The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-11-01
DRAINAGE work TO BEGIN.
Plan includes the Sewer Outlets APP
proved by Council.

proved ny OOuhClis
While Health officer LeHardy has en-
tered a strong protest against the dis
charge of sewage at the river front, the
probability is that the house drainage
work will commence in a few days at the
outlets previously selected. AS has been
stated In the Morning News. one of the
outlets viii be at the foot of West Broad
street, and the other at Rourke's foundry.
From now on the contractors have the
right 70 dig up the streets, and, while
the consulting engineer has not yet ar
rived It is likely he will be here in
few days, when the work will be COM
meuced.
II has been stated that most of the
force would be put on the outlets, when
it is the understanding will be completed
first The reason for this is that the COM
mittee on drainage desires to give the city
the benefit of the house drainage system
at the earliest possible moment, and, IN
order 10 do it. the best way considered to
complete the sewers from the river south
There will likely be no delay in starting,
as the contractors have been looking for-
ward to the work, and have PROVIDED
themselves with such tools and machinery
as will be needed.
The fight by DR.. LeHardy is still in
progress, however, and it is apparently his
intention not to give it up until the out
lets are built. His protest is as strong as
at first, but if the citizens can stand 1t,
he says he Is able to do so.
Il will do all in my power to stop this
intended evil" he said yesterday, even
though it be to bring out the correspond
ence between myself and the drainage
committee on the subject of river pollu-
ton Although Hutchinson's Island was a
threat to the city, this Is thousand times
worse. This discharge Of sewage at low
water is an experiment; if it is to show
there is no sedmentation Have the men,
hers of the drainage committee found or
heard of a single place where such thing
as that proposed has been successfully
accomplished? If so, let them name it,
or let them give the name of-either a river
or tidal stream-where sewage is diseharg-
ed at the surface, or below low water
mark, that has not been polluted by the
deposits.
1T seems this should be a simple ex-
pertinent. without going to the expense of
building outlets to find whether the sew
age will rise to the surface. Let the COM
mittee put bits of paper, straw and other
matter in a barrel and discharge this
through a pipe ten feet below low water
mark The swifter the water flows, the
quicker will the light particles rise to the
surface II is in still water that this sedl-
mentation is greatest although it is going
on all the time in rivers, where there is
always an eddy.
II am not welded to Bilbo canal for an
eastern outlet The farther east the out
let the better 1t win be for the city. So
long as focal matter does not go directly
into the river, to come to the wharves In
every tide, Fort Jackson, Timber Land
ing, ST. Augustine creek and Runaway
Niger creek are good points for the dis
charge. There will be sedimentation wher-
ever the sewage is discharged but In a
closed place, such as Bilbo canal, ii can
be cleaned away when necessary. Such
will not be the case in the river"
Mr. ]. p. Williams said yesterday that
he did not think there should be any ex-
periments at this time. He had not stud
led the question. but at first blush 1t oc-
ours to him the discharge at the points
proposed is not advisable, and particular
ly is this the case with the West Broad
street outlet.
Capt John Flannery was asked incl
dentally about the matter and stated he
could see no reason why the sewage should
not go directly into the river. Were it a
smaller stream he said, there might be rea-
son 10 fear evil consequences. but as the
current is strong, and the river very deep
ne thinks the chances for good results are
favorable.