The San Francisco call., 1909-06-24
WILL TRY COERCION
ON SPRING VALLEY
Supervisors to Direct the City
Attorney to Formulate a
Plan of Action
Maintaining Refusal to Supply
Water, Company Will Face
RetaIiatOry Measure

Stirred by the repeated refusal of
the oficials OF the Spring Valley COM
pany 10 do anything'to relieve the water
famine conditions existing in the dis
trict north Of the park panhandle, and
bv sales Agent J. s. Wallace's express
declaration. the company viii make
no capital expenditure" Chairman
Johnston OF the supervisors public
utilities committee broke OFF negotia-
lions yesterday and announced the
board would now try war instead OF
peace.
.Next Monday I shall introduce a
resolution. the committee holding with
me. calling upon the city attorney to
formulate a plan under which we can
proceed 10 close up the Spring Valley
compsnys business in this city IL it
persists in its refusal TO supply its
customers" said Johnston.
Supervisor Murphy was at first of a
mind 10 call upon the attorney gen
eraI to bring suit to take away the
companys franchise, but acceded to
Johnston's idea
NEGOTIATIONS OVER
You might as well inform the
Spring Valley officials that the super
visors are through requesting the conf
psny to supply water TO people and dis
tricts that have long depended upon
il: negotiations are over" said John
ston TO Wallace. The Spring Valley
company's sales manager withdrew
without reply and smiling cynically.
The particular complaint OF poor
service which led TO the foregoing in
terchange and determination was that
made BY Otto Scheumert OF 2334 Full
ton street for 20 property holders Of
his district whose homes have been left
well nigh waterless by failure in the
pressure and who received the assur-
ance from the officials that the COM
pany would do nothing for them as
iong as the city declined to grant the
company's full demands. Scheumert
said that not only were private con-
sumers given no satisfaction, but that
The work en- St Mary's hospital had
been retarded by lack Of water and
that people who made complaint
against the conditions found the chief
effect of such action was persecution
in various small ways at the hands of
the company.
TIME To COMPEL SERVICE
Mayor Taylor came down on these
fellows when. after the fire. the Spring
Valley was going to let whole
district suffer unless the city found
the $4,000 for putting in one main.
said Supervisor Murphy after the ses-
sion. The mayor told them he would
appeal TO the governor or take posses
sion OF the plant if they refused to
supply water. and il is time we took
steps to use whatever power we possess
10 compel service. The company put
in the main fast enough when it
learned the mayors determination"
The resolutions directing the city
attorney 10 outline the plan of CO.
ercive action upon the company will
be preps sred today.
The members of the committee dis
cussed with Hermann Skaller the
terms Of the Stockton street railway
franchise. and Chairman Johnston an
nounced they would seek some Legal
method Of securing a stipulation re-
moving the objections to the grant in
its present form Johnston said the
franchise had admirable features from
the citys standpoint. but also other
features not so satisfactory and that
these must be remedied before action
was taken