The Montgomery advertiser., 1908-05-03
New York's $500 100000 Bfii Fer it's Additional supply Makes the Liquid More Expensive In Metropolis Than Anywhere Else in world--sl7,ooo an Inch for snsw--Grain Export Pros pects--A Prince in search of Job --ADead Mans Curve. Loses Title as Most Dangerous Spot.

Aost Dangerous Spot.
 New York. May 2.--(Special)-Com- mon drinking water bids fair 70 oe- come more expensive than cnampasne in New York. if the cost of the Cats kill water supply scheme continues 'o grow. ..
 As originally figured the expense of the plan for supplying water to the city was s33.O00. .00o Last fall 1t had reached total of s1e2.000.o00 and now 1t has passed the $200.0 100000 marx with apparent end in sight IhA' the construction of this new water system will far exceed the cost of the Panama Canal cannot be doubted ana the water furnished by it will be the most expensive drink in any city in the world The whole affair bids fair to become one of the greatest scandals in the record of the city.
 It is reported that advance tips were given to real estate agents which en- abled them to acquire land at SIS an acre and sell it the city for sl5o. Already thirty six commissioners. counsel and experts are drawing $50 per day and for a five-hour day of S1s.250 a year apiece. total of SS67,- 900 year in salaries for one small class of employees.
 As things stand now the estimated cost of this gigantic water scheme would construct all the subways SIX times over. or build q railroad clear across the United States and more than half way back again. To pay in- terest On the bonds and the sinking fund the city will need S1S,00O,0oO every year. which means an increased tax for every worktngman living In New York of more than 021 annually.
 auN-. 4. AxNNp light that the city was recently of fered an opportunity which was turn ed down, to contract for 200.00o,0v0 gallons of water q day at price or $5,100.000 a year. To secure that supply now it is going to pay more than three times that sum every year In view of these facts recently brought out 1t is plain that no city will dispute New Yoriz's title to the most expensive water on earth. All that remains to be seen Is what the average citizen will drink when this new system is inaugurated. z,
 Snow is one of FatherRnickerbock CTS most expensive commodities and at the same time one for which he has the least use. Every inch of the 'beau-tiful white' that falls cost the city during the past year more than S17,000. As the fall during the past winter was thirty two inches. conn paratively small amount, the city had to pay for cleansing it away the sum of $551,304. This amount, large as it is. represents a great saving over } former years. During the winter of !. 190e-07 the snowfall was fifty two inches. The most of removing it that year was S47.S00 an inch. or S2s47o,sOV in all. In other words snow cost the city. about three times as much two &A.a inch that fell, or a difference Of $40,- 006. For the winter of 1905-06 the cost of snow removed reacher the trernen- dous total of $4,400, 900. the-tmsNeet on the records of the city. In that year, however. the snowfall was extremely large Figured on the basis Of clean ing a mile of street of each inch of was only ss2s7.
 During the winter before h was $lf3.S4 and in 1905-06 1t was $132.2S For the handling of more than three-quar- tersi of snowfall it was necessary to hire outside help. since the city's street cleaning department is equal to caring for only twenty-five per cent of the whole. The city. too. has to pay heavily for sweeping rain from the streets,s although the expense is ne- where near as large as that caused by snow.
 The continual rivalry between New York and the other North Atlantic ports in the matter of export trade, received a new impetus last week when the Government figures for the past month showed falling off in this city.s exports of breadstuffs as compared with last year. Like a pendulum trade has swung back, and Philadel- phia has scored heavy gain over New York and Baltimore.
 .a.-. total amount of breadstuffs shipped from New York was valued at $2,612,- 439. This was 3606.726 less than last year. when the export breadstuffs Ieaw- ing this part was valued at $3,219,1e5. Philadelphia. on the contrary. showed an increase of s511,7S0 over the exports of 1907, which amounted to s1.645.611 as against S2,057 .391 in 1908.
 A significant feature of the March report lies in the fact that New York has steadily gained in grain movement in spite of losses to Gulf ports. Ex- ports. however. are uneasy. from re- alization of the effect on the export trade of the pending bills to abolish the system of selling at home and abroad for future delivery. To do away with the present system would revo- lutionize the grain business, say sta- tistfcians who have studied the prOb.s lem and analysed the probable conse- quenees of a change. Any paralysis of the large produce exchanges would work a hardship on exporters, who rely on these exchanges more than ever this year in view of the reported falling of in the winter wheat crop of Europe, which will stimulate heavier exports from this country.
 Everything points to unusual activity during the next few months, and un- less there Is interference with the pres ent system, whereby the shipper sells his wheat for future delivery and thus insures himself against fluctuations in value while it is in transit, commission merch ants here are likely to succeed in their plans for making this a banner year>for grain exports.
 New York has seen so many foreign