The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1915-01-23
CHESTERTOWN
is HARD HIT

ChestertoWn' plans TO get an up
to-date water supply, under the new
State Board of Health regulations,
have been knocked into cooked hat
by the decision of the Baltimore
County Court, declaring upconstitu-
tiona! that part of the Act, giving au-
thority for bond issues. The State
Board of Health is particularly inter-
ested in the matter because of the
manner in which it illustrates trou-
hles which may lie ahead of the State
board in trying to improve water sup
ply and sewerage disposal systems
throughout Maryland.
The beginning of the story was in
May Of last year. At that time Ches-
tertown, which had been pumping an
inadequate water supply from faulty
wells into a reservoir which, Mr.. Ora
ham says, .eaked like sieve, deter
mined to possess itself of a real sys-
TEN. It lacked the money, but it's
lawyers advised that this could be
raised by selling notes issued by the
town, if Chestertown's prosperous citi-
zenS We're willing to indorse the notes.
Sixteen prosperous ones were found
who were willing, and the board, con-
Sisting of Mr.. Graham. Charles \.
Satterfield and William NJ. Culp. had
assembled one day last May prepared
10 let the contracts.
The lawyer Of the board walked in
at this eleventh hour and said that he
had just found law which convinced
him shat if these notes were issued
CheStertown could not be forced to
pay them, but that each individual
who Endorsed them could be made to
pay enough TO make good the total.
The plans were dropped right there.
The Water Board knitted its brows
and tried to think Of something else.
Then it learned of the law passed
10y the last Legislature giving the
Board of Sanitary Engineers of the
State Board of Health the authority
to order any county or town in the
State to build a sewerage system or
water supply. The same law provided
that when this was ordered, the town
or county might without further par
ley, issue bonds to cover the cost of
such Improvements. 1t was not neces-
sary to get special authority from the
Legislature, but the approval! of the
Governor and the Acknowledgement
for such an issue would be sufficient.
Chestertown thought it had found
It's way out. 1t bought lot in which
to sink artesian wells 1t hired a man
who did sink the wells, rendering a
bill for something like 81 400 for the
work. The board met and awarded a
contract for a tank to hold 100000
gallons of water, this to take the
place Of the sieve-like reservoir. They
accumulated bills receivable of about
$4,000 and they laid plans to spend
about So 900 more. They secured the
authority for the issue of $4,000 of
bonds from the Governor and the At
torney-General, and they even found a
banker who would take the bonds
The day following that on which
they let the contract for the tank. the
Baltimore county courts handed down
a decision to the effect that the clause
OF the act of 1914 giving authority for
a bond issue was demonstrations,
The Board of Sanitary Engineers had
ordered Arlington and Govans to
make sewerage improvements, and the
Baltimore County Commissioners OBJ
jected to the order
The effect of this was, of course, to
make it impossible for the Chester.
town people to find any market for a
bond which had been declared illegal
by a court, And it left them with