from other localities. ! cannot
support the attitude OF the Suffolk County people
At a recent conference between her representa-
tives the Mayor Mr. De Varona and myself at
the Mayors Office. these representatives. conceded
unanswerable. They admitted Brcoklyns scarcity
of water and their own superfuity. They acknowi-
edeeo their arguments about the reed of certain
quantity of fresh water for tie oysters to be ut
DR.. Robinson left the Mayors room they stated
20 Mr.. De Narona and myself that If the people
sentatives had done. 10 the arguments for the re-
peal oi the IA" we might nope 10 overcome their
vince them Of the error OF their and that the
II the public of Manhattan and Brooklyn can be
got 10 comprehend the situation a public senti-
ment viii be created which will compel the repeal
Of this la%: Thirteen hundred thousand people re-
Gure additional water 1t flows i'll, abundance
within comparatively few miles of their homes.
and can be readily and ineXpensively conducted
water they must have But the owners of these 1se
streams and ponds, although they have O admit
which daily flow 10 in the Great South Bay
would suffice to provide for the needs Of Brooklyn
for years to come. absolutely decline
}atTre IN ~ her Mart Of the stste arc is said -
stand bV the members from sHffok CONT iu be 70
cause New-York Will have eventually to into
city is willing to paw and II has paid the farmers
liberally FOR all il has taken.
The data furnished by Chief Engineer De
Narona of the Brooklyn department in con-
densed form. is follows:
First Brooklyn's present water supply is en-
been times wnen the total reserve In the Ridge