The Lafayette advertiser. [volume] (Vermilionville [i.e. Lafayette], La.) 1865-19??, 1908-01-17

GwECAeE SYSTEM OF THOU
SANDS OF YEARS AGO.
House Builders OF 3isn1ya, Probably
Ionian City, Showed Considerable
Ingenuity in Continuance That
Carried Off Waste Water.

1t is generally supposed that It is
only modern man who has periecteo
q system of drainage and sewerage
to carry from his house and city the
oyerfIowing rain water and filth ana
garbage which accumulate.
In the excavation OF Bismya. the
ancient Sumerian or p"re-Babyionlan
city which fourished 1880 years ago,
a remarkable system of drainage, per
fectIy adapted to the aliuv1al PLAIN
ii the Mesopotamian desert. has been
discovered.
Babylonia is perfectly level; from
Bagdad to the Persian gull there is
rot the slightest elevation. save for
The artificial mounds or an occasional
changing sand drift.
In most places there is a crust CT
hard clay upon the surface, haked by
The not sun of summer time, so hard
that it resembles stone. Parts OF the
desert are perfect for bicycle riding.
Beneath the crust, which at Bis:nya
Il seldom more than four feet in thick
ness. and in places entirely lacking,
Is loose, caying sand reaching to an
unknown depth. Drainage in such a
epuntry, without sloping nils or
streams of running water, might tax
The ingenuity Of the modern builder.
In constructing a house the an
Gtent Sumerian of more than 5000
years ago first dug a hole into the
sand to a considerable depth; at Bis
nya several instances were found
where the shaft had reached the depth
m IA meters beneath the foundation
q the house.
From the bottom he built up a e
ucal drain of large, cylindrical terra
Atta sections, each Of which is pro-
xded with grooved f1anges to receive
DE one above. The sections Of on6
Drain were 10 inches in diameter and
TX In height; the thickness OF the
Wall was about an inch.
The tiles we're punctured at inter
Uls with small holes. The section al
he top of the drain was semispheri.
I'll, fitting over it like a cap and pro-
uded with an opening to receive the
vater from above. Sand and potsherds
we're then filled in about the drain, and
4 was ready for use.
The water, pouring into 1t, was rap
lely absorbed by the sand at the bot
tam, and il there It became clOgged
he water escaped through the holes
the sides of the tiles.
The temple at Bismya was provided
With several such drains. One palace
was discovered with four; a large
bath, resembling a modern Turkish
Bath and provided with a bitumen
Noor, slipping to one corner, emptied
its waste water into one.
In clearing out the drains at the
tanaple we removed dozens of shallow
tnvra-cOtta drinking cups, not unlike
q large auc in shape and size. Evi
dently 1t received the waste water O
e drinking fountain, and the cups had
accidentally dropped within.
In the Bismya temple platform, con
strueted about 1850 B. c. We uncov
esud a horizontal drain Of tiles. eact
q which was about a yard long
Msd not unlike in shape those at pres
at employed. It conducted the rair
Wtter from the platform to n o.
~ vertical drains.
The Babylonians of a later period
who buried instead Of cremating theil
dnad. carefully provided their GENE
tesies with drains. The graves were
GfAll house-shaped structures entire
or partly above ground, and when
eyer they were found upon the slopins
ade Of q mound, they were ~protectet
aADve by q breakwater, while alon.
- sides we're square. open, bricl
A1Afns.
The result was that some of thu
Qxves. although thousands of year
I'D and constructed Of unbaked clay
RH stfl in a perfect state of preser
Misunderstanding. American.