PREFACE 



THIS book deals with the problem of distributing the bur- 

 den of supporting a water-works system among those who use 

 the water, in a just and equitable manner. It also deals with 

 the technic of handling the statistics that must be used, of 

 making the required computations and of estimating the revenue 

 that will be produced by a given set of rates. 



The preparation of this material for publication was the 

 direct outgrowth of service by the author as Chairman of the 

 Committee on Meter Rates of the New England Water Works 

 Association. In that capacity he found that the members 

 of his Committee were very capable water works men, repre- 

 senting, by their business connections, both public ownership 

 and private ownership. One was connected with a public 

 rate fixing body, and two were in practice having to do with 

 the rate problem from various aspects. 



The first work of the Committee was to find the views of 

 its own members, and without attempting to formulate any 

 principles as to the amount of rates, to get an agreement as to 

 the form of rates that would best distribute the burden upon 

 all takers with a minimum of injustice. After the Committee 

 had decided upon such a form of rate, it was presented to the 

 membership of the Association for general discussion. The 

 Committee then had to defend its proposals and in some cases 

 to modify them, until finally a form of rate was reached which 

 was adopted by the Association. 



Since that time the author and his partners in professional 

 work have had to do with establishing water rates in a number 

 of water -works systems. 



The need of standardizing methods of handling statistics 

 and of making calculations being great, a number of methods 

 have been devised and used in these cases. Those that have 



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