The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1915-08-17
The Wharton Tract.

In order to become acquainted with
all the points incident to the proposed
purchase of the Wharton tract for the
purpose of furnishing water to various
parts of the state an inspection of the
tract was made last week by the State
Board of Conservation and Develop
ment. The purchase involves the ex-
penditure of 81, OOO, 900, and the develop
ment will take from $4,000, 900 to $10,-
100000 more. The Legislature has al
ready authorized a bond issue for the
purchase money, but that proposition
will have to be voted on by the people
at the November election.
The Wharton tract is well known to
residents of this county. 1t lies in At
lantic, Burlington and Camden counties.
The late Joseph Wharton purchased
thousands of acres of pine land on which
there were valuable lakes and ponds.
One of his fond hopes was to supply
water for Philadelphia The building
of large filter plant in that city inter-
fered with that project. The State
authorities have been considering the
ACCESSIBILITY of buying the tract for state
use for long time. There is no doubt
that when the affair is put into opera
ton it will be capable of furnishing
300, 900, 600 gallons of pure, potable water
daily from reservoirs at a sufficient
altitude to insure CAVITY distribution to
any point in South Jersey. But it is
also admitted that it would require 20
years before this water would be avail
able. In the meantime the reservation
would have to be used in a manner that
would allow the use of it's natural re-
sources, agricultural, cranberry land, etc.,
and this, it is said, would bring in a
revenue of $50. 600 annually.
Although practically the entire vol
ume of water draining from the shed
passes through creeks and rivers travers-
ing ground OVERLAND by deposits OF vege-
table and forest matter and through Dogs
once worked for their iron deposit, its
conveyances to the reservoirs in COM
paratively pure state would be an easy
matter. According to statements made
by members of the board following the
inspection, this can be accomplish ed by
stripping the soil from the districts con-
verted into waterways and the gravely
sand subsoil exposed. In addition it
would be necessary to exercise control
over adjacent lands to prevent pollution
of the water draining from them upon
the tract. This, it is said, can be accom-
plished through the state Board of
Health, while supervision of the activi-
ties on the tract proper would lie with
the Board of Conservation and Develop
ment.
Any development of the agricultural
districts embraced in the tract would be
on lease basis, thus insuring the enforce
ment Of such conditions as were imposed
by the board relative to the mainten-
ance of sanitary surroundings At pre-
sent the surrounding farms are largely
worked by foreigners and the belief is
expressed that the same element could
be induced to settle on the reservation
lands.
Locally it is understood that the crux
of the question is whether the future
demand for water will justify the pur-
chase and development of the tract as
water reservation. Camden and Allan
tic City, the largest two possible pros
pective consumers, can develop local
natural facilities to meet immediate
future demands and this is said to be
equally true of intermediate towns.
What the situation in this respect will
be 20 years from now is not considered
quite certain by those favoring the pur-
chase of the tract and its conversion
into vast State water reservation.
Furthermore they argue that while the
land could be acquired by the State at
any time its possession and develop
ment was deemed necessary, it would be
at price sufficiently advanced to make
its purchase at the present an eco
nomical measure.