The Portland daily press., 1872-03-16
Water and Water Meters.
A REMEDY FOR THE SAVING OF WATER.


The introduction of water into this city some
thirty years ago has done more toward develop
ing its metropolitan importance by increasing
its multitudinOus industries, advancing the
valuations of its estates, and attracting to it
the enterprise and wealth of the country than
any other Improvement since suggested or
wrought out. The success which attended up
on the effort to introduce the water of the Gro
ton river to this island, costly and gigantic as it
was, came of an absolute necessity. Without
this supply at our DOORS what would New York
be to-day? Cut off the aqueduct anywhere
north of the Harlem river, and this grand city
so magnificent in its population, site and pro-
portiOns-would quickly become, like the an
Gent towns of: Egypt and western Asia, des-
ert.
z 1t was in the year 1842, a mighty undertake
ing for population. less than one-third it's pres
ent, to assume work and debt SO enormous.
But the citizens had full faith in the future of
their metropolis. Results have shown that
what was contemplated has been more than
realized. When the reservoir on the line of
Eighteenth street was constructed, it was
thought sufficiently capacious to supply the
city for the next century Within third of
that time, however, it was found absolutely es-
sential to the health and progress of its inhabi-
tants that other and larger collecting as well as
distributing reservoirs should be built. Thus,
we have the costly and incompatible structure
Immediately north of the old parallelogram
covering an area nearly equal to one hundred
and five acres the average depth of which is
about thirty feet, and the reservoir now on the
eve of completion near the southerly end of
High Brldge-the whole receiving and collect
ing water sufficient to supply the island many
days i'll the event of the destruction of the via
duct which winds its way from the lake Croton
down to the receivers on Manhattan Island.
The success of the works for supplying this city
with pure, sweet water, has stimulated many
other town to follow its@example Indeed, a
town OF twenty-five or thirty thousand inhabit-
Al
dant without its water works-its receiving
and distributing reservoirs, its mains and its
branch pipes, is an exception to the rule
Thus, among the leading cities thus artifcially
supported we may name Chicago, San Francis
CO, Baltimore, Boston, Philadelphia, Portland,
Me, Brooklyn, Newark, Jersey City and Ho-
boken, aud fifty beside. To all these and many
Others, the blessing of fresh sweet water is so
common that it has ceased to be regarded in
any other light than an accommodation for
which consumers ought not to be thankful to
beneticent enterprise, engineering skill and
perseverance,, to, productive invention and to
well expended capital. Indeed, with most peo-
ple-who are too busy to reflect upon their
blessings that are SO desirable and so cheaply
brought to their DOORS and without which their
wealth would vanish, ''dssolve into air, thin
air and leave not wreck behind" it is accept
ed as of slight importance.
Let us for moment Contemplate the condi-
ton to which this great metropolis of the Wes-
IL
to put it back to the condition it was in ante
rior to the year 1842-when the wells and
pumps, and the Manhattan water works in
Chambers street, yielding about ten thousand
gallons per day, were in full activity:
In 1885 the inhabitants of New York num-
bered 270,06S. These, in that and previous
years found great difficulty in Supplying their
dwellings with sufficient water to meet Ordina-
ry requirements. In fact, the supply from all
sources does not average gallon daily per in
dIvIInal In no ,avt do tl,o
increased at the rate of ten thousand per year.
That is in, 1845, the peoples numbered 81, 223
1t was in the latter part ofsth term-in 1872
water was introduced from the Croton river.
In consequence of the presence of this ele
ment, so cheap and so accessible, new life was
impaired to the industrial interests of the city.
In 1855 there was population of 629, $40. In
other words, the inhabitants nearly doubled in
number-that is increased at the rate of near
ly $4,000 each year of the decade. The census
of 1870, taken under the authority of the ma
tional government gives the island of Manhat-
tan resident population OF, in round numbers,
one million.
This rapid increase we hold to be entirely due
to the Introduction of the Croton water. But
how do we treat the blessing? We waste thrice
that we consumed! We are prodigal of our wa
ter Because it is ever at our hands, we imag
inc that it is inexhaustble. We have no right
to waste it as we are daily, hourly, infinitely
doing. There must be an end to this some day.
Indeed, if we would continue to advance in
health wealth and increase in population, we
ought at once to devise some means by which
we may be enabled to assure ourselves in the
future as in the present. 1t is true river from
the interior of an adjoining county, whose estu-
airy is fully forty miles distant, has by indomi-
table energy and unparalleled engineering skill
beennade TO roll in greatvolumes beneath the
thoroughfares and evenenter our dwellings and
other structures and supply our shipping, but,
like other limited sources of supply, however
comparatively abundant it may appear, it is ex-
haustible. Let us look at the figures. Here
they are: From 1860 to 1870 the increase in the
consumption of water was 116a per cent, while
in population it was "a 3-10ths per cent. An
absolute waste, it may be written, of about 50
per cent. Double and treble the population and
calculate the increase of consumption in the
same ratio-it will not be fifty years before the
metropolis numbers three millions of souls
and not even volume of water equal to that of
the Hudson river at Troy, would be found sufi-
Gent to supply our wants and encourage our ex-
travagances. "a What. has, been, said of New
York may be applied with equal, force to the
city, of Brooklyn and other centres Of popula-
tion.-N. Y Trade Reporter. -'''i N'i'''
d, 1t is stated that Mr. Gladstone admires the
tone of the American note but is not so well
TllQ % ca1 wit tfo or,tav 70