The Sun.
London, England, 1851-07-07 00:00:00

BENTLEY.

The opening article of Bentley, entitled " London,
Paris, and New York," (which should rather have been
entitled simply New York, inasmuch as it relates ex-
clusively to that island city) is the most valuable ma-
gazine article that has appeared for some time past.
Doing full justice to the many good qualities of the
United States society in New York,it does nest attempt
to disguise its faults, but by showing whence those
faults arise, point out how they may be corrected ; its
social faults, however, are as nothing compared to
its social virtues, and when such is the case
" Non ego pancis offendar maculis."
It would be well for London if, with regard to the
water supply for instance, its inhabitants were to
follow the example of the New Yorkers. Until 1842
the supply of water to New York was scanty and
bad, in that year the Croton Aqueduct, which had
taken five years to construct was opened,. and the
supply has ever since been ample and excellent. This
great work is thus described—
" The Great Aqueduct is forty-one miles in length.
commencing with a dam across the Croton river, six
miles above its mouth. This raises the water one
hundred and sixty-six feet above tide level, forming a
lake or reservoir of four hundred acres in extent, con-
taining five hundred million gallons, above the level
that would allow the aqueduct to discharge thirty-five
million gallons per day. From the Croton Dam to
Llarlem River, something less than thirty-three miles,
the aqueduct is an uninterrupted conduit of hydraulic
masonry, of stone and brick ; the greatest interior
width, seven feet five inches ; the greatest heiOit, eight
feet five inches ; the floor an inverted arch. The com-
missioners and chief engineers passed through its whole
length on foot, as soon as it was completed ; and, when
the water was admitted, traversed it again in a boat
built for the purpose. It crosses the Harlem River by a
bridge of stone, fourteen hundred and fifty feet long, and
one 'wand and fourteen feet above high-water mark.
At the receiving reservoir forty miles from the Dam, the
masonry gives place to iron
pipes, through which the
water is conveyed two miles
further, to the distribut-
ing reservoir, from which point it runs, by means of
several hundred miles of pipes to every corner of the
city. On the lino of the aqueduct are one hundred and
fourteen culverts, and sixteen tunnels, and ventilators
occur at the distance of one mile apart throughout the
route. The receiving reservoir covers thirty-five acres,
and contains one hundred and fifty millior imperial gal-
lons. The distributing reservoir has walls forty-nine
feet in height, and contains twenty million gallons.
The supply to each citizen is at present almost un-
limited, and afforded at a moderate annual rate. The
managers complain to tne Common Council of the enor-
mous waste during the summer, when 'sixty imperial
gallons each twenty-four hours to every inhabitant; are
delivered. But even at this enormous rate the quantity
is ample, and it can be increased at will by new reser-
voirs. No decent house is now constructed without a
bath, an advantage to the health and comfort of the
city, hardly to be overrated. Fountains adorn almost
all the public places of any importance."
The lovers of angling will be delighted with the
paper on pike fishing, which is written in a true
Waltonian spirit; and the lover of art will be pleased
with the excellent description of the Earl of Elles-
mere's collection of pictures. The present numober is
rich in reminisences of travel: we have Leon Gozlan's
excurson to Waterloo ' Reminiscences of La Plata ;
stray leaves from the Levant, and a voyage to the
Spanish Main ; besides a general review of the re-
cently published books of travels.