New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1911-05-21
It Is Not Bright Picture That Is Saetched Here but II
Represents Situation, the Danger Of Which Is
Imminent Enough to Call for Careful Cons.rva-
ton of Our Depleted Store of Crotcn.

: at any rate here has been no attempt -
save water. Downtown below -3f street
tho high pressure system. drawing rs sup
ply from the river. has not been hampe-ed.
But further north men have heen stationed
al the reservoirs. 70 turn on the pressure
tie instant It was needed.
And this. in turn. has led 20 a new loss:
indeed Il has created a new crime. House
wives. az the first passage 81 the engines,
open their faucets ard set their pals. IN
order % draw IF all the water they can
while the pressure lasts. False alarms are
turned in SOFAS 10 bring the water So
much is drawn of in this vav that Lttle
is loft N light the dres. Fines and i'm
prisonme1t are inflicted. with no results.
II is state 81 affairs that is not 10 be
tolerated. and after a few weeks OF futile
appeals tho Water Department shuts ~
the water from all houses.
Faucets are placed AT the street curb.
and the police have the almost impossible
task Of seeing that none OF them Is LETT
running uselessly. Now the city IS abso-
lutely without water in its buildings. The
great hotels stand empty for no one will
enter tho city.
The typhoid comes and no one dsres 70
and boiled brown mud. ukewarm IS an
unpaatable summer beverage The plague
spreads with fearful swiftness.
Every train that leaves town goes heavy
with refugees The real estate men %
Queens and Jersey do a rushing business.
and the bridges are filed with long
procession ~ vans and wa CONS pouring
over tho East River into TIE better watered
regions beyond.
Factories close unable ~ get water COR
their boilers. and the unemployed stream
on, OF the city by hundreds u thousands.
The breweries distill water from the rivers
for use In their boilers and their beer. The
barrooms. too. have doubled their prices.
ard yet their business IS heavier than
ever before. The hotels are almost tenant
less The fashionable apartments In the
centre Of the city stand vacant. The few
families which must stay in town rave
either gone 20 hotels or else moved TO the
special apartments along the river front.
where the owners have installed pumps 10
raise the water from the river FOR washing
and sanitation and supply spring water
in a bottle left AZ the door.
The parks are turning brown Then cores
a day in August that dawns dark win
gray clouds and sitting. GREATNESS heat
Il is a irritable weather breeder" The
people look hopefully for the storm that 3
sure 70 come Black clouds roll up from
the south nd then comes the rain Ths
thunder bellows everywhere and shakes TIE
windows Lightning hlazes in sheets The
streets arc running rivers. The parks seem
almost 20 turn green a VIC look The dried
roofs make strange sounds as they drink IN
+ the unaccustoned moisture Tubs are set
} all over the city TO catch the dirty water
that runs from the houset)ps The storm
( lists for two hours. and leaves the city
drenched
Now. at least. there IS hope. and the peo-
/ pie wait for the turning on OF the water
/ But II is a cruel hope The papers tell how
/ the storm spent its strength on the lower
/ Hudson The merely sprinklins shower
that fell on the croton watershed was
ked up 20 the last drop by the thirsty
ground
Still the burning drouth goes on. more
terrible than before the storm Vast swarms
Of flies appear. filling streets and houses
and adding one more 20 the myriad little
worries that make life a torment.
The city spend. vast sums in a frantic
endeavor 70 tide II over the famine. Light
/ iIor pipe lines are laid az great eX-
/ pense through the railway tubes under tie
Hudson ana far into the hills OF New Jer-
sew. 20 deliver q meagre allowance or
drinking water crowds gather at the tau
Gets with pitchers and bottles. clanorinS
and quarrelling one quart a day IS meas
ured out 70 each person. The Croton reser-
vors are down now 70 where the water
will hardly flow into the aqueduct. An
east wind increases the flow little:
west wind drives the water across the lake
and leaves the tunnels mouth bare. CON.