To The Editor Of The Time...
Sir,-The suggestion of -your correspondent T. D., tvil not, irL general, give tha't immediate sunply of watcr4 it casss-of fire, 2s he imagines, by the means he point. out: -by chaace, they -may.. The implements used by tle turncockc are a Spoou,-auda keysand crow- bar: the spoon for clearing the Axay to the cocks itnd plugs, in the fire-boxes; the key nndcraw-bar turn Wte cocks to letthe watetdown the line of pipeS to the placp where reqaized; and the crev .bar im. also ased to draw or force the plug out ot the fire-bex to supply the, water, if there. Acts of Patliatnent compel fhe churchwardens afl! overseers to pat down fire-boxe', at proper intervalsl in each-street, to supply the inhabitnnts with water, in-case'uffire; and they areliable topenaltics for vat aofsire-boxes belnerputdown. Butwfjbt uj')rxe the fire-boxes and 'imnlemesits, if there is no water-to be obtained g drawing the plug ? 'The true statcof.the g7ritvance the publis latoumr under is this;-A few yeirs aj,o several parts of the el-tr6i,uliswere supplied with water by four Watcr Companies, and conseqnnutly- there was then a constant daily supply in aU places,from cne or more- ot them, and water might then have been instantly nbtsired in pasi of fire. These Companies combined together, and divided the pub-' lie among them, each 5ornianv tikiog the sole supply of water t that part of the town they assuned the possession of. By this -pro- cedure thev coult then oanly .give the supply of the whole body of. their wate&partially, in some patts twice, and in others threetimesa. week; andtl in cLaes of acridents happcning to the pipes, thia supply was suzspended, their attention and supply in the interim being di- rected to a contrary direction; aTnd in cases of fire, it hals gene_. rally happened that the co-nsequences 'eave been grierous and alzarsn ing in the neighlbourhood for want of the former supplsv of -tater that was given when the Companies"vereall surpplying the neiglihourhood at tie same time. The pnblic seem surprised that the vater is so long before it can be obtained; lhey do no; reflect that there ir. now. only one Company in the neighbotsrhootl to supOly it; and the main is most probably supplying the whole body of the Company's water in a quite contrary direction. TIte blame is notattributable to the tirneock; for immedlia tel: upon an alarm beiug given, he has verr probably to run two or three ntiles to shut off the main, then at worke in supplying another part of the town, and tturn the-bdodv of water ioto tie main which supplies tie part where the fire is. Hehas besides to shut offrall the cockson the servicenidpesdeu.tched off' atkd 31ongthis main, to compress the bodv of water into such last 'entioned main to direct it to the place required; during this interval the fire makes an alarming progress for the went of the arrival of the water, wlich must take some time gfrir it is -put on to the main required before it can arrive_ W1hen. there were foar or uiore WPater Companies in, the ntefgbourho6d, vwater might have been had from one-or more of them in an instant, ntrd the parochial and companies' engines being always at irand (as they are stationed), fires were then speedily extinguished or-im ceded in tieprogress. Besides this, thereisanothCrgreatgrievanceth4epub- lie experiences by this Combination of the UWater Companies, by there being only one Compasay to supplv the inhabitants of a district they have assumed, which grievance is theannual charges theyexact for the-supply of the water to each householder, which they have greatly increased, there beir.g no competitor. In some instances they have exacted nearly double the fanner price paid when the other Companies were in the sanme neighbouirhood * and there is no alternative: the householder must either subrmit to the exaction, or go without water. It may happen by mere chance, that the serviceof the water may be in the neighbourhood where a Eire happens. In such a case, the engine-keeper or firemen may draw the plug with a crow bar, and obtain -the- water orn the arrival of the engine; but it is almost three to one that the water is in the neighbourhood when wanted, for the reason I have before stated. It gives me great pleasure to observe,thatseveral sew %atetComn panies are about being established, by whom the public will mosa rrobakly bo relieved from the evils complaineid of, and I lhope such new Water Campanies wiU make arrangetnents to supply all varts of the metropolis; there can be no doubt of their success in the un- dertaking, if they give a plentiful supply of good wholesome water, and at moderate urices. I atn. Sir. vour obeAient servant. J.K. INOV. IS. ,TO TPIE EDITOR O} THE TIAIES.