The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-07-09
Company Declines to Make Any Concession Unless All Litigation Is Dropped By the City.
PROBABILITY OF
 BUYING THE PLANT
 NOW SEEMS REMOTE
Ward Would Institute Condemnation Proceedings-Weatherly Favors Fight to Finish In Courts, While Judge Lane Favors An
 Amicable Settlement

Negotiations of yesterday, if any thing, appeared to further mix up the waterworks muddle
 At conference yesterday morning Counsel Walker Percy of the water company agreed to communicate to the officials of the company the city's re- quest for a proposition to buy the wa terworks
 The commissioners. however, being unable to agree on the waterworks is sue. themselves admit that the prob ability of a purchase of the water works company now seems remote.
 It appears that the position of the three commissioners on this question portant issue at the city hall is as fol- lows:
 President George Ward favors con demnation proceedings against the company at once, appointing a board of appraisers to fix valuation on the property and then float a municipal bond issue to buy it and conduct it a municipal plant.
 Favors Fight
 
 vors fighting the company to the fin ish in the courts, believing that the franchise can be taken away from them and then condemnation proceedings can be instituted and the property taken by the city much more cheaply than otherwise.
 Judge Lane favors a compromise and amicable settlement. He wants the waterworks company to reduce its pres ent rates 10 per cent, shorten its long term contracts to the length of the present old Birmingham contract and in return indicates he would be willing to vote for the city's abandonment of all present litigation against the com pany.
 The waterworks company, it is un- dcrstood, refuses to reduce its pres ent rates 10 per cent, refuses to short en the time of its suburban contracts and refuses to keep in force the pres ent rates instead of the high flat rates as 1t has announced, unless all present litigation against the company Is dropped by the city.
 Attending the conference yesterday morning at 10 o'clock at the city hall were the three commissioners, Walker Percy and Superintendent H. H. Hor- ner of the water company. "The waterworks representatives stated they desired amicable relations with the city" said Judge Lane after the conference, and were prepared to meet the city on a fair basis of set tlement, but could not consistently keep their rates in statu quo unless the lit igation against them was dropped They stated that if the litigation ceased the company was ready to meet the city in liberal spirit
 After negotiations on this line had apparently failed. I asked for a prop osition as to the reduction of rates awaiting the supreme court decision and expressed a willingness to nego- tiate along this line but MT. Weatherly stated he was unwilling to dispose of the present litigation and expressed a strong belief in a reversal of the case by the supreme court
 Ask Proposition for Sale
 Upon that feature of the case Mir Percy disagreed with MT Weatherly in legal opinion. It was then finally sug- gested that the company submit to the commission a proposition for the sale of the plant and MT. Percy stated he would submit this proposition to the owners and make known their wishes to the commission in the near future. If this proposition is made by the water tOllpdHy we WOulu nave to SUD- init it to experts to decide its merit and we all agreed that it would finally have to be submitted to the people as the people have the final say as to whether or not they would vote for bonds to buy the plant.
 Negotiations are still on to see whether or not amicable settlement can be made without the long wait that tEese other proceedings would entail and something may be done in this re- gard tomorrow. l stated to the com pany representatives that any proposi- ton looking to the reduction of rates would have to be accompanied by a shortening of the suburban contracts to the same length as the old Birmingham contract which will expire in six and one-half years. These suburban con- tracts are for long periods, some of them not expiring until 1888. It is still an open question an amicable set tlcment may be reached It is probable s-mething S more will be known tomor- row.
 "Condemnation proceedings were dis cussed during the conference but nothing definite in this regard was done" ''There is really no change in the situ- ation," said Commissioner Weatherly, except for the fact that the waterworks company is to make a proposition for sale of their property. Frankly don't think much will come of it. ''The conference this morning was merely a sort of truce in which we all declared our positions, more than any