The comet. (Johnson City, Tenn.) 1884-1916, 1909-09-09

year user lIlSIedu Ol uSCTedSlnS Jlle VAL
ue Of pipe and mud bottom reservoir
from S25, 600 to S35, 900 has, contrary to
experience, made the pipe stronger and
the mud bottom more shallow, and
jumped the value to $245,000. But,
voter, will you believe any such stuff
as this, simply for the purpose of get
ting to vote the water company 500, 600
more for its plant than the most relia-
BILE facts which can be gotten in regard
to it shows that it is worth? The fig
ures of Dunlap and Blevins taken with
what is known to be the proper deduc-
tion show its distributing system is
worth not over $4,000, and | trust
there is no one interested in Johnson
City who believes it is the duty Of the
people to pay large sum of money for
u pumping station to supply hard wa
ter which is unfit both for domestic
and manufacturing purposes. Expert
ence shows that it is unfit fer boiler
purposes, your tea-kettles show it is
unfit for the human stomach. In ad-
dition to this pumping station there is
only what is left from the cid reservoir
after making the big dip for the Sol
diers' Home. Blevins in his own re-
port shows that even if there is the
amount above the reservoir which he
claims $50, 900 gallons that it is wholly
inadequate for Johnson City of 1000
inhabitants, much less for "Greater
Johnson City y of twenty-five or thirty
thousand. The admitted inadequacy
OF such water supply forbids that the
money of the people should be invested
in it. Will you say that the best hopes
of Greater johnson City shall be
barred and forever cast away by sub
mission to such proposition? No,
never!
But the water company requests
opinion of counsel and gets it on the
subject desired by it and feeds it out as
advertising matter Why so great lib
erality in buying and distributing for
eign law opinions free of charge to the
people? Would it not have been bet.
ter if the company had used this opin.
ion itself? | venture to suggest that il
the water company's free supply ol
legal opinion is as inadequate as itS
paid for water supply it will not have
much effect in quenching the thirst O
the white coated kettle and boiler ol
scarcely be noticed in the great efior
which the people are making to builC
a Greater Johnson City.
The statements made in the Stat
show beyond doubt that after tina
opinion the company is only willing
to repeat its former offer of S245, 600
The opinion did not do it much good
Does the company suppose the cit,
will be driven to pay an unreasonable
and unfair amount for its plant? Wha
voter, laborer, mechanic, merchant 0
other business man believes its plan
worth S245,O and would dare pa,
such sum from his own pocket, if h
had the money? The people of John
son City may not be water experts, bu
it is equally true that they are no
fools. If the advice of counsel is good
whose fault is it that the water compa
ny made proposition which the boar,
of mayor and aldermen promptly an,
emphatically declined because unrea
senable in amount, and which ever,
intelligent and honest citizen knows i
unreasonable? 1t seems the compan
f should know from the action of tn
} board that the city does not want
water plant if it must pay two price
for it, and which has, to the certai
, knowledge of its inhabitants, demos
4 strated concluSvely its inadsquacy fe
the peoples demand.
. But now comes that proposition,
4 you will give the water company
) franchise (which any business maa i
3 Johnson City knows is worth, of il
own selfra large sum of money!, W
: will make the water flow. AT first "
: may he deceived at this, but if yo
S keep yoUr eye on it for moment yo
e can see it is only decoy duck. In il
: proposition to the board the wate
e company agreed TO bind itself to flu
4 nish 4, ,0O0, coo gallons every twenty-fOu
I hours. In IFS offer to the people
0 drops the four million gallons and doc
p not fix the amount. In its prOpOsitiO
' TO the board it agreed TO furnish