Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-03-17

points 176 miles more from the intake oI
the Washington aqueduct
practically no direct pollution of the 70
tomac takes place within nineteen miles
of the intake; but as this portion OF tne
water shed is inhabited the possibility and
danger of direct pollution of the river
within this section cannot be Ignored.
..The great bulk of the pollution or the
Potomac being distant, it undergoes more
or less natural publication, and IN aool-
tion becomes very greatly diluted before
it reaches the intake at Great rails.
Indirect Effect.
1.-THE presence of typhoid bacilli in great
dilution and perhaps attenuation may not
have the power of directly causing the dis
ease in persons drinking such water.
Water. however, containing an occasional
typhoid bacillus may infect community
IN such a way that large numbers of per-
sons become bacillus carriers. with the
advent of the hot weather many such per-
sons may be stricken with typholo ievel'
lust as the depressing influence OF the
heat is known to determine the onset oi
diarrhaaI diseases and other Intestinal In
fections. 80 +ba
I'm other words, the presence OF the
typhoid bacillus in the Intestinal tract
has not always the power or causing W
nhoid fever. We must reckon with our
host. 49,. ..o po+on,oo
water plays an important part IN the as
semination of typhoid fever In Washington
we have the following:
'The uniform distribution of the disease
throughout the city. indicating a common
medium, such as wafer
.aThe great majority 97.5 per cent? of the
cases studied gave a history OF having
drink unboiled tap water within thirty days
prior to the onset of the disease.
"The majority of the population drink un-
boiled tap water, and 50 If this water con-
tains typhoid bacilli in dilute SUSPENSION
the chances of infection reaching the sus-
ceptible individuals are favored. during
the year 1906 one person IN ABOUT every
400 of the population of the District or
Columbia had typhoid fever, and during the
season of greatest prevalence the cases
which occurred during each half-monthiy
period were widely scattered over 'he LIS
49, Colon BacilH Found.
"co,on bacilli are found In the water.
These organisms are usually taken as an
indication of sewage pollution. Sixty-six
and six-tenths per cent of the fourteen
samples of raw water examined contained
the colon bacillus; 143 per cent Of the TWEEN
ty-one samples of filtered water, and 175
ner cent of the 131 samples Of tap water
examined contained the colon bacillus.
.It is evident, therefore. that certain
number of the colon bacilli In the raw
water pass the storage reservoirs and SAND
filters, Therefore II seems TedSoHdule "
assume that a certain number of typhoid
baoiIli, when present in the raw water, also
pass into the tap water.
1.-THE Potomac river throughout its broad
watershed is defiled with human sewage.
"Some Of the typhoid fever in the Dis
trict in former years was apparently traced
TO the Potomac river water. For example,
the outbreak in Cumberland, Md, Decem-
Der 1889, to April, 1890. was followed by an
increase in typhoid fever in the early spring
In Washington. A sudden decrease in the
Washington death rate followed the install
la ton of the Dalecarlia reservoir In 1895.
1.-The typhoid rate for 19O8-that Is, since
the filtration of the WATERWAYS 493 per
100 OOO This is much higher typhoid
death rate than is usually observed for
large American and European cities having
water supplies of undoubted purity.
Considering that there were due to con-
tact and to infected milk twice as many
cases as we were able to attribute fairly
definitely to these causes. there still re-
mains about half of the cases unaccounted
for II the water is not factor in the
spread of the infection, then 1t would
appear that some unknown agent or agents
for the dissemination of the infection must
be peculiarly active in Washington.
The Other Side.
.In favor of. the view that the Potomac
water plays little, If any, role in the dis