Savannah morning news., 1886-06-17
ABOUT ARrEsIAN WELLS.
An Interesting Question Fairly and
Fully Presented.


"Let we'll alone. ."-OLD PRovERB.
Hardly one of our frequent freshets
sweeps down the Savannah river, tinging
! it's stream with the co>Srs OF every varie-
| ty or swamp mud between this city and
Augusta, that tie Savannah mind Is not
seized with desire to secure an unfail.
ing supply OF pure, clear and wholesome
water, good enough to discourage the at
/ fractions of the foaming beer or penetra-
ting Bourbon, aud to render the bath a
! dream OF joy and beauty. This yearn-
\ ing ambition has suggested TO some Of
| our citizens the eXpedencv of tapping
! the deep cellars of mother earth, and Of
| drawing from artesian sources the deslra-
bic element through as mauy faucets as
may be found requisite. The great depth
at which these hidden reservoirs lie con-
cealed raises the presumption, or rather
to some minds, the absolute certainty
that such water must be absolutely free
from all the detects which vitiate super
fetal wells, and that in Its rock-bound
receptacle no swamp mud can find a con-
genial resting place. Before committing
ourselves, however, to this artesan en-
terprise, every advantage and every OBJ
stacle should be made the subject of
serious discussion and research, lest we
may find out too late that we have been
led away by the delusve flame OF an lgnis
fatuus. Granting that there Will be no
difficulty in finding a water bearing
stratum under our city, it is by no means
certain that the water will be all that may
be desired. 1t not infreaupntly happens
that IN It's long suoterranean transit
from it's sources among the
far away hills and mountains the
water becomes impregnated with salts of
~, "A,
phurous properties, which render it unpal-
atable. Nor must we fail to remember
the expense whicn accompanies the bor-
ing of these wells, which, should the
water turn out to he unfit for use, the ex-
penditure is a dead loss, so much money
practically thrown away. All these
chances should be looked to. Then again,
instances have not been wanting where
these wells have suddenly ceased to flow,
and no amount of persuasion could in
duce them to lay aside the strike and re-
sumo operations. Such fancy as this
would result in dead loss, as much as
though the well had never flowed at all.
'Be sure you're right, and then go
ahead" was the motto of the illustrious
Crockett, and it applies to artesian wells
as we'll as to all other undertakings.
There is no one who does not admit that
the ordinary well water of Savannah is
drinking purposes. When l say ''no one"
lam not ignorant OF the fact that there
are some Of ''the oldest inhabitants' who
maintain the excellence of we'll water,
simply because they have been drinking
it from infancy and are still alive. This
proves nothing; it does not follow that
their health would not have been better if
they had used a more wholesome bever-
age. Besides, who can tell how much the
poison of Savannah well water was, In
their case, neutralized by the infusion of
Savannah whisky? If we are to believe
our school books, we are told that Mithri-
dates, King of POntus, so habltuated him
selftO the use OfpOisOns that he could drink
them with impunity. This may explain
how it is that the time-hOnored citizens
of Savannah who have drunk it's well wa
ter are still alive. But those who have
given careful examination to this water
have not scrupled to declare that it's inter-
mixture with surface DRAWINGS. apart
from its nastiness, has reduced 1t to almost
a poison. Are We sure that this superb
cial drainage will not affect our contem-
plated artesian wells?
The New York Times, in an article on
the purity of water, has the following:
''1he geological formation Of Nanhat-
tan Island is of such a character that
sewage and other Objectionable surface
accumulations make their way downward
even to the sources from which the deepest
artesian wells take their supply. Even
at the depth of 1000 feet the water is cop-
taminated. 1t is only when water enters
the ground at a long distance from the
| point of supply that there is any certainty
of freedom from contamination"
How many artesian wells will be re-
quired to supply Savannah with the five
! to five and half millions of gallons of
water which she now daily demands?
| One well. now completed. is reported to
| yield 154. 600 gallons per diem. Thirty-siX
such wells would yield 5,544,0 gallons,
all Of which must be collected into one
reservoir. il the present system of dis
tribution IS to be continued.
In resort to artesian wells there are
difficulties to be encountered and ex-
! penses TO be Incurred which may well bid
us pause and induce us to adopt any
other resource, such as rivers, streams.
lakes, etc, whenever we can do so with
due regard to comfort and health.
The analysis of one gallon of clear Sa-
vannah river water, according to DR..
James r. Chiffon, Of New York, is as
follows:
Chloride Of sodium m..................-....2 43I
Chloride OF calcium NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. $40
Chloride OF magnesium. um...........-...-.... .442
Carbonate OF lime l.4Sl
Carbonate Of magnesia ................... .342
Sulphate OF lime me........................ .2s0
Sulphate Of soda 400
Sulphate of magnesia ''''''.'''...''''.' $50
Silica, organic matter, C tc. ............... .0i4
Grains .................................G G.82o
The sedimentary matter from five gal
Ions of the turbid water weighed .02l
grains. 1t consisted principally Of:
oiitOd ''--'''.'. -''-''-.'. .'.......--..
Alumina................ Observation-Disclosures.
Carbonate OF lime aud magnesia ....... .O2l
lNIoAiuc VI Hou .s..s. -.....
Organic matter. vegetable and animal
BY examination and comperisOn with
the water OF the other cities as well as by
experience, we must come To the cOnclu.
sion that our city is peculiarly fortunate
in its river as to the quality, quantity and
proximity Of the water. In fact the main,
II not the only objection, is to be found in
the revolving tint OF the water during the
prevalence OF freshet A good system
of filtration will leave nothing TO be de-