VIII. D, 3 Salt: Carriedo y Peredo 195 



administer its profits were secured by a special appropriation. 

 For the fiscal year 1877-78 the levy brought in 67,000 pesos in 

 the hands of a lessee. When the contract ran out on June 30, 

 1878, the city became responsible for the collection and the 

 administration of the tax, and the average profit per month 

 was only 4,455.83 pesos. On February 1, 1879, it was again let 

 for three years to Antonio de la Rosa for 56,273 pesos, a reduction 

 of 18 per cent from the original amount."" The arrangement 

 continued, under various lessees, until 1890 when it was raised 

 to a minimum of 90,960 pesos, and, although this was reduced 

 by 10 per cent, Mariano Yu-Chioco was willing on December 

 4, 1892, to pay 88,003 pesos for a two years' contract. In 1894, 

 by order of the governor-general, dated September 30 of the 

 same year, it was increased further by 1 per cent. It was 

 finally abolished at the close of the military occupation on August 

 6, 1901. 



Up to July 30, 1883, the total amount spent on the works 

 was 688,365.47 pesos, of which the meat tax had contributed 

 323,292.81 pesos and the Carriedo fund the remainder."' This 

 expenditure was not in accordance with the desire of the depart- 

 ment of public works, who would have reduced the estimate 

 to 513,664 pesos by substituting porcelain for cast-iron pipes, 

 by using wood as fuel, by placing all the necessary clerical work 

 in the hands of the regular office staff of the city, and by selling 

 water from the hydrants, when the system was in operation. It 

 was fortunate that the authorities in Madrid were vigorously 

 opposed to the Chamorroy system in which porcelain was used, 

 even though they were in general inclined to follow the will 

 of Carriedo."* 



Having thus overcome all the preliminary difficulties, the board 

 chose August 28, 1878, the birthday of King Alfonso XII, after 

 whose queen, Mercedes, one of the public fountains was to be 

 called, as a fitting day to inaugurate the work of construction. 

 The attendant ceremonies were simple, but impressive. A stone 

 was blessed by Archbishop Payot and laid by the governor- 

 general at what was later to be the distributing point — the 

 Rotonda in Sampaloc. Under the stone were placed in a leaden 

 casket commemorative medals and copies of the local papers and 

 of the act authorizing the work. In all, 4,000 pesos were spent 



'"Ibid. (1877), 20-22; Expediente economico (1872-76), 210-213. 

 "'/6td.; 306. 

 "'Ibid., 8-19, 81. 



