Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-03-24
CLEAR WATER.
SHALL III BE SUBSTITUTED FOR
SLICKENS
Argument Upon the Subject Yester.
day by Judge Deason Before
the City Trustees.


and Mining Company, appeared and mad,
an argument in favor of the city accepting
the proposition of that company to furniSl
the city with clear water. The purpose o
the argument was to convince of the neces
sity or desirability of such change in oul
present water supply Judge benson ar
gued the matter quite at length. the follow
ing being synopsis of his speech
The Amador Canal and Mining Company pro
poses to supply the city OF Sacramento with
pure, clear, fresh and wholesome water from
the h"adwaters of the Moquelumne river and
the Blue Lakes of Alpine county. the supply tC
be equal to the amount pumped in the yeal
1884, and 10 be increased as required, and to b(
delivered into the city mains under a regular
steady, gravitation pressure which will at al
times, day and night be equal to or greater thar
| the best or highest fire pressure attainable by
| the present works.
The company proposes to take the entire risl
of the success OF the scheme, and Will not ash
| the city for single dollar until the works shall
| have been in successful operation long enough
| to fully establish their efficiency: and then the
| city viii only be required to pay "a monthly OF
| quarterly amount, as may be agreed, for The
| water which has been delivered. and for which
the city will have collected the water rates from
| the consumers.
| No increase of debt and no taxation will result
| from this contract. The city will retain the alb
| Sulute control and management of the who'll,
| water business, and will establish and collect
such rates for the use of water py the consumers
| as the Board of Trustees may think proper.
The company will keep the works outside OF
| the city in repair pay all expenses of u con.
tiuual supply of pure, clear water, under the
pressure named, and take all risk and pay all
costs and damages for any possible failure. The
contract may be made for term of years-say
ten or tWenty-with the privilege on the part OF
the city of renewing for such time as she may
desire.
These are the most important features oe the
contract proposed, but there are many matters
of minor detail that would necessarily enter
into the terms of the contract, and all the com.
pany wants is a fair and reasonable agreement
plain and simple, so that no misunderstanding
can arise, and one that will be carried out i'll
good faith.
What we propose is, in short, 70 put clear
pure and wholesome water into the city mains
under grayitatlon pressure >which will give
much greater force than that now enjoyed, and
which will be regular and constant, in place OF
the muddy and unwholesome stuff now being
pumped from the river by the city machinery.
That this company is acting in entire good
faith may be seen from the fact that it must
spend about halt million dollars. and fully
comply with all its propositions before il can
demand anything from the city. The company
takes all the risk and the city gets the adj
vantage of the proposed scheme and only pays
for good, pure water after il has been con
sumed and after the consumers have paid the
city for it.
We may assume that all persons would prefer
clear, bright mountain wster to that which We
now have. and it would seem to be a waste OF
time TO argue that the clean article is better
than the dirty. but it may not be out of place TO
mention Il few of the many important adYan-
tages attaching to clear and pure water:
First-The flow would be better, and the pipes
would not be obstructed and stopped by sedi-
mcntary deposits
Second-We would save many thousands of
dollars per year by doing away with filters and
settling tanks, and save much in the way of
good temper by being rid of the many annoy
ances attendant upon the use of dirty water.
Third-We would have clean, bright water for
drinking and in which to bathe aud with which
to wash our clothing.
Fonrth-For all other purposes such as the
washing of carriages, of porches, walks win
dows, and even washing the dust and cobwcbs
from the outside of our houses, we would find
clear water under IL high pressure, available,
while for such uses the present muddy article
is either unavailable or very ineonvenient.
Fifth-We would be able to have fountains in
our yards, and to sprinkle our flowers and orna-
mental shrubbery. and leave the same Clean
fresh and free from the dirty mud spots that
result from the use of the river water
SiXth-Ne would save much money and great
annoyance from the fact that bibs and faucets
would last very much longer with the use of
clear water than with the gritty compound
which now wears them out
Seyeath-Clear water with a regular and
steady pressure. would be valuable as Il motive
Il
creased revenue from the sale OF water for me-
chanieai and other purposes where steam is
now used. The power at the same time being
much cheaper aud much more convenient to
those using it, and entirely free from the danger
attending the use OF steam boilers.
