Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1893-01-14

able. and the city now undertakes a
work involving many millions to re-
verse the current of the river from the
Lake to the Mississippi to free the
water supply from sewage contamina-
ton. The city of New York, having
outgrown the capacity of its original
aqueduct, has built another at i'm
mense expense, and having determined
the question of quantity is now de-
voting itself to securing purity as we'll.
Legislation is now sought to enable
the city to secure control of the whole
Croton watershed; to abate all nui-
sances and to protect the drainage of
the region in the interest of consumers.
Many other cities in this country have
devoted much thought and capital to
accomplish the same objects-these
few cases being cited to show that the
best minds in the country are fully
alive to the question.
Comparing small things with great,
let me say a few words ON our past
and present condition and ask-what
our prospects are for future water
supply'
The writer we'll remembers the es-
Enlistment of the first system of
water works here, and the JOY express
.,1 tbot fho rso;,oo &c ,bo ,,,,+. bsx,l
the wash-tub and the water-bucket
was over, and the spigot hailed as a
great household blessing. Alas, these
Fluctuations were only partially real
lied. The first drouth demonstrated
the fact that the springs were too
superficial aud inadequate for con-
tinu0us supply, ard for a time every
year the rainbarrel and the water
cart resumed their supremacy. The
effort to supplement the supply by IN
protected artesian wells increased the
quantity to very inadequate extent,
but utterly ruined the quality by
bringing up every faint of every
stratum through which they passed,
and the free acids attacked the iron
and zinc in the pipes and rendered the
water almost totally unfit for use.
The history of the towns attempt
at emancipation from this state of
things requires no repetition here.
The popular desire was to secure an
abundant and reliable supply of pure
water. Money was literally provided
and intelligently expended. The
plant, in an engineering and mechan-
ical sense, was and is good, but the
superficial springs, like those of the
old works, are entirely inadequate, aud
a partial supply was only kept up last
summer by connecting a spring loaded
with fireclay and entirely unfit for use.
The four months drouth of 1892 was
almost without precedent in the history
of the town. In 1854 we had one of
three months and every intervening
year enough to cause great inconven-
fence, with liability now to annual
recurrence.
Now, what is the remedy for the
futureF In what way can the town
emancipate itself from this annoyance
and secure the object desired for the
benefit of ala Two essentials must
be met, namely-quality and quantity,
and without them the enterprise, like
its predecessors, will be failure.
AS far as judgment can determine
the true remedy lies directly beneath
our feet. Reference to the diagram
accompanying this article shows an
enormous stratum of red shale about
one thousand feet thick, which is the
true bearing measure of the
mountain, and protected by an over
lying sandstone from infiltration of
deleterious water from aboye. No
finer tiltering material exists in the
world than sandstone and shale, and
its protective power is well shown by
the wonderful purity of the spring
water as it energies from the measures
on the west side of Great Savage
mountain. The springs themselves
answer the question of purity.
AS to quantity--reference again to
the diagram shows that the shale, with
a dip of 80 degrees, descends to all
almost unfathomable depth before il
energies miles to the east near the
Eckhart railway tunnel, thus con.
stituting vast reservoir of pure water
within easy reach and with only few
outlets. Those on the west side of
Savage mountain, at the close of our
four months drouth, showed scarcely
any diminution of flow. In fact, this
reservoir is SO enormous and so deep
that it is beyond the influence of any
possible drouth, and its storage of pure
water is ready to coafer untold bless.
ings of health and protection of proper.