The Washington times., 1911-01-22
Controversy Over. Rights
Really Began Under King
Charles in 1852.
WASHINGTON IN ONE
CONCERN CHARTERED
@. & o. Canal Owns Perpetual
Right to Enough Water to
Maintain Navigation.

When Major William V. Judson, En-
gineer Commissioner of the District of
Columbia, looked upon the Great Falls
| of the Potomac, saw their power, and
| turned around and asked Congress to
/ give him and his associates authority
to utilize it for public lighting in Wash
| ington, he stepped to the center of a
/ stage upon which there has been a con-
| tinuous performance of intense drama
for 279 years.
If the Government now acquires, as it
unquestionably should. the rights neces-
sary for complete control of Great Falls
for water supply and water power. 1t
will take the last step in a controversy
| that began in 1852, and has continued
almost without interruption to 1911-a
controversy in which King Charles I,
King James II, Lord Baltimore, Lord
| Culpepcr, George Washington, Gen.
Benjamin F. Butler. and Gen. George H.
Harries have been prominent figures,
and which today has reached an acute
stage, with the United States Govern
| mcnt on the one hand and the WASH
| irgton Railway and Electric Company
| on the other, in opposition to each other.
Long a Coveted Prize.
The Great Falls Of the Potomac have
| been a coveted prize for nearly three
centuries. and during most of that time
! title to them has been in dispute. Pow
erful men and powerful interests have
controlled them or sought to control
them. but, curiOusly, the desire for con-
| troll has nearly always been prompted
| by a dog in the manger'' spirit. Ex-
| cept for the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal
| Company and the Government, no per-
son or corporation that ever has had
any right at the Falls has ever exer-
| cised it. The theory has seemed to be
to mold the right until somebody else
wanted it. and then to make that some
body pay high for It.
| That IS the situation that exists to-
day. The United States. by ownership
of real estate in the river and on the
Maryland side. and by agreement with
| the owner of certain other real estate ir
| the river and on the Virginia side. has
| the right to use about one-third to one
half of the water at Great Falls. TIC
| perfect the increased water supply and
water power scheme proposed by NJ. o.
Leighton, chief photographer Of the
| Geological Survey, 1t will be necessar ~
for the United States to acquire the
rights of the owner of this other real
estate.
Owner Is Power Company.
| This owner is the Great Falls Power
Company, an inactive corporation OF
Virginia, a majority of whose stock is
| I
Electric Company, which also controls
the Potomac Electric Power Company
the concern which does the public light
| ing of Washington under contract, and
which may be depended upon to oppose
vigorously the development of Potomac
river power and its use by the Govern
ment or the District for lighting the
streets, public buildings and parks OF
! this city. 1t is possible the General
| Electric Company. known as the "Elec-
| trio and Water Power trust" will aid
the local corporations.
| The Government will have to deal
specifically with conditions which have
| grown up about Great Falls in the last
| seventy-two years. Except for the canal
| company, substantially but one interest
adverse to the Government has had any
rights at Great Falls in that period. This
| interest never has done any of the
| things 1t has been empowered to do by
| its Virginia charter. 1t has merely held
on. Twice It has made the Government
pay damages for the privilege of using
water at Great F'alls-a privilege which
the interest never awaited itself Of
although authorized to do so.
Title Changed In 1894.
| This interest first was called the Great
| Falls Manufacturing Company. In 1885,
it became the Great Falls Power Com
pany A little later, this company was
acquired by the Washington Railway
and Electric Company. The problem
with which the Government must deal
| is how much, If any, damages should
now be allowed this interest for the use
of additional water for public water sup,
ply and power purposes.
General Butler, in 1882, tried to collect
81, 100000 damages because the Govern
ment wanted to increase the amount OF
water 1t was using from about 10000, 00(
gallons a day to about 100000. The
| Government took the addition desired
and ultimately paid Buffers company
500, 766.
If Buffers claim was anything near
what his company thought it was en-
titled to, it is safe to assume that the
present company will demand at least
as much, when 1t is proposed, as it is
now, to take all the company's water
rights. If settlement, however, is fl
nally made on the basis of the pre-
vious settlement the ultimate dam
ages won't be so big as to scare the
Government off the project.
Two Plans Proposed.
In the opinion of Chaplin Brown,
chairman of the municipal legislation
committee of the Chamber of Com
merce, which has gotten behind the
power project, two courses are open
to the Government, if it is decided the
Leighton water supply and water power
scheme is feasible. One is for the
Government to take the real estate
of the Great Falls Power Company
by condemnation. The other is for
i the Government to take the real es-
tate, water, water rights, and any
thing else it finds at the Falls and
needs, and proceed to put the project
through by act of Congress, contain
ing a provision that the Great Falls
Power Company may sue in the Court
of Claims for damages.
It is entirely possible, in the opir-
ion of many lawyers who have inves-