Grand Rapids herald., 1893-02-25
WHAT DOYOU DRINK?
Diluted Contents Of Vaults or
Pure Water
Or. VAUGHAN TELLS TRUTHS
a Lecture Full Ut Procticai Know ledge
Ga Drinking Wsser--fyrhoid Fever
- Wer.e Than Cholera

pr. Vanghn's lecture on drinking
water drew a large audience IN the
Fountain street haptlst church last
neHhi. II WAS full Il practieal hints m
reganl 10 the prevention Il typhoid fever
ami cholera. DIR. Vaughn showed The
dagger VI using a eonsaminated supply
Of water. and while he did not state posi-
lively that the Grand river Is polluted
by the sewerage ~ Jackson and Lansing.
he hinted that the matter - worthy 81
consideration He classified water intocis-
tern. surface and subterranean. He SAID
the purity IL cisfern water depends on
the condition of the air. the roof and the
receptacle. Considerable impurity could
he collected from the air The condition
IL the roof Is IL importance. The best
roof would be q slate or metallic roof.
The conductor through which cistern
water runs should he ~ arranged that
the first wafer collected could be di-
vested from the cistern. The construe-
tion Of the cistern should bo carefully
looked after. The sides should be built
90 that il can be plastered on the inside
as well as the outside, and the bottom of
the cistern should be plsstered with
Portland cement. Water collected IN
such receptacle is the safest TO use.
Mostly Surface Water.
Surface water he said. would be
affected by the air, the ground over
which il runs and the soil through which
it soais. Water is surface water un-
less taken from below an imperyious
geological formation. The water supply
II most cities is surface water, and the
great danger FROM which is its liability
TO contamination by man."
He said Duluth has one OF the purest
water supplies in The world. yet l.1oo
cases OF typhoid fever occurred IN Du-
luih owing To the water being contain
mated by the sewage from the city. De
troit has fairly good supply Of water.
but il might be contaminated So much
by the sewage from Detroit as 10 make
il dangerous for use for cities below
Detroit.
Subterranean water. he said. is water
taken from beneath an imberyious geolo-
gicai formation. He had not heard OF a
sufficient supply Of sub,erranean water
being found TO supply any city. Waters
taken from wells to supply cities are
surface waters
The history of Asiatic cholera. he
said, showed il to be not contagious
disease. but one spread by contaminated
drinking water. In the east il was
shown that Asiatic cholera broke out
after some great religious ceremonies.
The people collect 10 the number of
1900 and are not allowed TO eat any
thing except such food as had been
blessed by the priests The food. OF
course. became putrid. and as
a result cholera broke out. lie
traced the path usually taken
by the cholera In travelling
TO the west, and cited several instances
to show how the disease was spread by
the water supply He said many per-
sons suppose that il water flows
through two or three feet OF soil il
will be purified This was mistake.
as he has often proved 10y experiments.
Causes OF Cholera.
In closing he made suggestions as
how best to oppose the cholera He
showed that. though the state board is
doing all il can, the state of Michigan is
in almost az great danger from tue dis
ease as IL little or nothing had been
done owing To laxncss in New York and
other sea ports.
He said. awful as the cholera is. il is
not SO great a scourgc a. typhoid fever.
There is no excuse for the existence II
this disease. because it is filth disease.
In 1873 cholera carricdoif 1.3J6 patients;
statistics show that J1.0qo die IN the
United States yearly from'typhoid fever.
The national authorities become active
when cholera or yellow Fever threaten 10
cripple commerce. but they 10 nothing
10 prevent typhoid feyer. He believed
bad water caused more deaths than bad
whisky. lie closed with a suggestion
: that IL persons were not sure WITH the
I purity If the water they should boil IL.
as bacteria are more easily digested when