Windham County reformer. (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1901-1906, 1905-11-24
FOR MUNICIPAL OWNERSHIP
COMMITTEE WILL PROBABLY
RECOMMEND 1T.
A Pure Water Supply Can Only Be
Had by Filtering-The Results in
Lawrence. Mass, and the Expense.
How Greenfield Has Succeeded.

The full report of the engineers
who were employed by the special
committee elected at the last village
meeting to examine into the question
of water system Is printed on mare
six of this paper and will be found
very interesting reading for every
resident within the village limits. The
report of the committee will be made
at the village meeting which is called
for next Friday night in Festival
hall at 1880 o'clock. The members OF
the committee are not prepared to
make public the findings and recon-
mendations. which they will make at
that time, but II is probable that the
committee will urge the adoption of
system of municipal ownership along
some lines which are suggested by the
reading of the engineers report. There
is one plan mentioned in the engineers
report, namely that of pumped sup
ply from West river. which Is put
down as not practicable, but which, II
the expense of pumping is not too
great and it could be equipped with
filter plant insuring pure water in un-
limited quantity, would in some ways
be an ideal system. The system called
No. 4 in the engineers report Is the
one adopted by the Sunset Lake water
company. which is practically under
the same management at the Chestnut
Hill Reservoir company and the esti-
mated expense OF constructing .nls
system does not take into considera-
tion the fact that the rights OF the
Chestnut Hill company and the Sun
set Lake company would have TO pc
purchased before the village could 20
ahead.
In taking up this matter. w. H.
Bracket, a member of the committee
has received communication from
the superintendent of the Lawrence,
Mass. water board. who says that the
filtration plant which supplies the city
of Lawrence with pure water cost
about $4,000 and its capacity is ~
100000 gallons per day. the cost OF
maintenance being about $1.6O per
200. 600 gallons. Probably a plant to
filter 100000 gallons per day. which
is considerably in excess of the
amount now used in Brattleboro.
would cost around $25,OOO and the ex-
pense of maintenance. considering the
greater purity of the water here over
that in Lawrence. might be assumed
to be not over 81 per day. Inasmuch
as the question of pure supply is
almost as important, If not more i'm
portant, than that of sufficient sup
ply. the filtration scheme Is one Wh1cn
should be thoroughly gone into. pro-
vided the village proposes to put IN
the plant, but 1t is not one which mas
any consideration at all in the report
of the engineers. Nevertheless, any
contamination of the sources OF sup
ply, which is not unlikely when there
are several houses and barns iocateo
on the water shed, Is a great menace
to public health
The analysis of the uniltered and
filtered water at Lawrence. Mass,
shows an average of $500 bacteria per
cubic centimeter for the unfiltered
water and an average of 81 per cubic
centimeter in the filtered water, or ~
6-1O per cent removal by filtration.
The Lawrence figures also show tnat
out Of sixty cases Of typhoid fever IN
1904 resulting in nine deaths, there
were none that could be traced d.
rectly or indirectly to the use Of fil-
tered water, although there were TWO
whose origin WIS doubtful.
1t is Of coul Sc. unfortunate that the
village is obliged to take into conSlu-
Grafton the plants of the private cor
poration now controlling the wa
ter system for the reason that tne
money necessary to procure tnelr
rights at their price is altogether IN
excess of the price for whlcn tnelI
equipment could be duplicated or the
price for which a better equipment Ill
some other place could be installed.
The public water system of the city
of Greenfield was put in by the hre
district, which practically corresponds
to the Brattleboro village corporation.
/ 1t was installed in 1863 and mas
proved a first class investment IN
every way. 1t has given an excellent
supply of pure water. has paid for IT.
self from the earnings, and in addition.
for the last five or six years mas paio
all the expenses of the fire depart
ment. so that no money whatever mas
been raised by taxation for fire de-
partment purposes. Prior to this sum.
mer. the property had probably cost
upwards of 100000. This summer.
the city borrowed about $4,000 when
was put into a new reservoir. rms
reservoir will treble the storage ca
pacity and increase the pressure OF the
fire service .
This shows what is possible TOT
Brattleboro to do. The meeting shouio
be largely attended.
Gov. Bell, reporting for Vermont at
the meeting of the national grange at
Atlantic City, N. j.. last week, stated
1 l. ><rC