The Water Works, &c., Before the Legislature

image 1image 2image 3image 4cropped image 1

THE WATER WORKS, &C., BEFORE THE LEGISLATURE.

ALBANY, Wednesday evening. (From our own Reporter.)

Notice was circulated in this city on Saturday evening that the Water and Sewerage bills would be discussed before the Committee on Cities and Villages on Monday evening, and Mr. H. E. Pierpont, Chief Engineer Kirkwood,¹ myself and a few others went to the Capital accordingly. But Mr. Pond, the Chairman of the Committee, stated that the notice had been given without his knowledge and consent and that the meeting could not be held, as most of the Committee were out of town. Consequently a telegram was sent to Chambers street, which sent the Commissioners and their friends who had assembled to depart by the 11:15 train on Monday, home again. Mr. Brush, Chairman of the Citizen's Committee, subsequently sent circulars round to the parties interest, apprising them that the meeting had been fixed for Wednesday evening.

On Wednesday morning the 11:15 train was crowded by Brooklynites; and from the number of "solid men" who took their seats in the carriages, doubts were felt by individuals of lighter caliber as to whether any one engine could draw the train. In the cars, the Water Works and all appertaining thereto were so loudly and volubly discussed, that sundry inhabitants of the rural districts, who shared the cars with the Brooklynites, were no doubt impressed with the conviction that the salvation of the Union depended on the passage of the Water Bill. The anti-Water men were in so small a majority, that Alderman Backhouse soon subsided into an obscure corner,² leaving Mr. Dayton surrounded by six or eight of his opponents,³ who talked at him so fast and furiously, that when he availed himself of a temporary stoppage of the cars to dive into obscurity, the general remarked was that the "blowing" which had been going on around him had wafted the unfortunate ex-legislator out of one of the open windows. From the number of the Brooklyn lobby who filled the cars, doubts were felt whether any one hotel in Albany would be able to accommodate them all; and it was remarked that one of the powers conferred in the Sewerage Act might now be made operative, by giving the counsel to the Commissioners conclusive power to apportion the visitors among the various hotels.

On getting to Albany on Wednesday evening, it was found that another mistake had been made as to the time of meeting. Mr. Pond knew no more of the second appointment than of the first; some one or other, caring as little for the Legislative Committee as the Commissioners do for the Common Council, had fixed both successive times without consulting the Committee. After mutual consultation four o'clock Thursday afternoon was fixed for the meeting.

Alderman Backhouse, on behalf of the Common Council Committee, will offer to the Legislative Committee a substitute for the bills supported by the Commissioners. As I understand, he does not propose to alter the management details of their bills. He is willing that the water and sewerage works should be vested in Commission, as their bills provide; but he desires, and his substitute provides, that the expenditures, the appointment of the Commissioners, and a confirmatory power over their action, should be vested in the Common Council. It seems not unlikely that the Commissioners and their friends will accede to having their bills amended in these respects, provided Ald. Backhouse and those acting with him will not oppose the half million for the covering of the canal, about which the Commissioners seem more anxious than about the power proposed to be given them in their bills, of nominating their own successors. Among the men here on this Water question are—Commissioners Prentice,⁴ Wall,⁵ Wyckoff,⁶ and Brevoort; A. A. Low—Howland, E. W. Fisk—Gilbert, J. H. Baker, J. A. Dayton, D. M. Chauncey, Wm. Beard, J. M. Van Cott, J. P. Kirkwood, H. E. Pierrepont, A. W. Craven⁷ and a host of other engineers &c. &c. They are all stopping at the Delavan. At Poughkeepsie the cars picked up Mr. J. M. Stearns vice Mr. D. B. Barnard, who was expected to have joined the party there but was prevented by being engaged in Court. Some comment is occasioned by the absence of the hitherto most prominent advocates and opponents of the Commissioners—Ex-Aldermen Baylis and Lowber, and Alderman Kalbfleisch.⁸

Among other Brooklyn men who are here are Messrs. C. C. Talbot and S. T. Maddox, who are making satisfactory progress with a bill entrusted to them by the Representatives of the Fire Department, E. D., designed to remove all questions affecting the organization or disbanding of Companies from the Common Council, while reserving to the Aldermen the control over expenditures to vest the government and discipline of the department entirely in its own hands.

Auditor Northup is here, having been sent by the Mayor to look after the bills affecting the deficiency in the City revenue, and the Williamsburgh local improvements. It was well that Alderman Maujer's resolution authorising the Mayor to send an agent passed—for had Mr. Northup not come, there was small chance for the Williamsburgh bill to have passed. By getting its main clause tacked on to the deficiency bill, however, the Auditor has put it on a fair train for passage and we have thus at last a prospect opened to us of soon hearing the last of those interminable Williamsburgh claims.

The Grand street railroad bills were before a Committee of the Assembly this afternoon. The matter has been complicated by a third bill, introduced by Mr. Spinola, giving Andrew B Hodges and Henry J. Pull the grant. The argument for this third bill is that Mr. Hodges has greater facilities than other persons for procuring iron; and the author proposes to terminate the grant if the road be not completed in eight months from the date of the act. Mr Ira Buckman appeared before the Committee to urge the Montrose avedue​ grant to the exclusion of the property owners' bill; but Mr. Northup, who appeared on behalf of the citizen's meeting, succeeded in convincing the Committee of the true position of affairs, and they will report the Grand street route, with the long list of property owners as corporators. The Grand street people's bill, therefore, would be safe to pass, were it not for the rock ahead in Mr. Spinola's bill, which however may perhaps be removed by adding Messrs Hodges and Pull to the list of corporators in the people's bill. An offer to that effect we believe has been already made from the Grand street interest.

---