Eighth-The advantages to accrue TO the city
by reason of having Il constant and heavy graY-
itation pressure, with en- abundant supply of
water all over the city, day and night as relates
to the question of the eXtiBguiShment Of fires
and as affecting the rates of insurance, is some
thing beyond calculation. 1t is well known
that with our present muddy water our pines
are constantly choked and partially filed up
with mud and sediment, thereby diminishing
the pressure and impeding the flow of water
While with clear water We could always have
the advantage OF the full amount of the hY-
draulic pressure, aud a plug with 4 hose at
tached would at any time, day or night, furnish
a ready stream of water quite sufficient TO sup
ply the best steam fire engine in the city.
Niuth-The city would gain incalculable in
reputation abroad and by the favorable impress
sion made upon visitors and strangers. In fact.
with our present water supply it is only very
strong Stomached person, or one with exceeding
bad taste who can come here f0rthe first time and
look at or venture to take drink of our water
aad not go away with Il thorough disgust. hat
the prosperity, progress and growth of our city
have suffered to the extent of some millions OF
dollars by reason OF the offensive-lOoking water
with which every visitor must come in contact
there can be little doubt. In fact, the first thing
we hear from visitors when they arrive and the
glad to avoid the vile stuff we call water Even
this consideration alone, if there were nothing
else involved, should command our careful at
tention, and would be amply sufficient to war
rant us in making change. And, might add
it would be i'll the interest of morality, and re-
lieve our con- ciences from the great strain con-
stantly experienced i'll telling strangers that our
river water is good and wholesome, when we
know it is not.
Tenth-And last, but by no means least con-
siderations for the public health call most loud
ln.a naItf iln
the substitution i'll its place of pure. sparkling,
fresh water. For years we have been deceiving
ourselves by trying to believe, or pretending to
believe that the water which we pump from the
Sacramento river and use for all domestic pur-
poses is good, wholesome water and we fre.
queutly invoke exploded scientific hereSies and
antiquated fallacies to support cur pretended
belief The fact is, that the Sacramento river
water never was and never could have been
very good. except, perhaps, during portion of
the year; and as the country has become more
populous, the water has grown gradually but
rapidly worse, The theory somewhat prevalent
that river water purities ITSELF has by scientific
experiment and investigation. been proven a
snare and delusiOn. Let scientific men who have
devoted their attention to such matters speak
upon this important question. State Engineer
Hail. i'll 1883, made a report to the Board of TTus-
tees of the Stockton Insane Asylum on the sew
age question in California. In that report, ut
page 9 hr. Hall says:
Some apparent cases of self-purification of
streams were shown to be delusive the waters
were clarified and deodouZed, but not purified
either of their organic impurities or inorganic
elements not to be desired in potable waters.
- 1t is now known that a general thing,
waters polluted by the organic matter of sewage
do not purify themselves within any limited
space of time or distance Of flow, as has been
supposed, and i'll no material degree by the sole
action of the oxygen contained in the water or
OF the air above It,
% 1t is certain that alleged eases of selfpurifi-
cation are only apparent to the eye aud sense OF
smell, and are not real and it is contcnded that
ter have the noxiOus appearance and smell, and
thus carry with them warning OF their charae-
ter, than be tempting to the eye or lulling i'll
effect.
g 1t is explained that the action OF selfpurii-
cation of rivers of organic matter, found 10 take
place in some cases, is due TO the admixture
from tributary streams or springs along their
substances (such as ferric oxide, copper, and al
lumina) in solution, or to the action of certain
clays the mineral constituent of certain clays,
which compose their bed or banks and hence
that such instances of seltpurifcation are due to
peculiar circumstances. which, being local and
not generally distributed, establish the rule as
against selfpuriiication at all.
= 1t is understood that the action of the soil of
the banks or bed of stream in purifying its
waters of organic matter after q while ceases
and that in the mean time the soil itself has he
come foul and poisoned to degree that its effect
upon the water, were it really purified above
would be to fe-impart noXious organic matter
to 1t in considerable degree
consequent upon the rapid deterioration in
quality of river waters i'll England, and upon the
growing opposition to the mingling of sewage
with them, IN 1860, by authority of law Royal
commission was appointed TO inquire into the
subject.