The daily banner. (Cambridge, Md.) 1897-2008, 1919-01-07
The Water Company
Issues Statement

1918, the President OF the COmpan.
was instructed to advise the Commits
sioners of Cambridge that the five
year contract for supplying the cit,
of Cambridge with water for fire pro
lection and other purposes would ex
pire on December 81, 1918, and t
request the said officials to Civ
prompt consideration to a renewal g
the contract, at the price of 1,50'
per annum, being an advance of $500
over the price named in the contrac
about to expire.
On the 9Th of January reply wa
received by the Water Company fron
the Commissioners of Cambridge,de
clining to agree to the advanced
price, but offered to prepare a con
tract of renewal on the old terms. /.
| The inability of the Company AMI
the Commissioners to agree is mat
ter of much importance, and one il
which the public is directly interest
ed, and we think this a proper oppor
tunity to present to the public som'
of the figures regarding the cost O.
pumping water and also some of tn
facts regarding the advance in insur
ance rates, which took effect in thu
year of 1917.
The principal items in the cost Of
pumping water are those of coal anC
electric current. Coal has advanced
more than double in the past two
years, and when you take into con
sideration its inferior quality, the in.
creased cost is really larger thar
these figures themselves indicate
There have been two advances oil
10 per cent. in electric current dur
ing the same period, and there has a,
so been great increase in all other
operating costs, including labor, lu.
bricating oils, repairs, and supplies
of all kinds.
When we first began supplying the
town with water we could do so with
two pumps located on the top of the
ground, at pumping station in Eas,
| Cambridge, and two wells afforded
| a full supply of water, but as the
consumption of water grew, we had
to discard our two pumps at this sta
ton and install q new million gallon
pump in a pit in the ground 16 feet
deep, which was a very expensive
| operation, costing us upwards OF
100000. We also had to provide
four more wells at this point at a
cost of about $4,000 or more.
We also built a new pumping sta
| ton at the foot of Mill street, at a
cost of about $4,000 We bored
two large wells, Installed million
gallon pump. which we run by SO
h. p. gasoline engine. When we in
stalled this pump, gasoline was sell
ing at lie. per gallon, but advanc-
| ed to % cents, which was prohibitive
and we had to change to electricity,
| which, as stated above, has advanced
20 per cent.
The electric installation cost us
about $4,000.
We are now making arrangements
at an expense of $4,000 to install two
five hundred thousand gallon pumps
at our East Cambridge station. which
viii be operated either by an improy-
ed oil engine or electric power.
Any one who is at all impartial can
| readily see by above statements,w why
it was that the company got behind
in it's finances, causing us to cut out
all dividends to stockholders fol
| nearly two years, and also made II
| necessary to advance rates.
| The price of $1,000 made the town
was entirely too low at the time il
was made, and the price of $500
now offered the town is far below
what the service is worth, but oul
directors are all large taxpayers ano
public-spirited citizens. and do not
want to do anything that would ever
look like an imposition on the town
Regarding the increase in fist insur
ance rates in 1917, will state that the
Water Company was not responsible
for the great increase in rates, al
though many Of the Insurance Ag
ents in the town placed the blame OF
our Company in order to screeI
their companies from censure.
We will quote from a letter re
|ceived from the Underwriters Asso
citation under date of Oct. 3, 1917. HI
states: ''The necessity for the gen
eral advance of rates in Cambridg
was caused primarily by the yer,
disastrous fire record of the tow
during the past few years. Condi
lions finally reached the point wher
it was absolutely necessary for tn
companies to secure higher rates, j
they were to continue to write insur
lance in Cambridge.
! Water supplies in towns and mu
inequalities on the Peninsula, ar
generally inadequate as regards t.
their ability to furnish efficient fir
lservice, as compared with most sys
tens in other sections. This differ
ence is probably in part due to topo
| graphical conditions, in that no site
| are available for storing large guam
titles of water to afford satisfactor
gravity supply at adequate pressures
and also in part to the too genera
use of small sized pipes for distribu
ton. Our engineer reported that tn
water service afforded by your com
pany compared favorably with tina
of other towns in that section, which
as above stated, is one where fire pro
lection is generally conceded to be o
an inferior quality.
I'm the makeup of our rates on al
mercantile and certain of our specia
hazards, a charge was made for def
cient nuh1ic nrot ecti0n which fipur