The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1858-08-28
THE AQUEDUCT.

THE AoUEDUCT.
In yesterdays local column we gave an account of a
portion of this work taken from the Inteigencer and
indebted to the source for the following ad
dtonI 1fohaton In regard to the present condition
and progress of the undertaking;
2 In speaking in previous article of the forward
ness of the great receiving dam at Powder Mill branch
we stated that 1t was perhaps three ourths completed
careful examination shows it to be further advanced
than that. The great embankment throw across
the mouth of the branch valley is already finished save
about weeks work for Il lew ien N smoothing and
finishing off, few days employed in the interior
of the sell and channel for dischargng the water of the
dam in case of need and in putting in the conduthead
leading from the receiving dam towards the CITY, will
suffice and then the dam viii be in order for filing by
the stream of the branch above named This will be
actually commenced in about three weeks at fithest
The filling by Powdern branch viii be necessarily very
slow but there Is the obvious advantage in this of having
the access of water to the embankment to proceed as
gradually as possible We may here remark in addition
to what said before reference the receiving dam
which will cover an area of from sxty-vc to eighty
acres that Its edges pared and sho that place
will the water there be less than five ia depth This
to prevent bathing, especially by children for against
such an offence by adults presume penalties will be
enacted and enforced. In some places the depth of
water in this reservoir will be fifty feet, more
it WILL perhaps average twenty feet Fish win no doubt
thrive in it, end become very numerous and OF large
size
on leaving this principal reservoir the water en- route
for the District cities WILL pass through strong piece
of masonry called the conduit head after which within
thirty yards it will be brought into gate house ar
ranged upon principle, where the supply will be
graduated and controlled This gate house like the one
at the Great Falls, will be raised two stories and sur
mounted by dome From this spot the conduit con-
tnues with inconsdeable defecons nearly straight
line to the distributing reservoir at Drovers Rest dis
lance of between two and three miles Fully four fths
of this conduit is finished, and much of it filled in
above and put entirely out of hand At Drover's Rest
immediately on the road leading from George
town to the Little Falls the advancing water arrives
at the distributing reservoir of of perhaps thir
ty acres Here will be two ebouses of the same
general character and object the others, the one
which receives the water having the of aue and
the which passes it to the city that of euen The
conduit is, however, made SO to run at this locality
that If need be- its contained water will not pass into
the distributing reservoir at ALL but may go directly on
to the cities This object is secured by running seven
feet conduit under of the ombankents the roser-
voir connecting the main conduit with the outlet into
the pipes Mt the discharge side of the distributing reser
voir At this outlet therefore the arched conduit ter
inmates and tho water is taken into pipes In nearly
straight direction it is then conveyed to the road on
the canal side at the foundry about half mile outside
the limits of Georgetown crossing the College branch
and at length entering the corporation bounds near the
Alexandria aqueduc the Potomac. The piping will
be conducted along Bridge street till its intersection
with Montgomery street. when it will pass southeastery
and rest the bridge building across Rock creek
connecting Bridge street and Pennsylvania avenue One
of the abutmcns of this bridge will be called upon to
furnish for the erection of piece of machinery
whercwith to raise head of water in the reservoir on
Lees hill the heights of Georgetown for supplying
water TO the upper parts Of the town 1t viii be on
simple plan and the water be made to do its own pro-
pulsion The pipes through which the water will pass
from Rock creek bridge to the Lees hill reservoir will
probably be laid through Montgomery street. The ceva-
ton of the Lees hill reservoir above that Drover rest
is nearly seventy feet.
ga word may perhaps be necessary to what is in
tended to be done with the water this season The
tWeIyc-inCb pines having through and
streets intended to furnish from the stream of Pow
der Mill branch first supply Of about two millions of
gallons per diem which, the corporations had their
distribution systems in order, would dispense TO every
human being in the District cities about barrel Of water
day These pipes will be filed time in December
next Next spring the principal main of thirty inches
diameter will he laid and in general the side Of the street
opposite to that on which the pipes laying will
be the to receive It.
We unable to say anything in respect to a sys-
tenn of sewerage and drainage which must necessarily
tent That is subject doubt under careful
consideration but as it is secondary in point Of time
though not in Importance must await further devel
opments.
ARREST. some time past, bands of idcrs. oun-
gers and dcspcradoes have been roaming in the suburbs
and ncghborhood of the northern part of the city, plum
dcring farmers and other residents and stealing from
market wagons, especially when in charge of colored
We learn that the police have arrested three of
them, whose names VIM. Bowling, aged 20 VIM
Moore aged 80 and Edward Humphrey aged TO- The
two former, hearing before Justice Donn were tenn
porary committed to jail the last named is out on Sc
cuty further hearing viii take place at past
o clock Monday next, before which time il is hoped
that others Of the gang win be arrested
Taylor AND MAuny have laid our table Leonard
Scott Co.'S republication Of Backwood's Edinburgh
Magazine for August and the London Quarterly Review
for July The reputation of these periodicals IL world
wide aud the numbers before us are filed with ably
written articles various topics well calculated to sus-