Los Angeles herald., 1909-08-20
PARTY LINES BEING
GENERALLY SHIFTED
WATER SITUATION BECOMES
COMPLICATED
Former Mayor Changes Ground and
Rapid Alteration of Alignment
on Questions Seems
Probable
Tspecial to The Herald

PASADENA, Aug. 19.-Former Mayor
Waterhouse is on the verge of abandon
ing his long time comrades in the water
fight part of the citizens committee
are frankly talking of bolting and
forming a new party which will stand
on middle ground between the admins
tration and that taken by the citizens
committee; and the mayor has written
sarcastic letters to the old opposition.
and there is the water situation as
1t stands today.
A general shifting of parry lines
throughout the city is freely predicted
by both sides. George f. kernaghan'
one of the most prominent of the wat
erhouse men and himself one oil the
best informed authorities in the city
on the water question, says with all
sincerity that the action of the cltl-
zens' committee, of which he was
member, in sending the letter OF yes
terday to the mayor has made the
split in the old Waterhouse party IN
evitable.
He said: 1.-THE action of the citizens
committee yesterday has actually
cleared the way for the solution OF the
water question. 1t will now be taken
I'm bv a. new body composed of men
who think as Mr.. Lockwood, Mr.. Thum
and I do, that an earnest effort Tor
agreement is better than an antago-
nistic and reactionary party The lines
of cleavage is now clearly dehned ana
q general shifting of party lines must
follow"
1t was said today by men in his own
party that William Waterhouse MIN
self would probably go with the con-
servatives in the formation Of the third
marty. which will take as its platform
the ACQUISITION of municipal water, put
NOT the purchase of the plants now
supplying the city at the figure at
which they are held-almost a hlllloh
dollars. Their contention will be tor
thorough investigation of the plants'
with q yeiw of ascertaining theT act
ual value and how much OF the pres
ont enuipment will be available Tor
use by the city. They also propose to
inquire into the possibilities of a future
supply from the owens river aqueduct'
The administration is for public own
ershin at the price fixed by the water
conpanies, while the third factloh,
headed by former Mayor Mark weight
and Edmund J. Barry, denounces the
proposed purchase of the plants as an
attempt to aid spectators IN uhloau-
ing big lots of water company stock.
Iavor Farley this afternoon rescind-
ed from his position taken early IN the
dav not TO give out an answer TO the
accusations made by the Barry com
mittee yesterday until he had taken
time TO think the matter over
In a public letter. after enumeratng
the name of every man on the com
mittee of twenty-one, he says; Every
man on the so-called citizens com
Iloit+ee, onnosed me at the last election.
There are quite a number on that COM
mittee who are good, honest, honora6,i,e
men, who do not want TO prlhB poIi-
tics or. personalities into this campaign
for municipal ownership of water puI
want it Investigated on its merits ana
I am satisfied that they took no part
in the letter you wrote me. Hereafter
n Won write any letters on municipal
ownership of water to myself or the
council we would be very much pleased
10 receive them, if you will have the
members sign their names to the let
ter, but I do not care to receive any
more communications from the so-cal-
led citizens committee without the
names of the parties approving the
same being attached thereto"