The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-06-11
NETWORK GETTING REALLY ALARMED Water Situation Shows No Improvement
  A GREAT NEW CONEY Is Expected to Rise From the Ashes of Destroyed Dreamland.
 Much Out-Door
 Preaching
BY ROBERT LEE CARTER

New York, June 1O.-(Special )-New York Is becoming really alarmed for its water supply. While the cry of water famine is about as familiar in these parts when the first warm-day spell comes along, as the killing of the peach crop is further south after the last hard' frost, this time there really is some cause for alarm.
 All through this section in fact, there has been an unusually light rain and snow fall during the winter, which caused the streams and springs in the water shed from which the city gets it's supply to run unusually low. Then came along the dryest spring in years. Now there is the smallest reserve supply of water known at this time of the year which the records show.
 If we have an unusually good rainfall this summer all will probably be well, but if the summer continues as the spring has been there is going to be trouble.
 Another feature of the situation which as yet has received little attention, but which to the poor particularly, is likely to cut big figure as the effect of a lack of water on the farms and gardens. A { A trip around the country from which New York draws the bulk of her vege- table and small fruits, leads to the belief that the prices of these commodities are likely to be high, for the fields are parch- ed, the crops are stunted and backward and nothing short of good drenching rains can possibly give relief.
 " That big fire at Coney Island which wiped out a goodly portion of that famous resort is likely to prove not unmixed evil
 From the ashes may arise new Coney which will Joe the greatest thing of the kind that has ever been known. The city owns the beach front above the burned district and is now building a municipal bath house with 5000 capacity. It is pro- posed to take advantage of the fire and extend the city's beach holdings at least to the limits of the burned district and to build a great board walk all the way up to the Oriental point. If this is done it will give Coney Island a finer walk even than the famous one at Atlantic City If this is done it is probable that the walk will be extended the other way down to Sea Gate the extreme western end of the island, which would wipe out, or at least radically change the character of the least desirable section of the island and make 1t all clean.
 One of the summer features of New York are the tent and out-of-door religious meetings. From now until the cold wealth. CT comes it will be next to impossible to take an extended walk through the busy streets of the city of an evening without storlSing from one to half dozen street religious meetings. The men who con- duct them, as a rule, are business and professional men and they are doing good work.
 I stopped at one of these meetings few evenings ago and recognized the speaker as very successful piano manufacturer. an officer in one of the principal Presby- terian churches in the city. He was not an orator, but he was preaching a plain. practical sermon, in language which could be easily understood and he was listened to earnestly.
 He tells me that the men of his church many of them wealthy business and pro- fessional men, are conducting series of these meetings and will continue them throughout the summer. These men take turns at the work, each agreeing to give one night week to it. When their turns come they return to the city from their country homes. if their families have left the city for the hot term.
 7 If. the people won't come to church,