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From* Where I Sit -—By A. E. Cahlan There seems to be a rather general misapprehension about the measure now pending before the state legislature which would allow the installation of water meters in certain cases. This misapprehension, it seems to me, is chargeable directly to those sponsoring the bill, for it cropped up at the end of the session with­out previous indication giving rise to the perfectly natural suspicion that somebody was trying to slip something over/' Actually, the proposed law would merely provide a means whereby water hogs—the indi­viduals who feel they have some sort of a divine right to spray the pavements, fill the gutters, or clog the sewers if such be their whim—would be forced to pay for the privilege at so much per gallon. It is not general in. its application, and would v affect only those who have defied-ev­erybody to try to stop their H20 sprees. Tire present law forbids in­stallation of water meters in cities of more than 15,000 popu­lation This includes only Reno and Las Vegas. It was passed when the utility serving Reno was preparing to meter all the water there. There never has been any threat of a similar pro­cedure here, though the company is sorely pressed to keep cus­tomers from wasting water. No reasonable person would contend that anybody should have the right to turn on the tap and let the fluid pour forth indefinitely, unless it is put to beneficial use. It was in recognition of this fact that the city of Las Vegas, many years ago, passecf an ordinance making the waster subject to a fine or jail sentence. This effort to protect the com­munity’s water supply has not proven effective. Courts have regarded it as a company meas­ure and have regularly turned offenders loose with with a slap on the wrist or less. It was the old story of the big corporation against the small individual. The bill which passed "the sen­ate provides a procedure whereby the water-waster can be curbed by being called upon to pay for each gallon he wastes. If adopted, any city board, indi­vidual or corporation could file a complaint with the public service commission charging John Doe with wasting water. A hearing would be held at which witnesses would be heard and if the commission found there was an inexcusable waste, it could order a meter installed on Doe’s individual line.' It would have no effect whatever on any other person—merely withdrawing from Doe the\flat rate privileges he has abused.- The impression seems rather general that the act. called for meters on every service. That is erroneous. It is also contended that the act is an effort to open the door to future legislation which! would remove all restric­tions on meters. That may or may not be so, but certainly the measure under consideration gives no such indication. The fact is that there are a few people in every community —not just Las Vegas—who have no regard whatever for the wa­ter supply. It is quite a common thing to see these few leave town for the weekend with yard sprinklers going full blast. Oth­ers allow faulty plumbing to go unrepaired for weeks or months. There are innumerable similar examples. . They seem to believe.they are hurting only the water company and since utilities are supposed to be rich, they can’t see where any harm is done. Actually, it’s the entire community that suf­fers through unnecessary deple­tion of the source. Las Vegas has been blessed with a bountiful supply of arte­sian water. That does not mean it is unlimited. Actually, the water table here is going down from year to year. That portends the day when ,it will "fio longer flow out of the ground but will have to be pumped. Beyond that looms the time when there won’t be enough left to pump. Here on the desert, water is gold. It should be considered as such. With only a limited amount available,, the beautiful lawns, trees, flowers and plants would disappear. That we have a real garden spot here and have been able--to maintain it as such is our good fortune. We. should at all times be conscious of the al­ternative and make every effort to prevent waste. ;a------ Perhaps tne measure pending before the legislature is not the answer. If it isn’t, those who believe that way should provide something constructive which would solve the problem. Public officials and civic bodies have done a lot of talking these many years about waste of water both from the hydrants at home and through allowing wells to run wild. But little, ever has been done to force the water-hogs to be reasonable'in usage. Personally, I Can see no harm in the measure, and the possi­bility, of much good arising from its fair enforcement. I do NOT think we can afford to waste water:—it’s too precious. If we don’t clamp down now, the day will come when we’ll be very, very sorry. Then, it Will be too late.