The times., 1900-12-23
The water supply of the Army.

An article by Thomas F. Millard in the
current number of "Scribner's Magazine"
comments upon the danger of epidemies
in the army caused by bad water. He
Gays that the American Army in China
had nc provisions tor supplying the
troops with water while on the line of
march, and OF course no filters and no
conyeniences for boiling, while the jap
anese were better supplied in this i'm
portant particular than any other nation.
If this is true, it is time TO stop saying
things about the unprogressiveness of the
Orient and talk for while about the un-
progressiveness of the War Department
In this country.
It is almost incredible that troops
be neglected in this way. As everyone
knows, China is oYercrowded and unsaui-
tary in the extreme, and at the time when
the American troops were sent there II,
was seriously anticipated that the Chi
nege would poison wells before abandon
ing them. It seems as il common pru-
dence should have taught the authori
ties that every soldier should be iR-
structed not to drink any water not
boiled and filtered, and also-for the :c-
suit OF such prohibition might be, in
this case, the drinking OF no water at
all-that all the troops should be pro-
yided with the best apparatus for making
the water fit to drink. If those whose
business it is to look after the comfort
of the army will explain why this was
not done, the general public Will receive
the information with interest.
The matter of water supply is enc
which does not receive nearly as much
attention from Americans, and from the
world in general, as 1t should. Obviously,
water is the natural drink of mankind,
though in some places the fluid which
goes by that name is SO badly corrupted
that it seems better TO drink almost any
thing else. There is no reason why the
water supply of city should not be as
abundant and pure as that OF a country
village, and, in fact, it can be made bet
ter than that of most villages, by a little
care and thought. When one considers
that pure water means health, strength,
and consequent good spirits and that an
impure supply means typhoid and mala-
rial fevers, dyspepsia, and all the ills
that come from a weakened constitution,
1t seems as il some of the money now
spent on handsome public buildings ought
TO be spent on reservoirs and pipes It
is more important to have healthy,
happy, contented set Of people to govern
than to have a handsome municipal build
ing in which 10 transact the business OF
government; but some city fathers seem
rot to see it that way.
1t is precisely the same carelessness
and disregard for common sense which
leads TO the neglect OF the American
Army in this important particular. A
casual examination of military medical
statistics will reveal the fact that half
the ills of the camp hospital are trace
able directly to bad water. Yet large
sums of money are spent on "a medical
staff, on hospital appliances, and On a
hundred less important things which are
the mere red tape and gold lace of the
army, while the soldiers are compelled to
get their drinking water from roadside
bitches more or less unhealthy springs
and wells, and rivers which are also sew
ers, and are unable to filter or to boil
it for lack of simple eonyenienees More
over, they have no way of carrying more
than can be put in a canteen, and often
suffer from thirst as a result. 1t is un-
pleasant to think OF the opinion which
the Mikado's soldiers must have of cur
War Department