The New York Times from New York, New York • Page 38

aMi niiijv TINIZVDVJV fl5IJ.VMJ.SnTH SHIVfJ. NMOA AWN 'Hi I OT i At'Atll. at, (WW. dANK OV MANHATTAN, AND ITS WATER TANK. I HIS day la the centennial anni versary of the Bank or the Manhattan Company, at 40 Wall Street, and the occasion will be commemorated in a suitable manner by the officers to-mor-riw rha nii has bean famous a having been organised under the guise of supplying the city with pure water, and the stability of Its charter depends upon the malntalnanee of a large water tank, occupying the entire bluldlng at the corner of Reade and Centre Streets.

Last year, when "a number of buildings In that locality were torn down for the widening of Elm Street, the entire Centre Street side of the water tank building was torn down and the huge old tank was exposed to view for the nrst time In nearly 100 years. The curious sight attracted a great daal of attention, and hundreds of persons visited the spot to see the odd spectacle of a water tank encased In a whole house of its own. The camera fiends did not allow such an excellent opportunity of getting a snap shot at one of New Tork's singular landmarks to pass unnoticed, snd the accompanying Illustration Is the result of one of those snap shots at the exposed tank. The bank was Incorporated In 1799 under the nam of The Manhattan Company, It ostensible purpose being; to supply the small city with water. The Incorporators, of whom Aaron Burr was the most energetic, cleverly concealed the real purpose of the company from the public.

Aaron Burr was then a member of the New York Assembly, and it was due to bis efforts that the bill passed the Legislature and was signed by Gov. Jay. When the inhabitants) of New Tork discovered that the. real motive was to organise a bank In opposition te the Bank of New Tork. controlled by Hamilton and the Federalists, there was great Indignation, and this) caused the defeat of Burr at the following election.

The charter of the company was unlimited, bat the clause which made the bank possible was one saying It "may be lawful for the said company to employ all such surplue capital as may belong or accrue to the said company In the purchase of publlo or other stock, or In other moneyed transactions or operations not Inconsistent with the Constitution and laws of this State, or of the United States, for the sole benefit of the said company." Six mouths after the act passed the Legislature the bank went Into actual existence and was a pronounced success from the start. Its stock selling at a premium of 28 per cent within two years, and Its; original stock of $500,000 was soon Increased to $2,060,000. Daniel Ludlow was Its first President and Aaron Burr one of Us Directors. As the charter of the company rests upon supplying the dty with water, It 6as been necessary all these years, even though Its usefulness In that line has ceased, to maintain the old tank In working order, and for over fifty years the engine has been kept going pumping water. The tank Is forty feet In diameter and occupies more than two-thirds of the building at Read and Centre Streets.

When the proposals were first made for widening Elm Street It was thought that the old tank building would have to be torn Uown, as well as the others In that vicinity which have now given way for Improved street facilities. Fortunately this was not necessary, although the street line comes so close to the tank that the adjacent building had to go, and a semt-clrcular wall has been built around the tank. It seems odd that in later years this tank and the part it actually played In furnishing water to our early cltlsens should have been almost forgotten. No better proof of this raot needed thee the etatemaat by so well-known a writer end historian as the late Mrs. Martha J.

Lamb, who In her "History of New Tork." after a meagre description of the bank's organisation, says: It does not appear that even a show was ever made of bringing water Into the city." Had Mrs. Lamb seen the following extract from A. T. Goodrich's "Picture of New Tork" for 1828, she might have given a more complete account of how the company really did supply water: New Tork Is partially supplied with water by ths Manhattan Company's works, situated In Reed Street, a few rods northeast from, the City Hall. Their water Is drawn from deep wells and springs, and forced up by a steam engine to a reservoir' In Chambers Street, that Is elevated fifteen feet above the level of Broadway; from whence the water Is distributed through every street In the city by means of wooden pipes running three feet under the level of the pavement; lateral pipes extend Into every house that pays the company the regular tax therefor, which Is $10.

