The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1881-06-02
Streams and Their Relation to Health

Streams and Their Relation to Health.
One of the most common subjects of
discussion in England is that of the
pollution of rivers and streams by
sewage. Perhaps the most important
of the many health reports made to
Parliament is upon this theme. 1t is
very natural and proper that it should
be. Every land has crowded popula-
ton. The water carriage system largo
ly prevails in most of its cities. In adj
dition to the great bulk of liquid sew
age discharged from households, the
various liquids from manufactures
have to be poured into the same
stream Some of these not only i'm
part taste, but kill fishes and plants.
Thus the pollution of many streams
has entirely untitled them for drinking
water purposes, at the same time that
it interferes with Natures mode of dis
posaI of much organic matter. 1t is
claimed by many that, independent of
any need of use for water-supply, such
pollution of the rivers is unhealthy and
will lead to bad condition of the air.
Attention has more recently been at
tracted to the precipitation of sewage
which takes place in many of the
| streams. When streams of filth thus
| go out into the rivers, the theory was
that the currents fioated it out into the
sea, or that it became oxidized or
changed, SO as to do no harm; but ex-
animation shows that very much of
.his sewage settles to the bottom, and
there, unchanged, forms a material
| of deposit. In the wreck of
the Princess Alice, a few miles
down the Thames, it was claimed
that many perished from the sewer
| deposits, rather than from drowning.
| Perhaps even this subsidence and
| mingling with sand and comparative
permanence of deposit secures a great
| er purity to the water. 1t is quite GER
tain that the present tendency of
thought and opinion is to claim that
sewage should be disposed of by
some other means than that of emptying
into streams, and that these should be
| preserved for palatable water. We
think the question is one to be decided
by locality and by other considerations
rather than by general law. There
are some streams which flow over such
rocky beds and through soils so free
from organic matter that q large
amount of sewage can be introduced
into them without harm, because it is
quickly disposed of bv oxidation, by
subsistence, etc. Where fish are abun-
dant, much of it is disposed Of, and the
introduction of fish into streams is ad-
vocated with this view. Plant-life on
the streams or on its borders also dis
poses of some. Much depends, too,
upon the situation of cities. If the
stream is one thickly populated at vari-
Gus points the use of it for sewage is
more questionable. A city situated
very near to tide-water may use a
stream, where larger cities higher up
in its course would pollute it too much.
The Passaic River is an example of a
stream the use of which for sewage is
very questionable, if it is at all to be
many cities and factories along its
course, and its flow and outfall are not
such as to favor its double use.
We think the questions which are
now wisely under deliberation for many
of our cities are Just these: Can our
rivers be used both for water-supply
and for delivery of sewage? Ii it can
not be used for both, for which should
it be used? There are some cities on
some rivers so situated in reference to
fall and outfall, and to other cities, that
it is entirely feasible to obtain water
supply above and an outfall for sewage
below. There are some cities so situ-
ated with reference to each other on
the same stream that it is quite certain
that the sewage of the upper one will
be so disposed of before it reaches the
lower one as in no wise to endanger its
water supply. There are others in
which a choice must be made, and in
which it must be decided whether wa
ter-supply or use for sewage shall have
the preference. This is very largely a
question of economy. The handling oi
sewage is so expensive, if it is to be
gotten rid of by artificial means, that
we believe most of our cities will, il
need be, seek their water-supply from
other sources, and use the rivers for
natural drainage, for storm and surface
water, and for disposal of sewage. DIR.
Fox, in his work on the Sanitary Ex-
animation of Water, Air and Food" as
source of drinking water supply,
places last the "water of streams
and rivulets, the majority of
which contain more or less filth,
and in times of heavy rains soils and
mineral debris of every description"
1t is now becoming quite common for
water in our cities to have during the
summer season such unpleasant taste
and smell from plant-life, or from other
causes, as to make itsuse Objectionable.
Some of this is not deleterious to health;
but the taste and smell show how cas-
lily such growth finds its way into the
streams and impTegnates the water.
With modern methods of obtaining wa
ter from water-bearing strata. or OF
storing it in cisterns, we believe it will
be found oftener feasible to depend for
water-supply on other sources than
upon the rivers; but the especial point
which we wish to emphasize is that this
question must not be decided, as the
theologians would say, ION these,
while there are general considerations.
Each case in hand has its factors, and
must be decided by itself. Each city,
in determining the question. should call
to its aid competent engineers and san
itarians, and should adopt its plans on
the basis of local considerations The
rapid growth of our cities and their
diversity of population make it imper-
ative that the securement of a pure
water-supply and the complete dis
posal of all sewage should be planned
and executed in such way as shall not
at all depend either on theory or on pri-
vate methods.-M Y. Independent.
The Horse in the Garret.