The leader. [volume] (Brookhaven, Miss.) 1895-1905, 1904-02-24
POSSIBLE EplpEMIc AvEkrEp.
An illustrative Instance Of the Hene!
ncient Work Of tine CeoIosf.
cal survey.

The most disastrous epidemics which
have visited the towns and cities OF this
country in recent years have, I'm many
cases, been traced to polluted drinking
waters. A step that might have brought
about such an epidemic in the city OF
Quitman, Georgia, has recently been
prevented through the experimental in
vestigations made by the United States
geological survey and the geological
survey of Georgia working in coopera-
tion..
During the summer of 1903 the au-
thorities of Quitman, while boring an
artesian struck at 1913 feet below
the surface cavity 6A feet deep. Wa
| ter Immediately rose in the bore hole to
within n feet of the surface. The cav
| ity and the water were cased off and the
well was pushed on to depth of 321 feet,
where second water bearing stratum
was reached.
1t was decided to experiment with the
''subterraneana stream" and another
we'll was sunk few hundred yards
away and near what was known as Rus
sell pond, small body of stagnant wa
ter which had the appearance OF occu-
plying a partially filed lime sink. The
underground cavern was found at the
depth expected and the water from the
1 pond was allowed to drain into 1t. AS
the flow of water from the pond made no
impression on the head in the bore hole
it was decided that the drill had reached
a large underground stream, and as the
deep wells had been cased off 1t was
thought 1t would be safe to turn the
sewerage of Quitman into it.
A protest went up Immediately from
that section of Georgia. where artesian
wells have proved of great benefit, and
Gov. Terrell was asked to prevent the
people of Quitman from making use OF
the underground stream in the way they
contemplated. No one knew where the
stream led, nor what wells or springs
it might contaminate. The governor
called the problem to the attention OF
Mr.. S. W. McCallie, assistant state ge-
ologist. He in turn laid the matter be-
fore Mr. M. L. Fuller and Mr.. Charles s.
Slichter, who have charge of certain
| lCdbul Go vi JuC lHNColASdtAOA Vi "CAAo AN'
the United States geological survey
with the result that plans were made for
experimentalIy determining the possbil-
ity of communicating adjacent wells and
springs.
The first step IN the experiment was
to take samples of the water of all the
wells around Quitman, and at Boston
Valdosta,, and other points, and also
from such springs as might be contain
mated A strong brine was then made
and turned into the well leading to the
subterranean streams. Two tons of salt
were used. The experiment, which was
carefully made, extended over several
| days.
Beginning with the moment when the
salt was inserted into the we'll at the
pond at Quitman, water samples were
taken at intervals from the wells and
springs in the vicinity and at Boston,
Voldesta, and other points. The collec-
ton of samples continued in some cases
| for n number of weeks, after which
they were shipped to Atlanta where
nearly 400 of them were analysed at the
state geological survey.
The examination of the samples
showed that the salt had contaminated
the water in three wells in the town.
The salt was not found in any of the pub
lie springs in the region, nor in the wells
at Boston or Valdosta, but the expert
ment demonstrated that emptying sew
erage into the stream would have ruined
all the water in the deep wells at Quit
man, and would probably have led to a
| dangerous epidemic This experiment
is a happy illustration of the practical
results obtained through the scientific
methods pursued by the United States
geological survey and by the state geo.
| lnpical survey of Georgia