St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-04-11
The WATER We DRINK.
Kilvington's investigations Lead to
Startling Revelations.
THE WATER NEEDS WASHING.
The Examinations Of Eminent Pathol0-
gists Of the Water From Various
Parts Of the City.

The quality, as we'll as the quantity,
of the water supplied in Minneapolis
through it's mains should be question
of apparent public importance. The
paradoXical situation of a city
which in summer expends thou
sands of dollars for sprinkling
the dust upon it's streets, but which al
lows it's business thoroughfares to be
blockaded with snow and ice to the
danger of life and limb in winter, to say
nothing of inconvenience and annoy
ance to public travel, is manifested In
the treatment which Health Officer
Kilvington's report was accorded at
the special session of the council.
The winter cholera and other kindred
diseases have prevailed to an extent
which occasioned alarm. The fact that
the intake pipe was broken off,
and that the refuse from brew
cries, soap factories. paper mills,
sewerage from Nicollet island, the
union depot, city market, etc.,
emptied into the very mouth OF
the principal water supply have had no
effect upon the aldermanic minds.
whose interests seem to be largely CEN
tered in streets, grades and additions"
However, the health officer was finally
authorized to find out the cause of the
prevailing disease" and the intestinal
contents of a number OF victims
were, shipped East for examination
by Psychologists. incidentally, the re-
port of the health officer, which in
cludes the results of the analysis OF the
water, presents the same startling facts.
L. Michael Pruden, one of the most
prominent pathologists of the country,
and Prof. Leeds, of Stevens Institute,
Hoboken, n. j., an eminent chemist,
have sent exhaustive reports. That OF
Prof. Pruden is the more interesting.
The samples were from the West side
pumping station, the East side pumping
station, from the hydrant at ZIG Nicol-
let avenue, from well at 210 Plymouth
avenue north, from we'll at 400 Sew
enth street south, from well at 1913
Eighth avenue northeast. and were
kept cold in transit, the analysis
being made by Koch's method,
the volume of water used being
reduced to the unit of volume, which Is
one cubic centimeter, which is little less
than One-third of teaspoonful.
The sample of river water from the
West side station showed the bacteria
to be $50; from water taken from the
East side, 1924; from the hydrant at
216 NicOllet avenue, IL, 1907; from well at
210 Plymouth avenue, 472; from we'll
at 400 Seventh street south, 4,436;
from well, 1928 Eighth avenue northeast,
15.4S5. The professor says: almost
all natural waters contain some living
bacteria. and careful study of large
numbers of waters in this country and
ant.f- of hnr lnd RI
belief that under the conditions which
general, water in which there is no
gross evidence of sewage pollution,
containg more than from so to $50 living
bacteria to one cubic centimeter,
should not be used for household or
drinking purposes without liberation.
The average of bacteria to cubic CEN
timeter in your river water, as judged
by the three samples sent me-tWelve
in all-is 7,472. That is to say, in COM
mon terms, with every teaspoOnful of
average river water which the citizen
drinks he takes into his body
nearly 10000 living bacteria. No doubt
a large part of these are harmless, but
the possibilities are equally in favor of
some of them being disease-producing
forms. The specimen from the West
side pumping station is best, but it is
certainly not up to any reasonable re-
quirement, and the chemical eXami-
nation shows very bad condition OF af-
fairs. Why the sample from the East
side should be so much worse than
the other, l do not know, but
that the sample of river water
should show more bacteria than we find
in samples from the intakes is not sur
prising, since experience has shown that
sometimes there is an increase in the
number in the pipes or reservoirs from
spontaneous multiplication of bacteria.
As to the water from the wells,
the large number and variety in
species which the samples from 400
Seventh street south and 1913 Eighth
avenue northeast contained, show that
at the time of collection the water was
totally unfit for use. The bacteria in
the water from the well at 2l0 Plymouth
avenue north, while not so greatly eX-
ceeding the allowable limit in numbers,
are of such varied species that the
existence of pollution from some
sources is highly probable. 1t
will be seen that so far as | can judge
from the samples. and knowing but
little of the possibilities in any particu
lar case, the water supply seems to be
thoroughly bad.''
The chemical analyses have been
made entirely independent of Prof.
Prudden by Prof. Leeds in an adjoin-
ing town, and hissconclusiOns arrived at
are on an entirely different basis.
The West side pumping station
water is pronounced ''impure,"
the East side station water
as "very impure" the water from by
drant at 2l6 Nicollet as very impure;;''
and of the wells, the water from 21O
Plymouth avenue is polluted" and
the others are of ''good quality"
In his conclusions Prof. Prudden
states that three distinct forms of dis
ease may be transmitted or induced
typhoid fever, Asiatic cholera and the
larger class of gaStrO-inteStinal diseases
of which the so-called winter cholera is
one, and he considers that the very bad
condition of the water is an ample ex-
PLANTATION of the origin of the latter dis
ease.
DISTRICT COURT BRIEFS.