Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1911-04-17
DISCUSS
VARIOUS
QUESTIONS
FIFTH WARD IMPROVEMENT
LEAGUE HAS INTERESTING
MEETING AND GOES ON REC-
ORD IN FAVOR OF A PUMPING
SY YSTEM FOR THE CITY.

The Fifth Ward improvement
League had an interesting meeting
Saturday night. The committee on
schools made report, and there was
pretty general discussion as to ways
and means to secure a much-need+d
school building in Highland, to ac-
commodate the rapidly-increasing
school population of this part of the
city, This will be a live question un-
til the needs are met.
The water question was considered
at length, and the committee on cir
culating petitions for vote on the
proposition was instructed to proceed
with the work. The following was
adopted by the league, and the sec
retary instructed to present a copy to
each of the daily papers of the city.
A Well System of Water Supply.
Some of the reasons for well
system for the city of Salem:
1. An adequate supply Of good,
pure water from we'll system would
be practical certainty.
2. A we'll plant could be installed
at comparatively small cost, not to
exceed 100000. This Judgment is
based upon what is done in other
cities.
8. A water plant at small cost
means water to consumer at small
cost.
4. The cost of we'll system can
be estimated with practical definite
ness in advance. Not so a mountain
water gravity system, with its many
miles Of intake pipe, headwater res
ervoirs, provisions against floods
filter plants, etc. Experience pt
other cities has been that the final
cost of a long gravity system is large
ly in the air By placing estimates
too low, the people have been in.
duced to enter upon extravagantly ex
pensive enterprises, and found it nee
essary later on to double, or largely
increase the expenditures in order t
realize on the outlay And water
must be sold to the consumer at {
correspondingly high rate. The wei
systems of other cities show practi
cally the limit of necessary cost.
AS to filtering Willamette rive
water, be it said, this water has ;
bad name, and filter will not Civ,
1t a good name.
A Model Plant.
At Marion, Indiana, Is located
well plant that is model in desigl
and utility. 1t has IA wells, rang
ing from 12O to $50 feet deep, al
pumped by an air compressor, whicl
is capable Of throwing 100000 gal
Ions daily. 1t has 3S miles of waite
main, with a sufficient air pressur
and pump force to afford ample fir
protection to all points of the city
by merely hitching a hose to ny
drant, of which there are 800 in tn
town. The average daily pumpin
is about 100000.
The plant has redeemed $S4,O
of bonds, and still has outstandin
$3S,500, which constitutes its entir
Indebtedness.
The plant furnishes free water t
all the public buildings, including tn
churches, and sells to the consume
at $4 year for domestic use (wit
extra charge for extra use) and froI
this income pays its operating e1
penses. meets the bonds and interes
makes its own extensions, withou
cost to property, and has a surplu
each year for emergencies.
These facts are taken from "His
tory of the Marion Water Works,
a copy of which we have before III
A letter just received from the super
intendent says the history cover
the points of the plant, and that tn
plant affords an abundance of waite
for all purposes.
Why not have such a plant in So
lem?
There is now in circulation an in
tiative petition for well system fl
our city, the question to be voted o
. at the city election in December.
ENOS PRESNALL, Chairman
L. d. RATLIFF, Secretary.