Daily Kennebec journal., 1906-04-19
WATERVILLE.
EXPERTS CALLED
To Testify in the Lock-
wood Mills Hearing
They Give Opinions as 10
Pfoperty's Market Value.
Several Witnesses CaIIed...Sparring Between
The Counsel Is Lively.

TIE hearing before the county COM
| rliss;OnerS on the petition or the repre-
sentativ,s of the Lockwood Cos. inter-
ests in this city which was adjourned
from Feb. IA to Feb. 20 and then inter-
ruptad by the serving of writ against
the county commissioners, Joseph w.
| Bassett, Irwin r. Bradlee and Rermon
| Adams, was resumed Wednesday morn
ing as result of the reScript of Judge
| Whitehouse in which the petition for
! a writ of prohibition to the proceed
J ines as then conducted by the attor-
neys for the petitioners was denied.
Hon. Orville D. Baker of Augusta and
Hon. c. +. johnson of this city s.p-
peared i'm the interests of the Lock-
wood Co. and Hon. 5. $. Brown of
Waterville and City Solicitor A. A.
! Mathieu represented the city. The court
was called to order by Chairman Bas-
sett of the commissioners at a little
after 10 o'clock.
At the previous session of the hear
ing the line of evidence to which II. D.
Eaton in behalf of the city so strong
ly objected was calculated to offer
proof as to the unfairness of the as
sess.u valuation of the properties of
the company by an impartial compari
son Of said properties with the build
ings in the business section and the
most important of the residential sec
tion of the city. Although the work in
this direction was by no means COM
Dloted at this time, the evidence intro
duced yesterday was confined solely to
the testimony of mill experts which
had been summoned as witnesses as to
the market value of the mill and it's
equipments judging, as the first wit
ness expressed himself, from the stand
point of a person qualified to know
from practical experience, the proper
value of the same in the market.
F. p. Sheldon. a mill engineer Of
Rhode Island. Va" ~-'-nrn in AS tn" first
witness by Atom: .frhnson. Mr..
Sheldon stated that he has been en-
gagged in the wcrk of constructing and
renodelliEg mills, principally cotton
mills in the North, West and South and
showed a catalogue containing repre-
sertations of mills of which he has
been builder in Massachusetts, New
HAMPSHIRE, New York. Rhode Island
and others. He said that 80 per cent. of
the mills which he had constructed, he
He has had much experience in re-
modelling mills, especially during the
last two years as there never was 4
! time like the present when the value
of old machinery and mill construction
was becoming SO rapidly obsolete and
generally useless without up-tO-date
1 changes constantly being made.
! Mr. Sheldon said that he had. COM
! mencing with the first day Of April.
/ 1905. made q thorough examination Of
! the Lockwood mills at the request of
! the agent, Mr.. Davidson. for the pur-
! pose of asccrtaining fair valuation Of
i the pronerty: that he had made thrc"
visits to the mill and spent no less than
| a week Of time in compiling a schcI
ulc of it's effects.
, Entering into a discussion as to the
results of his investigation, Mr.. Sh"l-
! don then began to give his reasons up
! on which he based his estimates of the
( worth of the different parts. somewhat
as follows:
| 81 find that cotton mills which We're
built - or 20 years ago have many de-
! fects which delreciatc their value.
! These defects are not only du" I" OBJ
solete machinery, but the slylo nf inc
/ buildings themselves have b'cE
I changed to correspond with later i'm
j provements. Tho economy Of floor space
: has been introduced as 2 great saving.
8 not only of the expense Of construction
: but also in the TRANSPORTATION Of the
products, the light admitted by having
fewer rooms and by the comparative
, increase Of the value Of steam power as
. - Ia Of hn #
water power. l found that this mil! is
( equipped with $4,000 SpindlcS contained
in "a roooms To compare these condi
tiOns with the Dartmouth mill which
/ is Illustrated in the catalogue, the lat
| ter has 10000 spindles contained in
! but four rooms This not only gives
The advantage of 4 greater facility in
I the handling of the GOODS. but increases
the capacity of the power of production
J Of the labor employed.
! "As to its water power When this
mill was built 80 years ago, its water
! power was a great advantage as then
: steam power was very expensive. Now
! The conditions are exactly reversed.
Water facilities as great rs those used
Mt this mill would offer no inducement
to a would be purchaser. These mills
! lose in a year about three weeks of pro-
duction from a lack Of power and. ac-
cording to my estimation. the cost of
erecting steam plant would be about
equal to the fair valuation or tie water
power and its appliances connected
Herewith. The cost of manufacturing
cotton goods, moreover, by this means
Is about 40 times that which would be
required for their production by steam
power. even here in Waterville. 1t
would be absolute foolishness and |
wouiC think man crazy TO build a
inhi IN this city for the advantage Of
any water privilege, however valuable
II miSh. be considered in itself"
! MI. hrown-"This testimony is some
S what argumentative and l feel as if 7
should be blamed if did not obiecr 70
' " peins introduced as evidence I don't
!. see the force of it considerins tba rnaI
1 value Of the property which We aro dis-
n Cussing. n die uiS-
Il MI raker-"I think the point Of This
r discussion is to get n fair valuation 80
! me property as applied to the cnnsi
S .ions under which the work Of tba ,,,;u
harr Il