The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1918-09-03
City Going To Lower Strata for
additional Water Supply.
Plenty Of Pumps To Handle De.
mands of City, Then.
BUSINESS MEN COMPLAIN
Committee Made Itself Known
at City Hall Today.
Fear That Government VIII
Act if City Does Not.

what we want to know is what can
be done to obtain more water for the
city, and-what is going to be done to
obtain it, was the assertion of Charles
L. Mitchell. acting chairman of the
body of Topeka business men who this
morning attended the regular meeting
of the city commissioners.
Mitchell acting as chief spokesman
for the committee outlined the condi-
tons existing during the recent period
of low water pressure and. dwelt at
some length upon the extreme fire
hazard produced by conditions of that
nature. He asserted that besides
causing rapid rise in the cost of fire
insurance protection in Topeka, the
present status of the water pressure
would result in the government TAX
ing things into its own hands when
conditions became Generally known.
Many industries in the city are essen
tial war Industries. he pointed out.
Flour mills. packing house plants,
produce houses where large quantities
OF food are stored, warehouses con-
| tanning thousands of dollars worth of
merchandise and railroad property.
all these are more or less under the
supervision of the government and the
welfare of the country depends upon
the safety of these things in all cities
IN the country of which Topeka is
ohAy ohc anu 40 ltS snare 10 pro-
tect these interests and the welfare of
the people or the government will st y
in and take charge. Topeka is large
enough" Mitchell said, land mature
enough as city to be able to run its
| own business but in the matter Of
water conditions something has been
sadly lacking and would give rise to
the possibility of some one taking hold
or what it has not run ITSELF"
Pumps Large ENOUGH
On being asked whether conditions
were due to lack of water or inade-
| quate pumping facilities, NewIand de-
CARED that present pumping facilities
were adequate to take care of about
three times the amount of water daily
| used in the city.
1t was also brought out that after
Wynecoup Kiersted, a hydraulic en-
gineer of national reputation. had
/ furnished maps and drawings for inn
| proving the water supply and declar-
ing that Topeka must go across the
| river for its water. that nothing had
| been done by Commissioner Newland
in the way of adopting the advice OF
! this water. expert.
/ Upon bedrock under the river there
| is BODY OF water about twenty feet
deep, the volume of which is unknown.
AT present the pumps now in use
take water only from the top of this
stream. Newland. who based his
. calculations on the fact that pumping
| facilities were adequate provided
water was available, concluded that il
two low duty pumps were installed
reaching the lower part of the strata
or water on bedrock sufficient water
could be supplied for a period of sew
eral years. During which time ar
| rangements could be made for carry-
ing out the plans of Kiersted which
called for tunnel under the river to
the north wall. Commissioner New
land proceeded on this basis and the
wells are being dug and negotiations
are under way with builders of pumps
| necessary to equip the new plant.
Want an Expert.
Questions from Mitchell brought ont
the assertion that Newland had lower
| ed water rates two different times
But no provisions were made for de-
probation or the addition of additional
| uDfinu.1 %