Evening star., 1901-09-27
NE EDS OF M ANIL A
INCREASED WATER SUPPLY AND
SEWERAGE SYSTEM.
Question as to Whether the M0at
Should BE Filled or
Dredged.
, .ha Man,,. American Aug,ast I6.

From the Manila American. August 16.
The work Of taking over the Office OF
city engineer, with all the property con-
nected Herewith, has kept Captain Mead
too busily engaged to make plans for the
operations of his department. But in an
interview, yesterday. he discussed some OF
the needs Of the city and outlined the
likely ways Of meeting them.
"It is fortunate" said he, that at pres
ent there Is little active work being done
by the department, for we are busy with
taking inventories and getting the run OF
things and would be badly handicapped
IL there was much construction in prog
ress. AS It Is. there is nothing but the
Santa Cruz bridge and the markets which
need attention.
"Of the latter. l hope to have the ouinta
market ready for use in two or three
weeks. while the Divisoria will not be open
before the middle of October. Unfortunate
ly, the screens for the latter were not
made over. Contracts for the wood work
had to be relet, and that requires adver-
tising for bids and much delay. work on
the Herran market, in Mafate. Is just De-
ing started, but is under way.
'WhNe no plans have been made. 1t Is
easily seen that the city has two great
needs; an increased water supply ana a
sewerage system l can't say now these
means, and they will be considered later.
The Water Supply.
.The present water supply is taken from
the Santolan. or Santa Mese river, as be-
lieve it is called at that point. The ca
pacity of the system is not half what the
city should have. The water is pumped
from the river into an open canal, which
carries 1t part Of the way and then runs
it into closed aqueduct This taxes II
on to Ell Deposite, the reservoir. Gravity
does the work. from the time 1t leaves the
pump at the river till it reaches it's destina-
ton at Manila. There is but sixty feet
fall from the reservoir to the city, ana
that doesn't give force enough to throw
serious disadvantage in case of fire, and
often a great Inconvenience in getting
water for ordinary uses onNthe upper floors
of houses.
"Owing to the amount of water drawn
from the Santa Mesa river for irrigation
purposes, above the pumping station no
more water can be gotten there than Is
now supplied by the present system. But L
think that by going seven or eight miles
further up the river. to a canon, an ample
supply can be obtained. However, an argu-
ment against that might be based upon
the fact that as all the water in the river
would probably be taken up by the new
works, the damage to irrigated lands below
might cause much litigation
"a strong argument in favor Of going to
that it is above all villages which pour
their refuse In the stream. From an engi-
neering standpoint the plan Is feasible but
the cost has not been estimated
Perhaps the most urgent need the city
has Is sewerage system. OF course, there
are some big problems to be solved in con-
nection with the matter. The f1atness of the
country will preclude the adoption of a
gravity system, but it Is not an inSuperable
difficulty. 1t could be readily overcome by
the Schon pneumatic system for instance.
which has been found to work we'll at Ran
COON. India and gave satisfactory results
in the Chicago worlds fair, where it was
adopted for draining the grounds and build
ingS.
Disposal of Sewage.
THAT system consists of large air-tight
tanks or reservoirs, into which the sewage
is run by gravity through short lines of
pipe. When the liquid in the tank rises to
certain height automatic valves close the
supply pipes. float opens a large valve at
the top which admits air under pressure
sufficient to raise the contents into pipes,
which are high enough for 1t to run off by
force of gravity.
"Of course, the city would have to be
divided into many small districts, each to
be served by tank. There would be, say,
two or three In the Intramuros. And the
sewer system on one side Of the Pasig
would be practically separate from that on
the other. But the air for all could be
compressed at one power house. located In
the SuDuFDb
'-The disposal of the sewage would be
matter for discussion and investigation of
the subject. There are many ways which
might be adopted.
There is one feature Of the problem in
this city which has probably not been en-
countered elsewhere. and that Is the floods
of water which result from a combination
of heavy rains and typhoons on the bay,
backing the water up until it covers the
outlets and fills the sewers.
Another problem which 1 suppose we
will have to settle some time is the disposi-
ton Of the moat. Some advocate filling it
and others dredging it out. / favor the
former, for it would be a continuous and
endless task to keep it clean. Besides, /
fear the effect of stirring up the filth which
has accumulated in it. 1t would be a big
undertaking, though. to fill it. l don't
know where the material could be found
for that purpose However, the ground
thus acquired would be worth it. 1t would
be valuable either park or for business
purposes.
THE old city walls will be a subject for
discussion some time, I suppose Senti-
ment would lead us to preserve them, but
business interest will urge their destruc-
tion Nobody can foretell which will be
the stronger"
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