FOREST PRESERVES.

REPORT OF COMMITTEE ON FOREST PRESERVES. To the Constitutional Convention:

The Special Committee on State Forest Preservation, which was directed to consider and report what, if any, amendments to the Constitution should be adopted for the preservation of the State forests, respectfully report:

That your committee has had presented to it many valuable arguments and statements bearing upon the matter, and, after careful consideration, has unanimously reached the conclusion that it is necessary for the health, safety and general advantage of the people of the State that the forest lands now owned, and hereafter acquired by the State, and the timber on such lands, should be preserved intact as forest preserves, and not under any circumstances be sold.

Your committee is further of the opinion that, for the perfect protection and preservation of the State lands, other lands contiguous thereto should, as soon as possible, be purchased or otherwise acquired, but feel that any action to that end is more properly within the province of the Legislature than of this Convention. Your committee recommends the adoption by this Convention of the following as an amendment to the Constitution, viz.:

"The lands of the State now owned or hereafter acquired, constituting the forest preserves, shall be forever kept as wild forest lands. They shall not, nor shall the timber thereon, be sold."

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Dated August 23, 1894.

DAVID MCCLURE,

Chairman.

NIAGARA FALLS.

REPORT

OF SUB-COMMITTEE OF COMMITTEE ON LEGISLATIVE POWERS, RELATIVE TO THE DIVERSION OF THE WATERS OF NIAGARA RIVER.

To the Committee:

Your sub-committee, to which was referred the resolution offered by the Hon. Andrew H. Green, of New York, in the following words, namely:

"Resolved, That it be referred to an appropriate committee to report to the Convention what, if any, amendment should be made to the Constitution to restrain the Legislature from granting to, or conferring upon corporations or individuals privileges, rights or licenses to divert the waters of the upper Niagara river, or any portion thereof, from their natural channel, and that said committee, in their report, inform the Convention of those rights and privileges heretofore granted, and the particulars and extent and the consideration therefor."

Would respectfully report: That they have made a diligent and careful examination of the question submitted to them, both with respect to the fact and the law. They have examined the statutes of the State for fourteen years last past, to ascertain what rights have been granted, and the decisions of the courts, which are of assistance in determining what claim the State of New York has to the waters of the Niagara river and the soil thereunder. On the twenty-eighth day of July, some of the members of your committee visited Niagara Falls and made a personal examination of the river, and the work which has been done by the companies already authorized by law to divert the waters of Niagara river from their natural channel. On that occasion your committee was waited upon by the representatives of different corporate interests which may be affected by the action of the Convention, and received from them valuable and interesting information as to what they had done, what they proposed to do, and what they claimed their rights to be.

From the knowledge derived from the various sources mentioned your committee can report the following facts:

That the oldest company taking water from the river above the falls is known as the Niagara Falls Hydraulic Power and Manufacturing Company, which was organized in or about the year 1879, under the manufacturing act of 1848, but has received no special rights or charter from the State. This company is the owner of a canal, seventy feet wide and fourteen feet deep, which extends from a locality known as Port Day, about one mile above the falls, to a point below the falls where the water is used to propel turbine wheels situated in the high bank of the river. This company at the present time is furnishing about eight thousand horse power, and the capacity of its present canal is 231,000 cubic feet of water per minute, equal to 1,727,880 gallons. This company is now engaged in increasing the capac ity of its canal to 100 feet in width and fourteen feet in depth. The flow of the canal will then be 462,000 cubic feet per minute, equal to 3,455,760 gallons. This company pays nothing to the State for its privilege.

By chapter 83 of the Laws of 1886, the Legislature granted to a company, known as "Niagara River Hydraulic Tunnel Power and Sewer Company of Niagara Falls," a charter for the pur pose of constructing, maintaining and operating, in connection with the Niagara river, a hydraulic tunnel or sewer for public use of sewerage and drainage, and for furnishing hydraulic power in the town of Niagara, Niagara county. The charter of this company was amended and its powers increased by chapter 589 of the Laws of 1886, chapter 109 of the Laws of 1889, chapter 253 of the Laws of 1891, chapter 513 of the Laws of 1892, and chapter 477 of the Laws of 1893. The name of this company was changed to "The Niagara Falls Power Company," on the 11th day of November, 1889. By the act of incorporation, and the various statutes amending the same, this company has been given extraordinary and almost unlimited power in different directions. It has the right to condemn land; it may increase its capital stock to $10,000,000; its rents or charges for electricity or water, except those charged against a city, town or village for municipal purposes, are made a lien upon the prem ises on which such water or electricity is used, and may be collected of the person contracting therefor, or the lien may be enforced against the property; it is authorized, in any manner not expressly prohibited by law or by local ordinance, to conduct,

