Ownership Of Waterworks

Municipal ownership of waterworks in practically all the larger cities of the United States bids fair to be a rule a few years henee. Memphis, Tenn., has just acquired the plant owned for some years past by the Artesian Water Company. ïhis reduces to nine the cities of the üuited States of over 100,000 population whose waterworks are still under private ownership. The nine cities, in order of their size in 1000, are: San Francisco, New Orlcans, Indianapolis, Denver, New Haven, Paterson, St. Josenh, Omaha and Scranton. ïwo of these, New Orleans and Omaha, are already committed to municipal ownership, and for years there bas been a strong movement in tliat direetion at San Francisco. Agitation to the same end was also very tnueh in evidence at Indianapolis and Denver a few years ago. The ciües of 1OO,OCX) population or over numbered thirty-eight in 1900, of whicli twentynine now own their v.aterworks. In the same year there wevë ninety-seven cities "with populaüons ranging from 100,00 to 30,000, and of those nearly seventy nvn works, while b number of others are maklng more or less rapid progress toward municipal ownership. Unless the tide turns, and tliere certainly is no indication of it, twenty to twenty-five years henee will show but few cities of 30,000 population supplied with water b. private companies. Why are changes to public ownership so common, and why are thi much more numcrous in the case of ■works than in otlicr classes of lublic Utilities? ïhe answer to botli e questiona is that a water supily is so essential to the general prosy of a cotnmunity, and so closcly reliited to the comfort and health of every Citizen, as to give rise to an even stronger feeling that its supply should not be intrusted to those whose primary object is profit. - Engineering News.