The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1898-12-29
PASSAIC POLLUTION
Paterson Board Of Health
Will Try to Stop East
Jerseys Work.
TO MOVE BIG CAMP OF ITALIANS
Efforts viii Also Be Made To
Have the Dredging At
Little Falls Dis
continued.
Isnecia1 . ..The Jersey city News."l

fSDecial to The Jersey lily 4NS"e-
PATERSON, Dec. 20, 1S9S.-The pollu5ioh
of the city water supply was the SUBJECT
of a two hours discussion by the Mayor
ana members of the Board OF Health iasl
night. The result was a resolution aaopt-
ed instructing the counsel to take tesai
proceedings to remove the Italian camp on
the banks of the river in Liftie fais
Township and so to try to stop the oreas-
ing of the river below Little Falls by the
East Jersey Water Company. There are
400 Italians in the East Jersey water
Company's camp.
Commissioner Thomas NJ. Ryle declared
that the East Jersey Water Company had
been polluting the Passaic River since
1892, and offered a resolution that the
counsel of the board be instructed to pro-
coed at once against the East Jersey
Water Company for polluting the Passaic'
River above the Great Falls, at Paterson.
Commissioner Hickman told of the knee
deep filth of the Italian camp and recon-
mended action. He had personally IL
spected the river and investigated its pol
tuition. Corporations should not be al
lowed to do what individuals would be
punished for.
Health Inspector Leal, although ae-
knowledgfng that the bad water supply
affects with typhoid the cities of Pater-
son, Passaic. Jersey City, Bayonne, New
ark, Harrison, Arlington, kearny ana
other places, quoted statistics to snow
that the East Jersey Water Company is
gui.ltless and that the infection is from
causes undiscoverable.
The Health Officer read the report OF
Chemist Baldwin of Newark, giving the
chemical analysis of the four samples of
water taken from four public schools.
DIR. Agnew asked if the Board had any
jurisdiction outside the limits of the city.
DR.. Leal replied that it had, but that
power had not been enforced until 1897,
when a bill, introduced by senator Will
liams and called the Passaic River Pol
luton bill, had been passed.
Reverting to the typhoid outbreak, DR..
Leal gave the statistics of the cases Of
typhoid fever reported to the Board since
August. when typhoid fever became more
prevalent than it had been. Excluding
the cases of soldiers and some that had
been traced to special causes there had
been se~venty-fve cases Of typhoid from
August / to November 80, an average Of
eighteen per month.
AOmlf1S 10 Inc DulDISdh lie Sdld that
during the first two weeks in December
there had been fifty-one cases reported.
That was unusual and caused an inyesti-
CATION. There was only one thing that
was common TO all the cases. All the
patients had to drink city water. The
milk, ice, food, place of residence, age,
condition of life and other circumstances
had all been investigated, n none of
them could be attributed as a common
cause. The only. thing attributable as a
cause and common to all the cases was
the water.
He had investigated the condition of af-
fairs at Passaic. and although his reports
were not complete, he had found that
there was twice as much typhoid in that
city as usual. Passaie has exactly the
same water supply as Paterson
He could not find that there was any
unusual amount Of typhoid at Jersey
City, Bayonne. Arlington, or Bloomfield,
but these places did lot have exactly the
same water supply as Paterson. Their
water was mixed with the Pequannock.
From the middle of December to date
there had been seventeen cases of typhoid
reported. Since last Saturday only one
case had been reported. In some way UNI
known to the health inspector-and he
tried hard to ascertain the cau~se-typhoid
infection got into the public supply be-
tween November / and 10, and then it
seemed to cease. During that period the
infection existed in quite a serious de-
gree.
rs the average of typhoid cases not
higher in this city than in Newark"
asked Mayor Hinchliffe.
1T used to be much lower" replied Dr.
Leal, but since Newark got the Pequan-
mock water it is puch higher"
The health officer then read statistics
compiled in 1895, showing hat Paterson
stood fifth best in the cities of this coun-
try in regard to typhoid, but since then
Newark had got a good water supply and
now had jumped ahead of Paterson on the
list.
Mayor John Hinchliffe talked of the
dredging in progress by the East Jersey
Water Company. He said it undoubtedly
polluted the water and wanted to know
how the extent of the pollution could be
proven.
Inspector Leal declared that dirt is not
pollution. Commissioners DIR. Frank A.
Agnew differed with him. He declared
that the dredging sends into the stream
the disease germs that have lodged and
multiplied in the river bed during many
years.
The board finally unanimously decided to
have counse proceed at once against the
East Jersey Water Company and others
guilty of ~polluting the Passaic River in
Little Falls Township.
The dredging and the Italian camp will
receive first attention. DIR. Agnew asked