The Birmingham age-herald., 1914-07-14
ANOTHER DEADLOCK l IN WATER FIGHT BY ! LYNN'S STATEMENT. Unwilling to Recede From Position Unless City Will
 Stop Litigation COMMISSION WILL
 NOT AGREE TO THIS President of Water Company Writes City Authorities Reviewing Case
 and Telling What the Cont
 pany Will Do


 decreased rates unless similar conces- ment was made to the city commission CTS yesterday afternoon by President A M. Lynn of the Birmingham Water works company.
 In other words. President Lynn sim ply declines to recede from the course adopted by the waterworks company unless in return the city recedes from the cburse it has adopted in litigating against the waterworks company
 He intimates. however, that If the city will drop the litigation against the company, proposition for fair and Just water rates will be made It Is generally admitted the probabilities Of this are extremely remote Commis- sioner Weatherly states flatly he will refuse to do so. Commissioner Ward declines to discuss the subject and so does Commissioner Lane. 1t is believed Judge Lane would agree to such an arrangement. but it is regarded as hardly probable President Ward will. as he flatly stated in Sundays Age Herald he would insist on the continua- ton of the litigation against the waterworks company.
 Mir. Wards Truce Plan
 The only chance of a compromise agreement or settlement of the water works fight now Is MT. Wards truce plan. This calls for the company to use low rates during the interim pend ing the outcome of the litigation. This the company states it will refuse to do unless given some concession It. self. Therefore theye exists another water rate deadlock.
 Another conference is scheduled be- tween President Ward and President Lynn this afternoon. If anything hap pens it will probably occur then.
 Commissioner Weatherly stated yes terday that it was ridiculous for the waterworks company to ask the com missioners to enter into another agree people turned down in the referendum, and that it would be equally ridiculous for the commissioners to enter Into any such agreement AS far as 1 my self am conceened." he said, q will not enter into any more agreements or con tracts with the waterworks company. I am in the habit of obeying the will of the people as near as I can know what it Is and the waterworks is in the habit of ignoring the will of the people. The people said they did not want contract like ST-C. Therefore I'm not going to try to give them one. The waterworks. however, as usual ig- nores the public and asks the commits sioners to make another such contract. The proposition made today by Presi- dent Lynn is identical with the one turned down by the people in the ref erendum election on ordinance 97-C.
 Will Support Colleagues
 "I will never vote for it. However, if the other two commissioners do I will immediately acquiesce The impression given out last week in some quarters that I was personally conducting the waterworss quo warranto suit inde- pendent of the city is wrong. It Is the city's suit authorized by the city com mission by a resolution adopted unani- mously. Just soon as majority of the commission wishes to rescind that resolution l will drop the suit, although I do not want to.
 "The suit was filed In my name be- cause it had to be filed in the name of some responsible citizen for legal reasons. l have no closer connection with the suit. however. than any of the other commissioners except that have been giving my personal attention to 1t.
 'To enter into any contract or settle ment with the waterworks company now, however, would be foolish. A referen- dun election would follow in two or three weeks. No agreement can be reached without condoning the past sins of the water company. That the people do not want to do So there's nothing left to 1a but 0h n fn6aV President Lynr all through 1t assumes that we have lost all of our suits. How foolish. We have far from lost them ard he needn't try to treat with me like the victor with the vanquished."
 President Lynn's Statement
 President Lynns statement is as fol- lows:
 "Birmingham, July 13. 1914. ITO the Honorable Board of Comms-
 sioners of the City of Birmingham, Ala:
 "Gentlemen: While in St. Louis the lat ter part of last week l was informed by MT. Walker Percy of counsel for the Birmingham Waterworks company, that Commissioners Ward and Lane in the course of an informal discussion with ref erence to the relations between the water company and the city had made certain tentative suggestions looking to a settlement of the pending controversy, 
 gestions that while he was of the opin- ion that no agreement could be made be- tween the water company and the city W hich did not comprehend complete and friendly settlement of all questions, ii cluding the withdrawal of the quo war ranto suit, he had no authority to re- spond definitely to the suggestions made until after a conference with me as pres ident of the company, and that, there upon, Commissioners Ward and Lane suggested to MT. Percy that I be re- quested to come to Birmingham to con sider the propositions made by them. Anxious to accommodate the wishes of the members of the commission and de- sirous. if possible, of reaching an honor able and fair settlement of all pending differences I at once put aside other busi- psss and came to Birmingham. On reach ing here yesterday afternoon I found il at each of the members of the city con,mission had stated through the col umns of the daily papers his respective views upon the water situation in Bir- mingham.
 Commissioner Weatherly's Position
 Commissioner Weatherly is quoted as stating that he is determined to procure by legal procedure the annullment and cancellation of the water companys s franchise from and contract with tho city of Birmingham He is quoted as as- sertirg that the contract made between the water company and the city in 1288 for period of 90 years is invalid, as having been made in excess of the city's authority and although the supreme court of the state of Alabama has ex- pressly stated that the contract of 1898