New-York tribune., 1906-06-03
" BUYS STOLEN WATER" :"
"CITYS MAINS TIPPED" +"
Ellison Says Cord Meyers Com
pany Pilfered and Sold 1t Back.

pany Pilfered and Sold 1t Back.
Acting on information given to him by house
holders in rhe Ridgewood Heights section, who
complained of the scarcity of the water supply
Commissioner Ellison started investigation
which showed him that the Citizens Water Sup
ply Company had beer stealing from 10000 to
100000 gallons of water daily from the city's
main in St Nicholas avenue, Brooklyn He
made public his findings yesterday,
Cord Meyer chairman OK the Democratic State
Committee. is president Of the water supply
company Early in the Van wyck administra-
ton the company made contract TO supply the
city with 5.OOOO0O gallons of water daily at S60
a million gallons. The contract expired in 1901
but the city has continued TO take the water and
pay for It at the rate in the contract
Under the charter of the company it supplies
the water TO a large part of the Ridgewood
section fixed rate foot of frontage, and
the property owners have TO pay the7charges or
do without water For years they have COM
planned of the lack of pressure and Mr. Ellison,
early in his administration, began an inquiry
In February Cord Meyer asked a new contract
and Offered to iincrease his Company's capacity
a form of contrac was drawn and is still under
the Commissioners consideration.
In the course of the investigation Comras-
sioner Ellison found that the Citizens company
was stealing the city water at St Nicholas ave
nue. and Stanhope street, rear the Brooklyn line,
and selling it back to the city in Long Island
City The city has a 6-inch main in St.
Nicholas avenue At the junction of the avenue
with Stanhope street the main is extended down
Stanhope street while the up StauhOpe street
end is capped. Half way up the Stanhops street
block the Citizens company also mas 6-inch
main
Commissioner Ellison ordered his chief engi-
neer 70 dig down TO the pipes, He found tnal
the Citizens company had connected its main
with the city's main by a 212-t2ch pipe. BY
maintaining a low pressure the Citizens com
pany could draw the full capacity of the 217-
inch main from the ctty's supply That ey-
planned the Commissioner thought, why the
property owners We're unable 10 get water above
the first floors
The Commissioner was asked yesterday if he
had laid the results of his investigation before
the District Attorney. He said he had not.
Il am making thorough investigation of con-
ditions," the Commissioner said. and when 1
through Z shall decide what course is hest
to take. There are undoubtedly a score of such
cases in different parts of the city. and expect
to unearth all of them
The Commissioner gave ont a typewl itten
statement. in which he said
With the aid Of Deputy Commissioner Cozier and
Two @ Tsliabe IspectqIS' Ne found Almost within
Brooklyn forty-one unmetered places. and many #
water in an Absolutely unrestricted ard Needless
way. AS in Manhattan and The Brorx ! am having
hcpe to have metered every unmetersd. but prop
erly meterable. place within the city. OF course I
am not metering private residences
began 10 press inquiries outside of my depart
franI ths citvs mains and fberesfraI II I
The citT at their Contract prices and s8 b 40
there would be no substantial increase in the
pressure al Ridgewood Heights. because such an
increase Of pressure would prevent he inflow Of the
CITY wafer II mo t Ihs H "aISI cup5ny Z mans.
sition to me. and first I dsinclined TO be
aGd came to 8"S Conclusion that Careful inspee3o
OF all the districts in which the citys mains lag
should be had Then, and for tha frs time
66enortTnent' Mr. de varona He irnmediately tdoS
up the matter, and. ON May %, 1905 presented me
81 have reason 10 believe that the Citizens Water
Company may % hhTe sn6 9e T MANS c B wJeT fT r9 T
Ridgewood system Myrtle avenue MAIN
Then the Commissioner directed that excava-
tions be made which resulted in the discovery
of the theft The statement continues
In my own presence the pressure was tested. and
I was satisfied that we're contributing the
Citizens Water supply Company many thousands
Of gallons of water a day, and had been doing so
for many years at this particular point For fear
that the pipe OF VI Ie ThTovSb ths copnec6n
vas dead pipe / caused excavations to be
mace mac L Iai ine taking the water from us was
portion of the Citizens system and in actual op-
How many millions Of gallons of water we have
thus in the drst instance lost. and later bought
back from the Citizens company l. OF course. at
this time cannot say
This particular spot is right in the neishborhood
where the suffering for want OF water mad been
the most acute and where, If the pressure had
been kept UP by the Citizens company sufficiently
high 10 furnish the residents Of this neghbOrhood
with water. that pressure might have been high
enough TO have prevented the inhow of water from
cttys
This location is only Of many where I am
led 10 suspect the citys water has been taken by
water companies. / have placed duty a large
number OF men that the streets and pipes
are not tampered with at any place where the
mains OF the companies contiguous the
ctv's water supply and these Will remain
duty night and day until can have the streets
opened and ascertain Just what the real condi-
tfons are. several of the streets the mains Os
the water companies Contiguous run
ton furnished by plumber of high standing.
and who has been advising me in this matter I
am convinced Of the with which connections
could be surreptiUoCSly made and vast quantities
OF city drawn on 70 be later resod 10 II az
a handsome price.
Mr.. Suydam. engineer OF the Citizens Water
Supply Company denied that the company was
stealing water from the Brooklyn mains He
said the pipe discovered led from an old surface
pipe which had not been connected with the
could not supply the Citizens company with
water, as the pressure was not strong enough
He also said that II the Commissioner had in
vestigated he would have found that the pipe in
question at one time had meter and that was
removed