Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1903-08-06
MILWAUKEE ESTABLISHING A
LARGE FILTER PLANT.
FREIGHT BUSINESS IS RUSHING
Rumored that Dlspatchers Are to Re-
turn to ottumwa When New Cutoff
is opened.-chanse in Motive
Power.

Extensive Improvements are being
made in the waterworls system which
furnishes water for the Milwaukee
railroad at the junction. About three
years ago a well was sunk out on
the river bank, a big tank erected at
the coal shed and a jump and pipe
system put in to furnish a supply
OF water for the engines and for the
round house. A force is at present
at work putting in Jewell filter
system to cleanse and purify the
water used both for cleaning the
boilers and for filling the tanks of
the road engines.
The Filter System.
The supply tank is to be moved
from the vicinity of the coal house
about one hundred and fifty yards
north to the sand house. Just south
of the sand house large tank about
16 by "a feet and with capacity of
about 2,000 barrels has been placed
at an elevation of about rs feet Be
meath this is a huge boiler which is
to be filled with sand and gravel. Be-
meath the surface of the ground and
between the high tank and the low
tank which has been moved from the
coal house is placed small cast-iron
tank which will hold perhaps bar
rel of alum The water is pumped
from the river into the high tank,
where it is supposed to settle and
partially clarity. From the high tank
it runs down through the sand boiler
and from there through the alum
tank and by it's own force is again
raised up into the supply tank from
which the engine tanks are filled !.
The capacity of this filer is about
one-third that of the filter which is
used to supply the city with water
from the City Water Supply com
pany's plant.
To Clean the Boilers.
Filtered water is to be used also
to wash out the engine boilers. A new
Fairbanks-Morse high pressure, 10 by
IS inch double cylinder pump has
been placed in the engine room, to
pump the water to the round house
and furnish the high pressure needed
to properly clean the boilers. When
all the waterworks improvements are
completed, which will be some time
during the latter part of the present
week the Milwaukee will have an
excellent supply of good water and
practically perfect facilities for clean
ing and keeping the boilers in good
condition The improvements are in
charge of James Gregory and a force
of five or six men.
Dispatchers May Return.
The improvements which were be-
gun on the depot building at the juno
tion were stopped at the time the Of
ficials made their recent visit to the
city. 1t is understood that second
story is to be added to the building
and that the dispatchers who are now
at Marion are to be brought to this
city as soon as the cutoff is put into
use.
Business on the Milwaukee is rush
ing. Three trains, about go car loads,
of new wheat came through today for
the eastern market. Stock move
ments are unusually heavy for this
season of the year and every other
department of the freight business is
heavy.
A Change in Engines.
A change has recently been made
in the engine service of the middle
and west divisions. Glass B-4 high
pressure compound engines has been
changed for class BIZ low pressure
compound The difference in the pull
ing power of these two classes on the
east division is about 200 tons per
train Owing to the heavy business
about fifteen or twenty more engines
than usual have been coming into
the Ottumwa round house. The force
there is being worked to the utmost
to keep UP with the call for motive
power.