The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1878-10-26
No Water in England ~ Drink.

Many American poets have sung the praise
of water, but we doubt if any one OF them ever
made more eloquent appeal in its favor than
the American who addressed n letter to con
temporary yesterday. He complains that he
| has been for month IN the United Kingdom
and though during that time he has been ire
qucntly deluged by rain, gazcd upon fountains
and lakes, and seen most elaborate machinery
for supplying water to cities, he has often
been put to sad straits in order to procure a
supply Of the abundant liquid for drinking
purposes. In America there is literally "wa-
ter water, everywhere" and the most thirsty
| Ancient Mariner could not say there was mot
Il drop to drink" Every railroad station and
car, hotel and office, is supplied with vessel
of iced water, and there are glasses at hand,
Here, however, it is too notorious a fact that
while there is no lack of opportunities OF pro.
curing wine, spirits, or beer, water Is a scarce
commodity. The American" says he asked
for water at the table in n Liverpool hotel on
! first landing, and the walters looked at him
and at each other as though he were an Asian.
tee or Il red Indian. He asked for water again
at Chester and it took three persons and 10
minutes time to get n drink. In Dublin for
six persons he had to ask again, and he was
served with pint and one glass for the half
dozen to drink from. In London 1t took him
six days to induce waiter to place unasked u
decanter and glasses on the table. In fact,
from his description, it would seem rs though
he went about like a traveller IN desert, de-
string and finding it not, until by his pertina-
city he had overcome the prejudice of an Eng
llsh servant that water is only fit to drink
when something Is mixed with it,
1t is quite possible to sympathize with the
views of the walters, and yet give freely of our
lCompasslOn to the American visitors. Water
is to them what beer is to the English NAVY
or the nip" to the Scotch laborer. He is nc.
customed to drink it largely at home, and he
does not want and ought not to be put to the
trouble of asking for it every time. But we
may be permitted to add that it is not the
American only who is Inconvenience by the
absence of a supply of drinking water in our
places Of public resort. English travellers
have the same bother in procuring for them
selves glass of natures own beverage The
railway refreshment rooms have been marked
ly deficient in this respect. A man could get
alcoholic drinks there at more or less reasOna-
bic prices; if he wanted tea or coffee, he would
be required to pay for it double the price of II
glass Of beer and poor stuff it would generally
prove to be; while if he desired water, he
would have to ask for it, and then receive, in
stead of n refreshing ice-cold beverage, a fluid
which was probably warm from long exposure
of the decanter to the sun. 1t would cost very
little to introduce into the inns and restaurants
the system used in the French cafes by which
the carat1es are placed on the table with their
contents, clear block of ice; but even if that
could not be done, there is no reason why
fresh water should not be supplied at every
reircshnent counter, and at the railway sta
tons The London and the Southwestern
and the Midland Railways have taken steps to
provide their passengers with water at the
stations, and it is time that other companies
followed their example. Hotels are very con
servaive in their habits; but when supply
of cool water may be obtained at every railway
station it will not be long before the hotels
will follow suit, and the Americans grievance
will have disappeared, to the greater comfort
of all Observation-Disclosures (Eng) Examiner.