The Express.
London, England, 1847-09-13 00:00:00

THE EXPRESS, MONDAY EVENING, SEPTEMBER 13, 1847.

sent mien and thus to intercept and convey all the refuse
to • distance from the metropolis, " not into the upper part
of the river, but to terry it further, before the discharge
mixes with the river." He fixes on the same locality which
Mr. Cuthbert Jdluison has pointed out in his prize essay on
liquid manure.
Mr. Dean also proposed to carry the liquid impurities into
the game marshes by means of a lower sewer, " so as to
command the sewerage of Whitechapel-road, Cornhill, New-
gate-street, Holborn, and Oxford-street." The first question
as, of course, whether the respective localities would admit of
sufficient flow for the contents of the new sewer. Mr. Dean
states that the fall " for the sewerage from the General
Postothoe to low water-mark at Woolwich is 54 feet," as if
" sufficient for conveying the soil and water of the sewers to
a point where the contamination of the Thames would be
much less felt than at present." But without speaking of
Holborn and Oxford-street, the contemplated arrangement
does not even allow of execution, in so far as the Fleet.sewer
is concerned, the bojtom of which is only six feet and two-
thirds above low A/ler-mark at Woolwich, at spring low
waters. At neap low waters, the Fleet sewer is already
lower than low water-mark at Woolwich by two feet and
oae-third. The smallest size of such a new sewer, as pro-
posed by Mr. Dean, would be eight feet in diameter, and the
fall must be at least a foot a mile, or seven feet, and conse-
quently:its ontfall at Woolwich would be many feet lower than
low water-Mark. An outfall even at low watermark would
completely prevent the plan from being practicable, and
much more an outfall which is five feet above it.
The cleaning of the Augean stable required a Hercules.
This country is famous for its division of labour, and every
credit is due to those who have done their part, devoting
themselves to the work of improving oar sanitary condition
and the fertility of the soil. 'fogether with the names of
Mr. Thomas Cubitt, Mr. Cuthbert Johnson, and Mr. Dean,
must also be ever honourably remembered the names of Dr.
Granville, Mr. Chadwick, Mr. John Martin, Mr. James
Smith (ot Deanston), and many others, who have all assisted
in the Herculean work to be accomplished.
It may bo said that we have not yet derived the advantage
which should hare resulted from the knowledge that water
will find its own level ; nor yet have oar crowded towns re-
ceived any aid in their drainage from the introduction of
steam power. In 1841,• commission *assent to this country,
to inquire into our arrangements of drainage chiefly in refe.
rence to a city which is somewhat similarly situated to the
metropolis ; and the plan then proposed was highly approved
of, its rag simplicity commending it to every one so soon as
he becomes acquainted with it, viz.: the construction of a deep
receptacle for the purpose of giving additional fall to the
sewer which would convey the liquid refuse into this
receptacle; and, in the next place, to preserve this low outran
by continually pumping up the contents. The suggestion
may be termed a very simple one ; but no one appears
ever to have made it before.

Sixthly, —As far as the plan for the metropolis
is concerned it claims to be perfect, for improving the
drainage by giving a lower outfal, and a constant con-
tinuous flow to the contents of existing sewers. It claims
to be adapted for the removal of more than twice the present
extent of drainage, allowing the contents of the existing
sewers to pass through shafts into the lower channel sewers.
It claims to meet the difficulty arising from floods; for
when the lower sewer shall have been filled by the heavy
matter and waters first carried down, the surplus drainage
water would run into the Thames through the old sewer,.
It claims to have fixed on a locality specially adapted for the
application of the refuse es a liquid, by raising the whole into
reservoirs II feet high, thus giving tall enough to carry the
sewer water a very considerable distance, and facilitating the
irrigation of the meadows which extend down the river. It
claims to be equally adapted for forming and shipping a moist
precipitate, by vessels passing in ballast the surplus water
flowing into the Thames, and also for preparing this pre-
cipitate into a dry manure !Ric guano. Camels engines
are now being constructed to drain the Lake of Haarlem ;
and cannot pumping engines placed in the locality,',
recommended by all who hive thought on the subject,
raise the drainage of London, if it were conveyed into a
receptacle 10 feet deep? Will a sewer with sufficient
fall take all the drainage from the Fleet sewer and Strat-
ford into the marcher, although its size be only eight feet;
end will a twelve feet sewer for this distance, and an eight
feet sewer from Farringdon-street to Chelsea, be adapted, to
include the drainage of the whole of Pimlico, and thus pre-
vent the immense injury that is inflicted by the want of such
drainage ; and cannot an eight or a twelve feet sewer be
safely made-in the London clay under street and roads by
tunnelling, so as not to interfere with the traffic, and at an
expense of about 500,0001. for double the drainage from the
Fleet sewer eastward, and for less than 1,000,0001. if the
whole of the Strand, Westminster, and Pimlico, be included ?
It is worth • million to prevent the destruction of pro rty
at present going 00, several of our best squares suffering
from dampness. It is worth a million to secure purity of
river water. It is worth a million to improve our sanitary
condition ; and it is worth a million, merely looking at the
annual preservation of fertilisingsubstance—and yet, although
so valuable as a public measure, two years' examination into
tie subject assures me that it may be effected without any ex•
pense to the government or to the rate payers.
I will cooclude with the words of a worthy alderman—
" Whether you use it or not, this I am sore of, that you
must convey all down the river, and there pump it up ;" and
with the words of the select committee—" It is only through
the agency of a company that all can be combined and ap-
plied to the important purposes of cleansing our towns, puri-
Oying our rivers, and enriching our soil."—l em, sir, your
bedient servant, J. J. Moustwoon.