Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1904-04-28

was mastery and exhaustive, showing
how completely the speaker has studied
every detail of the case, and how close =
| ly to his heart is the cause in which
he has worked so long and so faith
fully. 1t is impossible to give-and
the Journal does not attempt to give
any adequate summary of his argu-
ment. But Il few of the important
points which he dwelt upon are ind:-
Gated below.
In opening, Mr.. Heath acknOwl-
edged his Indebtedness to Mr.. Goddard
and Judge Bumpus for their assistance
to him during the trial. He then
sketched briefly the history of the Wa
ter Company since 1856, telling how
Mr.. Wescott, before any work was done
upon the system, or dollar spent up
on it, had sold at a premium bonds
enough to build the system and allow
the builders to put 1000 into their
pockets. About $255,00O was actually
expended in building the system, Of
which not one dollar was supplied by
the stockholders. The company put its
pumps into a corner of the mill, eX-
posed to great danger from fire instead
of building a slate or metal roof as pro-
vided in the contract; put in n worth
less filter to deceive the people; have
evaded honest taxes to the extent Of
$4,000 yearly; have pOcketed $102, 900 un-
lawful dividends; have allowed the
plant to depreciate to the extent of $25,-
600 or $4,000, putting that depreciation
into the form of dividends for them
selves in defiance of the charter which
required them to keep the plant in
good condition. In addition to these
wrongs, done to defraud the bondhold-
ers and upon the Augusta people whom
they have wilfully exposed to disease
and death, they now ask 1921 200 for
their plant.
Mr.. Heath went on to say that there
are many questions to be determined
before the amount of the award can be
decided upon. What is the real prop
erty value now? Is the system eff
icent? Is the quality Of water pure?
If not pure. what will be the expense
of making it so: Is the present income
lawful? Is the lawful net income as
sured for the future? What is the
proper depreciation item to be assessed
annually? Is there any such thing as
franchise value: There are five great
elements which go to make up the to-
tai value of property. The present val
lie of the present property in it's con-
idtion of March l. 1864: the maximum
lawful net income of the plant in it's
present condition; the going concern
value if any; the amount of the law
full net income which is assured; the
franchise value, if any. In the case Of
| this company there is no doubt that the
going concern value have both been
| lost, also portion of it's property val
ue.
In discussing the physical value Of
| the plant, Mr.. Heath dwelt upon the
question of whether the value of its
pipe lines should be based upon the
price of iron March 1, 1904, when the
plant was turned over by the company
| to the district, or upon the price of
iron July 1, 1903, which was the date
taken by the cOmpany'S engineers in
| building the imaginary plant to turn
| over to the company March 1, 1904. lie
| held that it was the duty of the court
| to see what the existing system could
be reproduced for March l, 1904, and
| not what it could have been reproduced
| for before that time. The law does not
say that the appraisers were to find the
cost of the plant in 1903 but its value
on March 1, 1904. If this date is taken,
it means that the estimates of the dis
| trict's engineers, Messrs. Gray and Her.
ing, are to be accepted regarding the
price of iron, not those of the COM
pany's experts, Shedd and Allen, who
| took the price of iron as of July 1, 1903.
when it was very much higher. Mr.
Heath also pointed out that Messrs.
Shedd and Allen figured the iron as
coming by rail from Portland to Au-
gusta, whereas, as matter of fact, the
pipes of the original system came by
water to the Augusta wharves making
the freight much cheaper.
| In the matter of the buildings of the
company, Mr.. Heath declared that the
estimates of Mr.. Bradstreet and Mr.
| burlington We're much more carefully
made and worth much more than those
of Mr.. Moves. He ridiculed Mr.. Noyes'
mistake in measurement, and arraigneu
him for not bringing in totals upon
which he based his estimates, as had
been promised early in the trial. The
filter plant is acknowledged by all to
be of no practical usefulness as a filter,
and yet no depreciation fund was ever
set aside by the company for it's re-
placement. Mr. Heath declared that
he made a mistake in accepting an es-
innate of Is per cent. depreciation on
| this plant, since that would leave its
present worth about $4,000, when. as a
matter of fact. such screens as it con-
tains could be bought for about $50. He
thought that the average estimate of
four engineers in the pumps, s25.317,
should be accepted as fair one. The
value of the standpipe at Togus is not
in dispute at the present time. but its
value. as well as the value of the line
to Togus depended upon the perma-
nency of the Home there. which is a
very serious question. Before many
years the government may give up the
Home on account of lack of material,
Or may consolidate it with some other
branch: or the whim of secretary Of
war may lead to its sudden and abso-
lutte abandonment. as was the case with
the Kennebec arsenal, and if this is
done a great source of income would be
cut off. Mr.. Heath held that the line
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