The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1892-08-14
DO YOU DRINK WATER?
THEN rr roU REALLr ENJOY 1T,
And Live in Richmond and Drink Ihht
which Comes from the Old Canal You
VIII DO well Not 10 Read This.

In Thousands Of weekly medical journal.
conparauve statistics arc published, which
sbow that Richmond. Va, stands near the
top Of the list among the most unhealthy
cites in the Union. Both national and in
ternational SANITARY and medical journals
publlsh these reports, and Richmond Is IN
this way extensively advertised as a very
unhealthy city. These statistics are COM
piled from the reports sent to the Marine
Hospital Service BY the board Of health OF
the various cities, and are consequently TO
reliable.
The fact that Richmond makes such q
bad showing has been known Tor years 10
al. VINO have given the subject suIncleuD
study and an explanation of the cause or
ceuses has been diligently sought. The
Richmond Medical and Surgical Society
about twelve months ago bad the matter
OF our high death rate under confederation
and appointed committees % look into ana
report OF the probable cause or causes.
OUR DRnKIN0 wArEB.
Among the committees appointed was one
70 try aud ascertain II 80 was probable that
our drinking water was polluted, ana II 30
its influence upon the health OF the city;
The idea that such a thing was possible ulu
not originate with the committee. Ii was
well known that not a few whose opinion
rnerjted consideration had serious misgiy
iuos as 10 the purity of our drinking water,
and 20 the committee determined to inyesti-
cate the matter as fully as possible ana 10
ace Tor themselves the exact condition
of affairs. About this timo the health
and sanitary committee of the Chamber
of Commerce entered upon the WORK.
prompted. doubtless. by a knowledge OF the
III. az ia "
Using the city ~ very uniaYoraDle way
Hearing that committee from the itch
mond Medical and Surgical Society was al
ready at work conference and cooperation
Of tho two committees was requested. ne
conference resulted in q subdivision OF tie
work and the appointment OF a speclai COM
mittee with representatives, on IT from me
Richmond Medical and Surgical Society,
the health and sanitary committee OF the
Chamber of Commerce and the city Board
OF Health to look into and report to the
health committee of the Chamber Of Com
merce in regard 90 the possible pollution OF
the drinking water.
The INyFsIIGATING COMMITTEE.
Thereport Of the investigating committee
was presented % the health aud sanitary
committed OF the Chamber OF Commerce.
WAS adopted by that committee and by said
committee presented % the board of dlrec-
tors of the Chamber of Commerce, then the
report and recommendations oil its health
and sanitary committee was considered by
the board of directors of the Chamber OF
Commerce. The City Engineer Superintend-
cut Of Water Works. state Chemist and Mr..
Hugh Blair made.lengthy arguments against
adopting the report Is 10 tho pollution OF
our drinking water.
The City Engineer and Superintendent OF
Water Works had for weeks been active III
securing reDuttal testimony ~ u the I'M
purity od the water, and they ingeniOusly
presented an array OF engineering and san
itarv statistics, such as could be met only
by an expert in engineering and sanitary
science. and far beyond the scope OK Drs.
Shields and Taylor the only members OF
the committee present We Gould claim
70 know only the dreadful consequences If
q polluted drinking water, and that a water
source contaminated by barn-yards
privles and a surface drainage. such as we
found rendered 1t altogether probable that
our drinking water was polluted and o
source of disease. We admit that the in-
genious argument against the report would
probably have satisfied us had we not seen
and smelt the serious character OF the pol
luton. Although several members. OF the
board OF directors advocated the adoption
of the report OF the committee the result
was not surprising, and the report as 10 the
water was laid on the table. The report as
we know. was never presented 20 the Cham
Der of Commerce. and consequently was
never rejected by the Chamber of Com
merce as claimed by the superintendent of
Water Works IN his recent letter
SURPRISE
At a meeting of the directors of the Cham
Der of Commerce the committee realized for
the first time that It's report was objection
able 10 the City Engineer and Superinten-
dent of Water Works. The tone of their
opposition was a surprise, as by special in
VltatiOn both officers accompanied the com
mittee ia its tour of inspection. The SUI
perintendeut of Water Works was suisse
quently present by special invitation when
the committee met % formulate its
report. ] am sure 1t never oc-
CURED to the committee that the Superin-
tendent of Water could IN any conceivable
way distort its efforts to improve the sani-
tary condition of the city and thereby re-
move the impression az 10 its unhealthiness
into an indictment OF his or any ones adj
minlstratiOn. The committee was honest in
thinking its mission one of a much more
creditable character. hen the committee
found there was such opposition TO its re-
port it was thought best to call ia an arbiter
~ the person of some sanitary expert and
several prominent experts were written to
rs TO their terms.
This review of the work of the committee
IS called for % refute'- the charge implied
aud expressed. that the committee submitted
without due consideration highly cOI0red
sensational report, and it Is also due that
other inaccuracies ia the criticisms of the
committees report be noticed.
The superintendent of the City Water
Works claims that the amount of surface
drainage into the canal IS insignificant as to
quality and quantity A military map Of
the country shows that a drainage into the
canal for say ten miles above the pump
house Is about as follows From the pump
house west % drainage into Westham creek
Is strip draining one mile. the area south
~ the Westham road-this is perhaps one
and half miles long, the two Westham
creeks an area south of the Three-C Chop
road which measures roughly two and
hail miles wide and somewhat over two
miles IN the length of the river.
TUCKAHoE CREEK.
Tuckahoe creek appears 10 drain an area
OF fifty square miles. The whole area
draining into the canal above the pumD.
house Is probably about sixty square miles.
of which say SIX and one-half miles is indie
pendent of Iuckahoe creek Both City
Engineer and Superintendent of Water
Works contend that the water m the river
near the pump-hOuse is 20 purer than that
IN the canal, and the City Engineer informs
20 that the water was not taken direct from
the river as the original plans OF the Water
Works contemplated, and as he was
advised by board of health wears
ago that board. we think. Was
composed Of Drs. Grattan Cabeli Frank ID.
Cunningham aud William II TAYLOR for
the reason that the water at that point
opposite the pump-hOuse, is contaminated