convey and furnish the waters of the Niagara river, but not in excess of the amount authorized by law, or any power, heat or light developed therefrom, to, in and through any civil division of the State, and to sell, furnish and deliver the same to any and all bodies or persons, public or private, wherever situated; and for any such purpose said corporation, from time to time, may enter upon any private property for which it may obtain such right, or upon any public bridge or street, highway, road, land or water, and may use the ground thereunder; and it may use and occupy any portion of any such street, highway or road, or any such public land or water, in such manner as shall from time to time be permitted by the local or public authority having control or supervision thereof, subject, however, to all private rights therein, including any right to compensation for any such use and occupation.

This company is prohibited from taking from the river more water than shall be sufficient to produce 200,000 effective horse power. It has paid nothing for the privileges granted, and has not agreed to pay anything, except that by one of the amendments to its charter, namely, chapter 513 of the Laws of 1892, it is provided that the right to take water from the Niagara river is granted upon the express condition that the company's acceptance shall bind it to furnish, free of charge, electricity for light, and also for power (as soon as said company shall begin to furnish electrical power in Niagara Falls), and also water for use of the State in the State reservation at Niagara, and the public buildings thereon, when requested by the Commissioners of the State Reservation. Your committee understands that the Commissioners of the State Reservation have never called upon this company to furnish either power or light, but have insisted upon paying for whatever the company might furnish them. The company has operated extensively under its charter, and at the present time is the owner of a large and extensive plant, partially in operation. For the accommodation of its turbines it has constructed a wheel pit 186 feet deep and 140 feet long. It has also built through the solid rock a tunnel from the wheel pit to an outlet below the falls, which tunnel is about 7,300 feet long, twenty-one feet high and eighteen feet broad at its widest part. This tunnel is used as a tail race, through which the water discharged from the wheels flows again into the river. It will, however, only carry sufficient water for the generation of 100,000 horse power; and if the company desires to use the full

amount of power which its charter authorizes, the construction of another tunnel of equal capacity will be required. The present tunnel, when working to its full capacity, will draw from the river about 516,000 cubic feet of water per minute, or 3,859,680 gallons. This is something like three per cent of the entire body of water flowing over both the American and the Canadian falls. It may be said, in this connection, that the United States army engineers in 1868, when making a survey' of the great lakes, computed the amount of water flowing over Niagara Falls to be 16,500,000 cubic feet per minute, or 123,420,000 gallons. This amount has been computed at other times and by other experts, and their figures agree substantially with those given above. If the company under discussion uses its full limit of 200,000 horse power, it will draw from the river about six per cent of the entire volume of water. It may be said, in passing, that the same company has obtained from the Canadian government a grant for the use of an equal amount of water to be taken from the other side of the river.

Another company incorporated for the purpose of taking water from the Niagara river is the "Lockport Water Supply Company," which received its grant by chapter 106 of the Laws of 1886. This company is authorized to issue capital stock in an amount not to exceed $10,000,000, and to take water from the Niagara river at a point near Tonawanda. Its purpose is to supply the water taken from the river to the city of Lockport, and any towns or villages in Niagara county, for municipal, sanitary, domestic, manufacturing or agricultural purposes. Accord ing to the terms of the grant, work was to be actually begun within five years from the date of the act, but, by chapter 438 of the Laws of 1890, its powers were extended and jurisdiction given to supply water throughout Niagara, Erie and Orleans counties, and the time in which work must be begun was extended to ten years from the time of the passing of the amendment. The name of this company has been changed to that of the "Lockport Water and Electric Company." It is not limited in the amount of water it is authorized to take from the river, and no compensation has been or is to be given to the State for the powers and privileges granted. Your committee understands that no work has been begun under the provisions of this charter.

The "Niagara County Irrigation and Water Supply Company" was incorporated by chapter 259 of the Laws of 1891, and is