Norwich bulletin., 1910-05-04

in the vote appolntlng the committed, the committed has found several things to criticise. as will be noted in the following from the text of it's report: To the Mayor and Common Council
 of the City of Putnam:
 On January 19 of this year. Mayor Archibald Macdonald, Aldermen John A. Dady, George A Hawkins, Dr. Om- CT Larue, and Messrs. B. D. Bugbee and J. F. Carpenter were appointed by the common council committee to negotiate a contract with the Put nam Water company, with full power and authority to investigate the needs of the city in all respects in relation to the Putnam Water company in the matter of fire protection and in the matter of both public and private wa ter rentals and the supply of water for public and private uses and the system of piping within the streets of the city and the necessary extension or notifications of the same, and es- pecially the requirements of the city as to hydrants for fire protection with proper pressure at all points. to be shown by a recording gauge properly located.
 Your committee has in part per formed it's duties and begs leave to report as follows:
 Experts Required.
 In order to make a thorough and careful investigation of the matters set forth in the vote appointing the
  essary for the committee to employ an expert or experts to make the proper tests and to make a thorough investi- gation of the whole system.
 Tests made by inspectors employed by insurance companies show that. in the opinion of the inspectors for a number of years the town of Putnam has not been furnished an adequate supply of water for fire purposes and it seems that the weakness of the fire protection is partially attributed to insufficiency of pumping capacity. partially to the small size of the dis tribution mains. and in part to the fact that the amount of water consumed for domestic purposes has so rapidly in- creased that the water in the stand pipe lowers very rapidly and during large part of the day when the pumps are not running the town is without sufficient pressure Of water for even a reasonable fire protection.
 Water Company Remiss.
 The committee is of the opinion that the water company has not lived up to its contract with the city in that it has not given the city the head of water which the contract calls for.
 Greater Pumping Capacity Needed.
 The committee is of the opinion that greater pumping capacity is needed; that the piping is insufficient; and that the head of water from the standpipe is, at least for a considerable part of the time, insufficient. In other words, the present plant should be equipped with better pumps of larger capacity, the piping should be improved and en- larged in many places and there should be either a better head from a suffi- cient reservoir, or, in place of addi tional reservoir capacity, there should be an arrangement whereby pumps of a proper capacity can be immediately started upon signal, giving an ade- quate fire pressure, and at the same certain that the system of piping could stand the additional pressure that would be needed to give an ade- quate supply of water for fires.
 insufficient Pressure.
 Taking into consideration the fact that the insurance company experts state that even down around the group of mills on Pomfret street and south of the same, this being the lowest point in the city where the pressure should be the greatest. there is an in- sufficient pressure to give an adequate supply for a sufficient number of streams in case of a large fire. the council can readily see that the pres sure in almost any other portion of the town cannot be called sufficient.
 Changes Necessary.
 The changes necessary to an ade- quate supply of water for fire protec- ton are therefore, as we have already stated of such complex character and of such importance that this com mittee would not in any event care to assume the responsibility of negotiat- ing a long contract with the Putnam Water company without first obtaining expert assistance in our investigations.
 What the Tests Show.
 This committee has caused tests of the pressure to be made at different dates and at different times at many hydrants on different elevations in this city. The tests were made by attach ing one gauge to a valve on a hydrant the same as you would attach one hose: and even without taking into sideratIon the friction which the water would have on ordinary hose, we find by our gauge that the water at many points is inadequate even for one hose. In case of large fire often times six streams would be required and a system of fire protection for this city should furnish a pressure suffi- cient to handle six streams of water at one time. Your committee Is sat isffed that in most places within this city even four streams of water with sufficient pressure for our large build ings cannot receive the proper pres sure at one time, and more especially as the depth of the water decreases in the standpipe from being rapidly drawn upon by streams used at fires. The committee is also of the opinion that at many hydrants In the city there is practically no fire protection from the use of water through hose from the hydrants, and we are of the opinion that provision for proper fire pressure should so be arranged that the whole city should receive and have at all times rapid fire protection.
 A Vital Question.
 The question has become a large question and one of vital importance to the community. The rates for pri- vate rentals charged by the Putnam Water company are. in the opinion of the committee. eXorbitant and quite unusual, and should be reduced to a very considera ble extent and that this reduction would affect favorably near Iy every householder in this city. and be a tremendous saving to the indi- viduals who use public water.
 On the 26th day of April this com mittee held q meeting at which our citizens were invited to appear before the committee and make recommends tions and suggestions in all matters concerning all questions before the committed At that meeting very strong arguments were made in favor of the installation of a public water system by the city in order that the city ma-x furnish a pure supply of
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