, 1862-03-12

: Nwasthought some time since that the water
:fnfnisha for citizens to drink, cook and wash
with, WAS Is foul and vile u that fiuid could
become, hut he past few days hare dlspelled
that rather agreeable Illusion For two or
three days the wind has blown from the west
and southwest, sending she' 'fetid accnmular ]
lions from slaughter houses, tanneries, Mstil-
le11es and glue factories, from the river, out to
sea, and towards the termination Of our
main supply pipe. Yesterday We were: rea1Iz-
Ing the results in the shape Of brackfsh, ashy,
glutinous, dirty, odoriferoas duid, At only for
the purposes Of cleansing the dirtiest Of All
gran stables. And still the nuisance Increases
IN proportions sDead fab, nevis, and various
specimens of wate1y a1imalcule known to the
books, srehrought through the pipes in large
nnmoere. Minnows large enough to bait cod
hsh hook, few Is much as four inches in
length-some alive and w1igglng, others with
backs broken, and others still dead and In pro-
cess Of decomposition, are yoided by the sup
ply pipes. The tea, coffee-and in fact the
milk furnished by the city cows, which AMI
mails must be supplied with q generous pro
portion Of lake waterfall smell abominsbly
and are thrown aside with disgust, where.wa-;
ter has been used without passing through
/ so1ne purifying process. Boiling the fluid
eeems only to add to its peculiarly 6shy, gasy
odor. Bathing the hands and face, except in
cases where goodly supply Of cologne water
orhfghly perfumed soap can be afforded, has
become obsolete in Chicago, and d:our inhabi-
tants are becoming literally entitled to the ap-
pel1ation, t'the great unxashed." Cooking
Will soon hare to be done with ale and lager
beer, SO the fluid ingredient Of all dishes. In
fact grocers now inform US that the result Of
this state ofthe water has been to double their
orders for bottled malt liquors. Whisky will
become the common beverage. Temperance
lectures Will not prevent people from quench-
ing their thirst with something, even should
| the lamp Of life be quenched out at the same
time.
/ The question naturally arises, "Who Is to
blame::'' People quickly jump alta conclusion
that somebody must father the evil Who
shall it be We publish the following COM
naunications pertinent to the subject under
| consideration:
HERE Is ANOTHER SUGGESTION.
Editors Chicago Tribune:
1notice in this mornings TRIBUNE various
suggestions put forth by the Council for rene
dying the intoleratle nuisance Of putrid
water.
One thing is very clear: The water that
comes from our hydrants in all parts Of the
city Is reeking with an odor aud taste from
the decomposition Of slaugh ughter.houses, distil-
| leries, and sewer substances, and that unless
| speedily remcdied it will breed q pestilence in
| our midst. When animal decomposition is
so strong that it is impossible to taste, smell,
+ Hrop hat t,1+,r
is high time that d prompt and Immediate
remedy be applied, If such exists.
There is time enough to discuss the best and
most feasible plan to permanently remedy the
d,thcnlty-buI if it can be in.naediate'y reme-
died BY any reasonable expenditure Of money,
| condition Of the city.
That there Is snch 4 way the Council have
| suggested themselves when they say it is
probable that four or five days pumping will
"correct the present offensive state Of the
"rirer.' Then why is it notat once ordereds
Suppose it costs $50 per day! What Of
fhat2 How long would it take to raise a sub
scrp1lon privately Of five hmes.that amount,
! If by such course the city would receive an
immediate supply of wholesome water
Let me say by way Of suggestion that in MT
opinion the surest, most perfect, feasible and
cheapest remedy for this difficulty is by
| pumping the water of the Chicago river into
the head waters Of the Illinois river, and doing
it un!Josnly and constantly. This will draw the
pure water Of the Lake constantly into the
midst Of the city, where now the oder is
enough to create typhus fever among those
| whore residence or business compel them
daily to inhale the ef1uVia Of the river.
Ihls project is not SO expensive as il sup
| posed The writer ls practical civil engineer
and experienced III pumping devices. It mat
teIs not what the Canal Commissioners may
estimate the value OF pumping up the water
Of the Chicago river. Their estimate and the
actual cost may be, and most likely are, at tvari-
iture of not exceeding s30, 600 viii furnish en-
SIne, pumps, DC, SO thnt the labor of d half
dozen men will keep the river pure, and abate
9 nuisance already submitted to too long.
Then let the machinery be erected independent
ct the canal, but under the entire control Of
the city. c. n. D.
A,astrer.-One Of the South Side reservoirs,
situated on Adams street, WAS thoroughly re-
paired the past summer Whether the rc-
maindcr have ever been oEerhanled we are un-
able to say. Hthey hare not, they certainly
| should be-
Here is another theory in regard to tho
probable cauac of the detestable state Of the
water:
CHICAGO, March II, 1861
Editors Chicago Tribune:
| 1wish to say that donot believe our putrid
| hydrant water comes from the river, At nv
house yesterday, through the kitchen by ydrant,
issued half pint or more Of rotten fish from
s5 to S3z inches in 1cngth-the stencil was
lnen0urabie. The girl in the kitchen saws
the like happened also last Friday, only mora
! in quantiitty-and that all along for several
days rotten fish have passed, the water being
almost clear, except a slight turbidness occa-
slonally when the lake has been very rough
from wind
Putrid fish must be lodged In the water
pipes, but not sufficient in numbers to stop
the water, end occasionally they are brought
up in quantities. From the smell Of the fish,
| am perfectly convinced, as I have all along
believed, that this is the only thing which has
much to do with the bad taste and odor Of the
water this season. The odor and taste are
Identical
How can the wafer Of the river be tainted
if it were, hoso could it be carried through tae
tzke from The rivers mouth to the entrance Of The
| acdtcr pipes, in such quantities as to smell, and
sent sotoae house Ike ea47io7, in hot ssather
Besides, are not the rotten fish, thus proved
to be in the pipes, dN.subfcient 10 account for
The stote Of tie teater? There have enough pu-
trid fish come through my one kitchen n.y.
drant during The last five days, to taint more
water than runs in a week so TINT man can.
not drink It. # this is true, the evil can be
1emcdied only by keeping the fish ont of the
pipes, not by going beyond river waite,
. merely. Respectfully,
n. G. BURSHA1.
It is more than probable that concatena
ton and accumulation Of causes conspire tt
render the water impure, and the presence o.
: fsh is undoubtedly one Of them; but 1t is alse
: a fact incapable Of controversion that the ad
mixture Of foul fluids, the DRAWINGS of distil
lez1es, slaughter-houses, rendering establish
: ments and hogspens, is another aud princi
= pal cause There is one thing certain, VI
have the most filthy fluid ever graced by til,
fair name Of water, supplied to US for daiL
use, aud something must be done, and don,
> quickly, to renderit Of better quality, or VI
sha1l soon begin sadly to realize its effects in
plague or cholera eeason which will decimat
j cur population
, Hon shall it be done?
: Editors Tribune:
J. Can you tell us whether our Wster rese1
2 Tolrs are ever cleaned out or nots Do the
not contain accumulated filth and slime an
settings Of years If whisky don't kill /
. man, the water We get will. If you can thro,
oblige A DR1sKER.
e The Rebel Prisoners.
s Affairs remain about in the same conditio,
r at Camp Douglas from day to day, since th
] | receipt Of the order positively excluding Wis;