Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1907-08-26
new YORK CHAT,
Metropolis Faces a Fine
Of $44,000,000.
Wall Street Seems to Be NerV-
Gus without Cause.
Telegraph Strike.-Many Hotel Fires
mails at Night.

New York. Aug. 25.-NcW York may
find itself in Il worse position than
Standard oil and the $29.0OG.0 600 fine Of
the latter may be east into the shade
by Il $f,Goo.ooo penalty against the city.
according to the statement OF the
chairman of Il special committee Of tnc
Merchants Association which is work.
ing to stop the pollution Of the HUI
son by sewage. The chairman of the
committee has discovered that under
law passed by the state legislature in
1909 the penalty for failure to obtain
from the state a permit for the dis
charge Of sewage from any public SOW
CT III the state is $500 and so for each
day the oftyns" continues. The act
also required the filing within sixty
days of roport on sewers existing; AT
the time ana forbade any increase in
the discharge Of these sewers without
spec fife authority from the state. APP
par"ntly none of these provisions have
been complied with and as over 60G
new sewers have been built by the city
since The adoption of the law. the
Merchants Association figures that the
city is now liable for the trjtling sum
of S4i1>i.1.::, Whether New Works.
PRIDE III nav llS lit' bIS-'.Nt 'fI t'NtlN
thing would reconcile the citizens to
the yayIncnt of this sum is doubtful.
In spite of the reiterated assurances
contained in the reports Of continued
and increasing prosperity which have
been gathered from all quarters Of the
country ana hung before its gaz" day
by day. in spite Of the optimism Of IL"
interviews given out hy =. II. lIarri
man. Judge Gar" and other captains
of Industry ana high finance. Wall
street refuses 20 h" comfnrt"h. In the
street the ticker talks moro loudly and
elouucntly than can any tinanccr or
politician and the ticker has told
story of something like q billion dol
lars cut from the value Of stocks with
in the ,ast few weeks. Not all of this
is "napcr loss by any means. rs thou
sands of operators who have been
forced to close out lines that they mad
been carrying mt from 10 t. 40 points
below the prices III which they were
n,rchascd can testify. Tho situation
has been described as case Of
..ncrvcs" but it more nearly resembles
nervous prostration so far as the lead
crs of speculation are concerned.
The telcgraphcrs' strike has served
to show New Workers how rapidly they
have progressed i'll the matter OF com
mlnication. Ten years ago In" SuS-
nension of Geographic communication
would have been of vast Inconvenience
to tho CITY. At the present time, even
if the strike had he"n successful I" tn"
n,int of stopping all trlcgran}s, the dif
Nv, ,..slr, nc
For many classes Of
h,,sincsS the telephone has almost sup
nI;n,cd the telegraph and New Nnrl;
is better supplied with telephones than
any other city in the world. having
twice rs many as London. When tn"
strike began there WAS 4 rush To tn
of the ttl"ph"T" Cnmr"u,
to secure additional wires. Ii was
found. however. that at most Of tho
exchanges it was impossible to make
am considerable extensions on account
of the TACT that there was not room
rncIch Cor the operators Practically
all the big business houses having
branches in other cities now do their
business over the talking wire. NV
Yorl; does most of its long distance
talking to Philadelphia and next t.
that comes Boston. 100 wires being re-
CURED to handle the through business
botwceiI the two cities. The fact tint
ii is possible to talk from New York
to almnst any plac" in the country
within two thousand miles leaves only
the Pacific Coast and few other
places that are dependent upon tn
telegraph for quick communication
with the metropolis