The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1890-08-23
PAssAIC SEWAGE PROBLEM.

~
Common Sense and the Law at yari-
ance I'm Regard to Tide Water.
The controversy between Newark and
Passaic regarding the discharge of the
l~atter's sewage into the Passaic river is OF
much interest to all who have to do with
the problems of water supply or sewage
disposal as related to fresh water navi-
gable tidal streams.
The reasons for the legal distinction, as
laid down by the Chancellor, between
the rights of riparian owners on navi-
gable tidal and navigable non-tidal
streams are not very obvious to the lay
mind, Ia the former case the riparian
owner is said to have no special
right in the stream except the con
his Riparian neighbor further NJ the
river where the tide has ceased to flow,
but where vessels still a come, owns the
land under water to the middle of the
stream, n can make any use of the
water That will not interfere with its. use
by others or the right of navigation. The
most probable explanation that presents
itself Is that the lawmakers may have as
sumed that tidal water must be salt, and,
therefore. nit for use, and that the fall
of the tidal portion of a river was neces-
sarily too slight to afford any power, and,
therefore. did not confer upon riparian
owners OF tidal streams a right that
seemed to have no value.
Salt water is, however, often used for
street sprinkling, for which purpose it is
better than fresh. and tide mills are
not uncommon. If any distinction Is to
be made between the rights of
riparian owners on the banks of the
same stream, it would certainly seem to
be more reasonable to let that distinction
ha n afNrvnfnO 1 hry fh ~ n \, nfo,, of ALL IA
jacent water rather than by its tidal
change of level. Such a rule applied to
the present case would give the city of
Newark a standing in court, for the lack
of which she seems just now to be suffer
ing a serious injustice.
AS to the effect Of tidal action in delay
ing the downward flow of sewage, Mr..
Wurtz would seem to be seriously astray
in his conclusions, since, as the effect of
the natural current of the river is to
make the ebb flow longer than the flood,
and the effect of the ebb is to accelerate
the natural flow of the river. it
would follow that the effect OF the tide is
to bring down the greater portion of the
daily discharge of sewage at a rate more
rapid than that of the natural current,
instead of obliging the greeter part of it
to traverse a much greater distance be-
fore reaching a given point below, as Mr..
Wurtz believes will be the case. 1t must
be noted, that greater distance does not
necessarily imply greater time, which is
the essential thing in the aerial oxidation
of which Mr.. Wurtz speaks.
Some instructive figures rs to the effect
of the use of the Passaic River water on
public health are to be found In an edi-
torial in our issue of June 18, 1887, by
which it appears that for the seven years
ending In 1881, in which Jersey City and
Hoboken were both supplied with Passaic
River water, the total death rate of Ho-
boken exceeded hat of Jersey City oy
seven per cent, and the death rate from
zymotic diseases (for 1880 and 1881 ex-
ceeded that of Jersey City by twenty-five
per cent, while from 1882 to 1886 inclu-
sive. after Hoboken had changed her
source of water supply to the Hackensack
River, the conditions were reversed, and
the total death rate of Hoboken was about
one and one-third per cent. less than that
of Jersey City, while that for zymotic dis
eases was nine per cent. less. 1t is easy
from these figures to conclude that the
one Newark can avail herself Of the
proposed new water supply the less sick
ness and death she will have.
If Passaic were wise she would think
twice before infilcting her sewage on her
downstream neighbor, even If the courts
allow her to do so, since just above her is
the large city of Paterson, and when all
her sewage comes to be poured into the
river dSShlC GILL ll6he HO T6IlOHSlTaQG6,
and her beautiful stream will in course
of time become practically an open sewer,
to be purified at last, as has had to be done
in similar cases in England, by the enforc-
ed construction of disposal works, whose
cost will be much greater than if they
had been planned for in the first place. 1t
pays to be ~neighborly even for cities
Engineering and Budding Record and
Sanitary Engineer.
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She feels herself a burden when a blessing she
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And longs for death to bring her release from
misery.
IT these poor, discouraged women who
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ON who is still healthy ought to be
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Cleanse the liver, stomach, bowels and
whole system by using DR.. Pierce's
Pellets.