Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1890-11-27
Written for the NoRrHwEsr,l ]
WATER. -

persons These Two 1unua-
mental principles being. admitted, the |
question is then pertinent, Have we a |
supply ofpure health-giving water In
First: the well water.-CertainIy no
one would expect to get supply Of
good water, from shallow wells that
are dug in soil that has been loaded
with all manner of the most dangerous
filth, for the last fifty years. That the
water Is clean, and neither tastes nor
smells badly, is no proof that it is not
contaminated with filth. If o chem
icaI analysis proves that any particular
we'll Is not contaminated, it does not
prove that any other well is safe. 1t isl
safe to assume that every shallow well
in town of'five hundred or more in
habitants, is unsafe to drink, on ac-
count of itsf impurities.
Second: rain water.--If the rain wat
er is caught after twelve hours rain and
in the middle of large uninhabited
prairie, it may be supposed to be toler-
ably pure. But when caught from the
roof Of d building in a thickly settled
town, 1t will beIhardly safe to accept it
as pure, without examination, The
roofs of buildings are covered with the
dust of the streets, which Is filled with
ali manner of disease germs. This is
mixed with the dropplngs of birds, de-
caying leaves,etc., which does not add
to its aesthetic purity, nor to its health
fulness. Here some one remarks that
he filters all his water through char
coal and knows the water to be pure.
Perhaps that is true, when only one
paiIful has passed through new filter,
the impurities, at least the solid por-
tion of them are strained out, and left
in the charcoal, while the liquid portion
has gone through. 9 After one hundred
pailfuls have passed through that filter,
what may be supposed to be the state
of that filter? The charcoal of the fl
tercontains ell th0solid filth that was
too large to 60 through, all the remain
der went through. Filters are there
fore not q certain security. Rain water
contains all the dust, acids and ammon-
in WithSwhich the air Is filled. In the
heart Of the city of Cincinnati, some
rain water was caught from high,
clean, tin roof after heavy fall Of rain
for IS hours. 1t would be reasonable to
suppose that the air and the roof had
been washed as thoroughly as possible.
The water was analyzed by chemist
and found to contain four times as
much Albumenoid Ammonia, (which
arises from decomposing filth) as is
considered safe. Doubtless there would
not be quite SO much in this place, un-
der the same circumstances, but what
assurance have you that 1t is pure with
in the limits of safety? -
But surprising that the rain water
thatgoes into the cistern is as pure as it
is possible to be, what is the average
condition of the cisternsS IF they are
built of wood they very soon become
dangerous, from the deeaying of the
wood or from swelling, and shrinking,
and sooner or later leaking. When
they are full the leakage is outwards,
but when partially empty, the leakage
is from the filth-saturated soil, and
dangerous.
Cisterns built of hard burned brick
and thoroughly pIastered with the best
: quality of cement are the best. They
will need to be watched, as leaky
cistern is unsafe. DR.. Smart, in inves-
/. tigating the domestic water supply of
Memphis, examined 500 underground
cisterns: of them 169 were found sound,
I73 doubtful, and 100 leaky. Cisterns
should be frequently cleaned out and
wiped dry, if after three days they are
still dry, they may be considered safe.
Rain water when pure is certainly de-
sirable for cooking and washing, but
the taste is agreeable to butfew. What
then can wedo? We know the we'll wat.
er is unsafe and the rain water is but
e. Mo ok Bon
pure If possible, but impure water il
better than no water at all.
Two years ago the citizens voted on
the question, whether waterworks were
needed in Napoleon. A respectable
majority voted yes. A few months lat
er the question was again voted on and
carried. A contract was entered into
with firm to construct the water.
works, taking the water from the Maui
NEE. Fortunately the contractors fail
ed, and the whole matter was dropped
Fortunately, because the Maumee Riv-
er drains a very large portion of North
western Ohio, and IS the cess pool into
which is emptied the sewerage of all
the towns on its banks and also the
banks of its innumerable tributaries,
large and small. It's surface is frequent
ly covered with oil and its volume is
largely tainted with the sewerage oi
Defiance and other towns, to which we
Z add largely as 1t passes US. Any one
I who will take the trouble to examine ii
! under good microscope in the last
months, will be cured of all desire to
drink 1t.
Wabash Ind. is supplied with pure
Gov I'D Snf OF a