Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1903-02-10
| WATER SUPPLY.
Case Of Brunswick Citizens vs.,
Maine Water Co.
Testimony Of Witnesses and Argu-
ments of Lawyers,
An important Hearing Before Judiciary
Committee.


!: on the petition of Brunswick citizens
for the formation of a Brunswick ant
lTopsham water district. The petition
: is the result of a feeling among tn,
Icitizens of Brunswick that the qualit.
Iof the water they now get is unsatis
. factory, that the rates are too high ant
THAT municipal ownership would be {
Igood thing. The Maine Water com
Ipany disputes the contention as to the
Equality of the water and the unreason-
Iableness of the rates, and as the petit
Itioners want only part of the present
brunswick and Bath system the com
ipsny claims there is no way by which
La water system can thus be disrupted
land one of its parts justly appraised.
! The hearing was held in the Senate
lchamber and occupied the whole of the
AFTERNOON and evening. The testimony
lof the petitioners occupied the whole OF
the afternoon session, and in the eve
lining the water company put in a few
witnesses and the arguments of Hon.
10. .. Baker for the company and
! Weston Thompson ESQ, for the Brun-
lSwick petitioners We're made. The fol-
lowing leading citizens of Brunswick
Iattended the hearing in the interests of
the proposed municipal ownership:
Weston Thompson. Frederick III. Wilson,
George l.. Thompson, Walter d.
Hatch, William NJ. Pennell, Russell w.
Eaton, Franklin c. Robinson, George
IT. Files. Ira p Booker, Larllin d.
Snow. John Kurdish. Charles f. Town
lsend, Emery A. Crawford, Lemuel HI.
IStover, George L. Skofield, Harry F.
Thompson, Lyman +. Smith, Edward
w. Wheeler. George e. Woodbury., L..
is. Bowlser, r. c. Webb, j. f. Atwood,
|James w Curtis, Charles H. Nash.
Dwight Curtis, A. w. Haskell, 5. c.
lWhitmore, c. Z. Lancaster, John T..
lCody. Charles o. Eaton, George A..
lStorcr Fred r. Shaw, Josiah Morrill,,
David f.. Scribner. A. J. Hutchinson,
George f.. Bowker F. E. Roberts and
Nv G. Weber
/ The case for the Brunswick citizens
Twas ably conducted by Weston Thonip
son, Esq. of that town. IN opening, he
briefly reviewed the history of Bruins
lwick's water service. In 1884, he
said, the Pejepscot water company
Twas chartered by the Legislature. 1t
lerected the pumping station on the
shore of the Androscoggin and the
lstandpipe on a neighboring hill, which
lare still standing, and distributed wa
ter to the village The quality of the
water was never satisfactory. At some
time Bath company was formed
(which took water from Thompson's
brook In 1889 the Maine water COM
pany wos formed and in 1891 itabsorbed
these two companies ana inaugur-
lated the present Bath and Brunswick
d. Icvstap, II made Npo11ascet lake in
lWoolwich it's chief scource of supply,
bringing the water in pipes under the
lKennebec river. This lake is 10 miles
from Brunsw wick The pumping station
lat Thompson's brook is kept in repair
land is occasionally when Nequasset
lsupply is cut off by injury to pipes
Icr other cause. Brunswick doesn't like
the quality of the water, or the increas-
ling rates or the hazard of bringing its
supply under two rivers. 1t asks for a
lwater district such as has been given
lWatervile 1t only proposes to take
THAT portion of the Maine Water ecm-
lpany's plant which was formerly a
complete and independent plant. The
Brunswick part of the present system
Twas the easiest to establish and is
lcheapest to keep up. Though the BUSH
mess OF the COInpdty HAS SloNIi III
BRUNSWICK, the rates have been in
lcreased there, and there is general
lcomplaint as to the quality of the wa
tier Moreover. Topsham wants water
lservice and this the Maine Water COM
Ipany declines TO supply.
| Prof F. c. Robinson of Bowdoin Col
llage was the first witness of the after
moon. He said he had several times
lanalysed samples of the water and
Hound it in a very unsatisfactory con-
EDITION, more so of late than formerly.
lit would not pass the requirements OF
some state boards Of health. The wa
tier is evidently not properly filtered and
loften contains much mud and organic
matter Much of the trouble is due to
1.-The two kinds of water in the pipes
(which changes the current and stirs UP
; the water in the pipes. On cross ex-
lamnation Prof. Robinson said that he
Ibid not think the water was ever
affected with typhoid. He had always
Favored taking Brunswick's water
, lsupply from Mere brook reinforced il
/ necessary by wells driven in the Brun-
. swick sand plains.
. John Furnish. Charles o. Eaton
Charles III. Nash and John T. Cody, all
, plumbers testified in turn as to the
. tdirty condition in which they Otter
! found tanks and pipes, with the water
often muddy ard Shiny ana with mucf
sediment setting at the bottom. Mr.
iCody told of finding several cells in thu
: lpipas. The smell and taste of water i:
r isometimes offensive. Many of the peo
lple drink spring water. There is gen
Ieral complaint as to high rates. MI
Kurdish, who uses a meter and has M
complaint as to his own rare, had help
led Nc prepare tables showing lowe
: rates in towns of Brunswicks size. .
1.-THE IL towns in this table all were II
massachusetts. except Pittsfield, Maine
Eugene Thomas, representative from
y 1Topsham. said that his town is anxiou
: flor a water system but has been unabl
Is Ito get Maine water company to exten'
]. Tits pipes there. as it is allowed to do b.
/. tits charter. A charter had been graf
= led for a water district with Lisbol
4. Tails, miles away, but nothing ha
is ever been done under it. Henry w
: Cakes, representative from Auburn