The San Francisco call., 1909-03-11
OVERCHARGE FOR
WATER ALLEGED
Roncovieri Accuses Spring Val-
ley of Taxing School Depart
ment Unwarranted Sums
Cites Instance in Which Toll
Is Increased Without Meter
Being Examined

In a report to the board of education
superintendent of Schools Alfred Ron
covieri yesterday charged the Spring
Valley water company with grossly
overcharging the school department,
and in one instance-that of the Noe
Valley school-with having increased
the monthly toll without ever having
looked at the meter.
The board of education has had Dep
Uty Superintendent Thomas l.. Heaton
and w. B. Howard examining the con
ditions of the schools so far as the gas
and water taxes are concerned for the
last month. Attention was called to the
fact that the Spring Valleys bill for
the Noe Valley school in August, dry,
long month, for water supplied, was
$3.50; that in January, rainy month,
the bill was $69.25, and in February.
also a rainy month. $3.50. 1t appears
from the foregoing ngures. submitted
by Roncovieri, that although there was
no necessity for flushing and sprinkling
in February, the bill was larger than
during the month of August of last
year when both flushing and sprinkling
were. resorted to.
TAX MERELY ARBITRARY
Deputy Superintendent Heaton said
yesterday that he believed that the tax
was merely arbitrary with the water
company. Janitor Kelly of the Noe
Valley school reports that to his knowl-
edge the agents of the Spring Valley
have not examined the meter during the
entire winter. When Heaton examined
1T yesterday he found il covered with
cake of mud and sand, the result of the
sliding away of the hill side on the base
OF which the meter has been located.
The meter in the condition in which ii
was found could not have been exam
ined for months, yet Roncovieri points
out bill was turned in by the water
company for $3.50 for February, a
rainy month, $50 in excess of the pre-
ceding August, a dry month.
RoncOvieri also points out that the
bills for the entire department aggre-
gated in August, a long, dry month.
when there was much sprinkling of
lawns and grounds in addition to the
flushing of vaults and water used for
drinking purposes. s1,697.10; in January,
sl.506.S5. and in February. $2,061.25.
UNNARRANTED INCREASE
Roncovieri charges that his figures
show an unWarranted increase in water
bills and suggests a closer inspection
DN the BOARD or education OF the water
consumption in schools.
The salaries of +. Z. Crofts, head of
the department of mathematics in the
Lowell high school, and F. X Berthel,
superintendent OF the manual training
department, were retained by the
superintendent. Both teachers put in
bills for a full months pay, when In
vestigation showed that they had been
absent from their classes. The salary
of Frank Morton, principal of the Low
ell high school was also held for
time. Roncovieri says Norton had
knowledge of Crofts' absence, but he
approved the bill for a full months
pay.
Roncovieri has asked the board OF
education to petition the board OF
supervisors to pave the streets front
ing schoolhouses with bitumen to re-
lieve the annoyance of passing drays
and the disturbance of the pupils at
their books by the noise occasioned by
teams travelling over the cobbles.
A resolution was adopted which re-
quires all teachers, deputies. clerks,
assistants and other employees of the
board of education to establish resi-
dence and reside within the city and
county before the opening Of the fall
term.