Reading Waterworks.

Reading Waterworks.

In the first annual message of Mayor William Rick, of Reading, Pa., he thus speaks of that city's waterworks department:

“水的检验部门说服the observer that the improvements made and the buildings constructed hy the department are substantial This department ought to be more than selfsustaining; but we hesitate at this time to say that any of the revenue derived should be turned from the sources which tend to make our water better and our properties safer from fire. To have good water tor use is one of the greatest blessings. In pure water lies the safety of the consumers. This has been demonstrated very forcibly during the last six months, when the purity of the Maiden creek supply has been questioned. The board of water commissioners, as well as its competent superintendent, Emil Nuebling. have, for years hack, been alive to the situation, and in 1904, the filtration of the Maiden creek supply was urged and recommended. In November, 1907. the citizens voted for an increase of the indebtedness of the city to the amount of $500, 000, for filtering the Maiden creek and the Bernhart supplies. Since the spring of 1908, much progress was made by councils in passing the final necessary legislation, and by the water commissioners in awarding the contracts. They are to he congratulated in having secured such spirited bidding and the correspondingly iow bids—all done without any show of favoritism. The work on the Bernhart filters is well advanced and will he completed by the fall of the year. The contractors for the Maiden creek filters have cleared the site and have erected an extensive and modern plant for handling the work in an expeditious manner. The hoard of water commissioners, as well as the superintendent of the department, have a great work before them for a few years, and they have our confidence, both as to competency and honesty, to see that this city will have one of the best equiped filtered water plants in this commonwealth. Such a plant will bo, not only a pride to our citizens, but a monument to the faithfulness, competency and integrity of the water commissioners and their employes. Extensive work has been done by the department during the year in completing the duplicate pumping main to the city line. The continuation of this duplicate main from the city line to Fifth and Rich mond streets is necessary to complete that part of the improvement. The contract for the raw water conduit for the Maiden creek til ters was let during this year; hut the work has not been started, because the necessary rights-of-way have not been acquired. These rights the citv can acquire by condemnation, if in no other way, and it appears this particular branch will be finished in time to keep pace with the other improvements. From a study of other water plants, and from the opinion* of experts, it appears that distributing reservoirs should he covered. It has also been recommended that the Buttonwood street reservoir ought to he repaired to do service in distributing the Egelman supply. 1 recommend that the water commissioners take up the matter of protecting the waters of the Maiden creek from pollution. 1 further recommend that all watchmen in and round city reservoirs and parks he obliged to wear uniforms indicating their authority. The selection which the hoard has made of a property north of Bern street, between Moss and Tenth streets, for a storage site, appears a wise one and ought to he ratified by councils.”