The Montgomery advertiser., 1902-07-06
CITIZENS COMPLAIN OF
 EXCESS WATER CHARGES

charges had this year seemed reasonable.
 but twelve months ago he had reason
 to believe that the billg rendered him
 had been excessive.
 Some of the complainants against the
 excess water charges aver that the gross
 receipts of the water works department
 of the city government show a steady in-
 crease with each recurring year. This,
 they say, Is due to the continued en-
 cfoachment upon the rights of the people
 by the city ih its excessive charges Tor
 water.
 MT. McDuff Cain, Superintendent of the
 City Wate works, denIes that there has
 been steady advancement of receipts
 from the sale of water except the in- acI, ase which is due to natural condi- kit ns.
 ! In substanti ation of this contention,
 Mir. Cain points to his reports for the
 flseal years l9J1 and 1901 The totdl gross
 receipts of the waterworks from all
 sources during lsoo was Sos, while
 the gross eceiLt5 for 1901 was Soa, 2i4lb.
 No statement IS made of receipts from excezs charges ard MT Cain said he could not g,ve d. statement of receipts for the quarters of the present fiscal year The small increase in receipts for l9Ol ever 190O, Mir. Cain said, was due to the
 fact that new houses are building and
 that Montgomery is growing, and is not by any means due to excess charges for
 water He said that for these reasons the indications are that the receipts for 1902 will show about the same perGent- age fof increase over 1901.
 If The Advertiser will submit to me each complaint it receives of excess charges, said Mir. Cain, "I will gladly furnish a satisfactory explanation for the excess charge. Moreover. the books of the office are always open to the pub lie and we will be pleased to show cause for any charge which causes dissatisfac- tion. I have just returned from making an inspection with one of my workmen of six houges occupied by consumers who
 complained of excess charges during the | past quarter In each of these houses we found defective plumbing, and water going to waste. The ordinance is plain | that we must charge for this waste water | and the people should criticise the ordi. nance which makes this our duty and not | criticise the department.
 But, after all," added MT. Cain, this
 matter rests with the City Council. and | do not care to be interviewed about it. Then Mir. Cain explained some of the regulations of the Water Department | He said that notwithstanding the ordi- | nance only requires one reading of the | meters in each quarter he had directed during his administration that the meters ! be read twice in each quarter. They are 1 read during the month in the middle of the quarter. If it appears from this read l ing that there Is an excess of water be- | ing used because of breaks in the plumb l ing. the consumer is at once notified by | postal.
 | card that the reading of his meter indi- cates that he will have an excess charge l for the quarter and that his plumbing | should be investigated. The meters are read the second time just before the close of the quarter preparatory to making | out statements for consumers
 To strengthen his contention that the | complaints as to excess water charges
 have been exaggerated MT. Cain pro- | duced his statement ot excess consump- | ton of water taken from the reading
 which took place during last May for the
 quarter just closed. Out of about 2.50O
 meters Mir. Cain showed that but thirty | seven consumers had shown an excess | due to breaks in plumbing. These excess | charges, he said, were naturally the only ones against which complaints were reg | istered. The other excess charges tor | the past quarter, he said were made | against less than one hundred consumers
 most of whom had excess charges each | quarter and expected that excess be- l cause Ol tHt NdtuiS LII tiiSli DbSiliSoS
 or the size of their families.
 | MT. Cain called attention to the section
 of the ordinance regulating the water works which provides that consumers | will be charged for all water which | passes through their meters whether used | or wasted He displayed pieces of broken | pipe which had been taken from private | residences by inspectors, showing that water had escaped for several months
 before 1t was known to the consumer. | He instanced one case where a citizen | had complained of excess water charges
 over year. An investigation of his premises disclosed the fact that stop
 water cock, four feet under the ground
 had been eaten to pieces by electrolysis
 and as much water was being wasted as | was going into the residence.
 Since he has been superintendent of the | water works MT. Cain says he has di- | rected that all meters be tested free Of charge notwithstanding the ordinance | provides that the consumer shall have | his meter tested at his own expense. MT. | Cain says he invites any consumer to visit
 the shops of the water system and see | his meter tested to establish the fact of
 it's accuracy to his own satisfaction. | Alderman Charles P. Anderson. chair | man of the committee on water werbs | has called for statement of receipts and | expenditures by the water dcpartni 1!t .. | recent years. This statement will prob | ably be submitted to the City Council | Monday evening. At any rate lively dls- | cussion of excess water rates is sure to | take place at the next meeting of the Council.