The supply that la derived from this source Is Inadequate to the wants of this great and Increasing metropolis, and It has long been In contemplation to Introduce a more copious and regular supply of pure and wholesome water from distant sources, such as the Rye Ponds, Bronx River, Qroton River, and the Housatonlo River." A piece of one of the old wooden pipes occupies a position of honor In the office of the present President of the bank, Stephen Baker. In 1840 the company had about twenty-five miles of wooden pipe and four-teen miles of iron pipe, but about that time Its usefulness as a water supply ceased, and the Croton water system came into use in urn. 1 OLD WATER TANK OF THE- MANHATTAN COM PANT ON CENTRE STREET. known to demand repetition. In 1813 he returned to this dty, and some of his friends sided him in establishing- a law practice.

His first office was in Nassau Street. Just above Wall. He had several different to- -o I -f'. ir I I HOUSE NEAR THE CORNER OF READS AND CENTRE STREETS WHERE AARON BURR IS SAID TO HAVE HAD A LAW OFFICE. 1843.

Lines of these wooden pipes have from time to time been unearthed when the streets in which they were laid have been torn up, and they have always excited great curiosity. Aaron Burr, to whom is due ths successful political manipulation of the bill which chartered the Manhattan Company, had an eventful and unfortunate career after that, the chief incidents of which are too well oelltles after that, one in Reads Street In a building on the site now occupied by the Stewart Building, and another of his offices Is said to have been in the old house shown in the picture, at 11 Reade Street The last years of Burr's life were spent in comparative poverty, and he died in 1836 at Port Richmond, a at the age of eighty years. PROPOSED LEAGUE ISLAND PARK AT PHILADELPHIA. The winning plan for the new League Island Park at Philadelphia was drawn by a New Tork sr. Samuel Parsons Jr.

He will receive $750 as the first prise. Broad Street, which will run through the park north and south, Is made a simple avenue and raised several feet above the surrounding area. There will be a great concourse In the centre. This is considered a strong point In the plan. The centre of the park will be reserved for play and ath-letlo grounds, and the rest given over to the usual park effects of winding roads snd patns.

The territory where It Is proposed to lay out this park consists of 800 acres of low-lying land on the Delaware River, near League Island Navy Tard. Irrigation ditches, a sluggish, winding stream, and a small amount of what be termed upland are all that at present represent the park. Around this tract streets bave been laid out and grades established, although little work has been actually done on them. The most obvious merit of the successful plan, as shown In the accompanying Illustration, Is Its practical character. There are flower gardens and ball grounds and plays-rounds for boys and girls.

Thers are blcyele paths and footpaths and equestrian and carriage roads; there are lakes and streams for boating, and restaurants and Summer houses and arbors and bridges. The entire park Is to be about halt a mile square. Midway on Broad Street Is the great circular promenade, comprising twelve acres. The driveways are fifty feet wide and cover a length of three and one-half miles. Bicycle paths are provided, covering a distance of four and three-quarter miles.

East of Broad Street Is ths meadow." containing about fifty acres, and on the west is ths ball ground, of nearly seventy-live acres. In the northwest corner angle of the park Is a small lake of about sixteen acres. Among ths proposed structures are a number of rustio bridges, both of wood and stone; an Iron bridge, to carry Broad Street over the drive, and a musto pavilion In the Circle. Dressing rooms will also bo built In connection with the boys and girls playgrounds. Oalnalee Whistle.

rroro The Philadelphia North Americas. "It's an clear to me now." said Aguln-aldo. WhatT queried the aide. Our retreat. The men mistook the whirr of the American bullets for the sound of my whistle." STRICT PEStCNU LANDSCAPC AftCHrrt CTS UNCLE SAM AS A SIDEWALK OBSTRUCTOR.

A Nuisance That Has Been la Front of the Post Office for Many Months. APPROVED PLAN OF THE PROPOSED LEACUE ISLAND PARK AT PHILADELPHIA, PENN. Designed by Samuel Parsons. of New' Tork..