The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1912-01-02
WHERE AND HOW SHALL
WE OBTAIN BETTER WATER

difference of opinion as to the ways
and means but there is unanimity on
the desired end. We should therefore
all discuss the matter in public spirit
and without acrimony. taking it for
granted that no man has an ak to
grind and only desires to attain what
Is best for the common veal.
There are two questions-one is
whether to buy the plant Of the water
company or to set up a new one; the
other is whether to obtain our water
from distance try to soften it at
home. Before committing itself to any
policy, it is best for the city to ascer-
tain with reasonable certainty how to
obtain the best results with the least
money. 1t has no funds to waste.
The only objection to Ocala water
Is that it is so impregnated with lime
that it is hard. 1t is otherwise pure
and with increased machinery can be
procured in quantity to supply a much
larger city. 1t is just as good as the
water possessed by the big city of
Jacksonville, which has more than dou-
bled in population in the last score of
years, and whose people seem TO pos
sess a fair proportion OF health and
happiness.
How much better it would be, how
ever, IL the water was soft everybody
knows, and we are now probably at the
point where we can secure the desired
Improvement.
The simplest thing to do, of course,
Is to secure soft water from some nat
ural source. Unfortunately, Ocala is so
situated that no such source is con-
venient; II it had been the city would
have connected with it long ago.
nr
strong desire to obtain water from
Lake Weir, the nearest large body of
soft water to the city. 1t has really
seemed the most natural and proper
thing to run a pipe line to this big
natural tank of soft water and let the
desirable fluid flow in profusion into
the city.
Unfortunately, there are two large
obstacles in the way Of the execution
of this plan. One is that a considera-
BILE number of the people living around
Lake Weir are opposed to having the
water our city needs drawn from their
lake. They say, with some reason,
that they will need all the water in it
themselves-if not now, in the future
and are certain that the drain from the
growing town of Ocala will be more
than the lake can stand and preserve
1tS beauty ana nealtn10lneSS.
Is our esteemed contemporary. the
Banner. says. the lake belongs to the
state. But the property around it be-
longs to the people who live on 1T. and
the state might decide, and proba bly,
would. that they have a better right
to say what shall be done with the
water than the people of Ocala nearly
q score of miles away. At any rate, as
long as one citizen of Lake Weir with
the means and disposition to take the
case into the courts opposes Ocala' s
drawing water from the lake, our city
cannot obtain it without legal proceed
ings that might go against US. Not
one, but many of the lake jewellers are
against the proposition, and the Star
has the opinion of a very good lawyer
that they would most likely win in the
courts. So far as the Star is concern
ed. it is dead against any attempt to
force the people of Lake Weir into let
ting Ocala draw water from their lake.
Aside from the expense, the i'll feeling
that would be sure to result in some
thing to be avoided ifasaposs,L-e~. Il
would be a direct sviefation of the re-
vised golden <pa1e. which says do unto
the other fellow like you were him"
Another powerful objection to bring
: ing water from Lake Weir is the i'm
mense expense. Very few of the peo-
pie who talk so glibly of bringing wa
ter to Ocala have counted the cost. If
they did, the figures would make them
stagger. The Star is informed on good
authority that the pipe alone would
cost over $4,000. Il would be neces-
sary to buy tract of land on the shore
of the lake and erect powerful
pumping plant. The Star doesn't know
the altitude of Lake Weir, but is under
the impression that it is lower than
Oeala- At any rate. the difference in
the levels would not be enough to do
away with the standpipe. It would
cost a goodly sum of money to lay the
pipe across the seventeen miles be-
tween Lake Weir and Ocala. and it
isn't to be supposed that the people
whose lands it would cross would give
away the privilege.
AS for Blue Sink. it is not now known
that the people in its vicinity oppose
Ocala drawing water from it, But Il
isn't much nearer than Lake Weir, and
the expense of bringing water from il
would be almost as great. Two other
points need consideration. One is tina
no man knows the extent of the sup
ply of the water Of Blue Sink. 1t may
be fed by a river of considera BILE
sire or by a comparatively small spring
Until this can be ascertained with GER
tainty. it would be foolish for town
the size OF Ocala to try to dray its wa
ter supply from it. Another is that til.
water OF a sink sometimes finds an out
let bigger than its inlet and drains gu
in hurry, so If Ocala draws her f1uit
supply from such a source, she nevel
will have any guarantee against wax
ing up some fine morning to find her
self with fifteen miles Of dry pipes AM
a hole in the ground.
There may be nearer sources of sof
water than Lake Weir or Blue Sink: i
SO. the Star would be glad to be in
formed of them. 1t does not think tn
city can afford to draw water from
nearer than four or five miles on &C
count of the expense. 1t would take
source of considerable volume to sup
ply the town with water. We have
number of Industrial plants, any on
OF which would use the water from al