The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1872-05-25

The BALTIMORE WATER SUPPLY The Balti-
more Gazette is somewhat agitated the city s
water supply, and in its issue of 22d instant
says, editorially:
ION the day after the annual visit of the Wa
ter Board to Lake Roland, certain statements
were put forth in relation to the water supply
which call for some comment. If those state
ments emanated from the Commissioners, they
are certainly erroneous, and if from subordinate
officers whose special duty it is to acquaint them
selves with the facts of the case they show Ia
mentable degree of ignorance. In the first place
it is stated that the level of the water at the lake
is but one inch and three quarters below the
combing of the same, and is, therefore, but little
if any, lower than it usually is at this season of
the year. In the next place it is asserted that
there is no sensible diminutiou in the quantity
of water flowing into the Lake. We beg leave
TO say that neither of these assertions are correct
If the season had been an ordinary one, the wa
ter of the Lake would have been flowing over
the dam at this time, in considerable volume;
for il is well known that the maximum quantity
of water coming into the lake is derived from the
melting of the SHOWS and the subsequent spring
rains. When these cease the volume of water
is still maintained TO a considerable extent, from
the abundant flow Of the natural springs that
serve, primarily, as feeders to the lake. The
supply from these sources rarely show any Sc
it commences to fall off until the minimum is
reached, in July and August, and no sensible
improvement is again observable until the Sep
TENDER rains set in. We have thus traced the
history OF our water supply, in order to make
clearer what we now proceed to say.
''It is the experience of the Oldest residents
along the line of Jones' Falls and Roland's Run
that they have never suffered so seriously from
the want of water as they have done throughout
the present season. and as they do now. There
is scarcely farm between Lake Roland and
Cockeysville On which the wells have not been dry
since January last. The same complaint is made
along the line of Jones' Falls TO its source this
side Of 0wings Mills Of the effects of the
drought outside of these limits we say nothing.
We are simply speaking of the watershed, within
whose area lie the springs and tributaries that
supply Lake Roland. Leaving the innumerable
dry wells out Of the question, and exemoing
only the present condition Of the natural springs
it is the universal testimony that, whilst many
have gone wholly dry, the strongest not
yielding more than the quantity they usually
furnish at this season of the year. If then, these
springs, which are sources of the water of the
lake, are so low as to afford but small part of
their ordinary supply, how is it possible that the
quantity of water flowing into the lake can be
about the same as usual Assuming that gener-
ally in the spring of the year the maximum daily
supply of water emptied into the lake is from
fifteen to seventeen millions of gallons and the
minimum in summer some eight millions OF gal
Ions, we are quite certain that at this time, and
contrary 10 what is usually the case, the lake is
receiving but little over the minimum of supply
II then the daily consumption be, as the Water
Commissioners state, from fourteen to fifteen
millions of gallons, we must either be drawing
heavily upon the storage reservoirs, or there must
be gross error in their estimate"