The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-03-16
THE WATER CUES rIoN.
Capt. Samuel J. Whitesides' Plan 4
Increasing the Supply.

Capt. Samuel J. Whitesides' Plan for
Increasing the Supply.
Capt. S. J. Whitesides returned Satur-
day from New Orleans, where he has been
for several weeks experimenting TO increase
the flow OF the Artesian wells Of the Cres-
cent City Ice Manufacturing Company.
The company had three wells, giving a flow
Of sixty, seventy and eighty gallons per
minute respectively, but this was far from
sufficient water TO supply the demand.
Capt. Whitesides took hold OF the matter,
and in short while he had the wells giving
forth 2,0O0. 600 gallons daily.
Capt. Whitesides' method is 10 put q
curbing around the well and then dig down
to any depth desired and place pump at
the bottom to force the water up In New
Orleans be went down twenty-seven feet.
The sanitary board of New Orleans was
about to bore ten artesian wells while Capt.
Whitesides was in that city for the purpose
OF increasing the supply. The board had
two wells in operation already, and Capt.
Whitesides informed Capt. Elder, one OF the
members, that the boring of the additional
wells would be a useless undertaking.
as the two already flowing would give
ample water if his idea was adopted The
board visited the wells OF the Crescent Com
pany, and, after seing the wonderful results
achieved there, dropped the new well
scheme and is now remodeling the old ones,
as suggested by Capt. Whitesides.
In talking with a MORNING NEWS re.
porter last night on the subject of artesian
vsslts, Capt. Whitesides said it is a mistaken
Idea that the boring of new wells will pro-
duce any appreciable increase in the supply
OF water, as every well bored in the same
locality draws from its predecessors and
practically keeps the fow at standstill
"The Gorrie works." said he, "have a
six-inch we'll, which gives 100000 gallons
daily, with pump at only twenty feet be-
low the surface. This is as much as five
wells under the old system of pumping from
above would furnish. The first we'll bored
by the Gorrie company gave a flow of
twenty-five feet above the surface at the
start but this gradually decreased, aud the
b ring of new well did no good. Then l
began experimenting and was rewarded
with success. If l hadn't put pump be-
low the result would have been that there
would not have been sufficient water to
operate the works, while now there is a
superabundance The advantage of this sys-
tenn is that it produces a steady flow, with
out any diminuition
I'm regard to the city's artesian wells. the
boring of new ones will not help matters
any. There are now at the water works
more than enough to supply the city with
an unlimited quantity of water If they were
face. One well could be easily IN de to do
as much a five. A surface pump has not
the capacity OF raising water to greater
hight than twenty-seven feet, while the
pump the same distance below the surface
would increase the flow enormously, as it is
far easier TO force water up than to raise it.
'Slnce the city began boring artesian
wells the head has been reduced 30 feet
and no matter how many new wells are
tored at the water works the flow will re =
main almost as 1t is. The new wells necas-
sarily draw from the old ones, so it can be
seen at glance that the remedy for in
creasing the water supply lies in another
direction from that of sinki additional
wells.
The reason such a great flow has been
gotten up on Springfield is on account of is
lowness. 1t is at ten feet below the eleva-
ton of the water works tracts, aud if a
a number of wells were driven there those
tically destroyed, as the water would be at
tracted toward the wells on the low soil
Capt. Whitesides is proud of his discov-
cry, which, ne feels certain, is the only
solution Of the long discussed question of
increasing the flow of artesian wells The
New Orleans press speaks in high terms of
his great success in that city, and believes
that it will eventually lead to the adoption
OF arteSian water for general use instead of
that of the Mississippi river. Capt. White
sides has received a communication from
the water committee of council asking
for con erence, but he has not yet given
an answer.