Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1910-09-18
Pollution of
Water is Bad

| llSoll, IN "a great measure TINS rs plOD
ably true Hut 1t Is now the concensus
of opinion Of all recognized sanitar-
! ians that TO rely upon the self puri-
! licaliln OF streams for any adequate
| Ipurltication of sewage is TO rest upon
a broken reed, Too many serious ~
phod epidemiCs and other diseases OF
a diarrhocal nature traced beyond all
question OF doubt 10 drinking water
drawn from rivers polluted with sew
age At various DISTANCES upstream,
has ConclusNely settled this point,
t IL may come as "a surprise To those
who advocate the theory OF running
I water purifing itsolr taht il Is quiet
water rather than running water that
oftenest purifics itself--for the reason
that In quiet water sedimentation or
settling takes place. thus making pos
slble more or less distinct separa-
tion of mud and microbes, from the
main body of water, Here the germs
! viii be given an opportunity to die
rather than be carried 10 some other
place or people before they have lost
their virulence,
I II would appear then that the sane
thing 10 do would be 10 stop the sew
eragc pollution OF all Oklahoma
| NAl'lllNt lfi.H use WIN Nhll lfll lOM
far down these germs may he carried
even by the sluggish streams of our
state and who can tell how many
people are necessarily using these
streams for drinking and other do
mestic purposes? As the cities and
towns become more densely populated
and no towns show the tendency "a
grow like the oklahoma towns-the
need for reform along this line Is very
apparent TO all thinking people.
II is a matter of statistics, known
too well 10y all, that typhoid fever and
other diarhOeal diseases are Disgrace
fully common In the United States, and
we are cognizant of the fact that one
of the chief reasons for this is, be-
cause we often polute our best
streams and rivers with sewage.
! The question now naturally arises
what shall We do with our sewage ?
The habit oc discharging II into the
nearest stream Is 40 strong that 1t B..
, difficult TO conceive Of any other meth
cd of destroying 1t. The answer to the
question Is that we must either turn
II upon land, for farming purposes as
has been done In a great many states
where irrigation is frequent nee
cssity. or ele we must somehow fol-
low scientific lines and purify II, re-
moving from II before letting IL 90
into a stream or river so much of the
noXiOus material as Is likely to create
"A nuigancc or otherwise endanger the
public health.
THIS can be accomplished, while not
very easy, and in every civilized and
enlightened country where health is
recognized as valuable asset, pro-
gress Is being made In this particular
direction, although II must be admit.
ted progress has been slow and un-
certain and results indefinite and un-
satisfactory IN many instances
We learn that England was the hrs
country to look the proposition boldly
in the face and master the problem OF
sewage pollution Of streams, Many
years of ardous work were occupied
: in investigation and experiment be-
fore decisive steps were taken. In
the years 1850 Massachusetts follow.
ed the experience of England and at
tackled tn problem and by the yeai
| I $50 it had met II squarely and vigor-
ously Ohio has followed In the foes
Isteps Of Massachusetts and has more
recently dealt bodily with the same
difficulties; this has been followed by
other states with more or less success;
looking II squarely IN the face the
proposition is up to the great state OF
IOklahoma whether II shall, or shall
mot have the courage to take the nec-
essary steps In having stream pollu-
| ton stopped before 1t has become an
| unboarable menace to the public
Health
Twenty years ago the people were
rut 4, iUnApHnt tho dan q
gers attending the pollution 10y sewage
of streams and rivers, and the CORE
spending state Of public opinion made
lit necessary to educate and advise,
rather than compel, communities To
beware Of the pollution Of the waters
in their vicinity. And, fortunately for
most well Informed American com
munlties. advice publicly given Is al
most as effective as compulsion, be-
cause of the local pride Of the people
land their sensitiveness to possible crit
lCism under pressure of public OPP
lnion.
We are apt to forget that the teach
lngs Of sanitary science are compar-
latively recent. with a great deal OF
truth II has been said that "the 18Th
century discovered dirt, and the twen-
tleth century Is hardly eleven years
old We regard the 18th century as
one of industrial progress and lest
we forget" let us impress 1t upon
ourselves that the most famous dis
covery of the century past was, that
man must look not TO the heavens but
his surroundings and within him foi
the sources of his disease and death
The sanitarian looks upon dirt not
merely or chiefly as dlstasteful anC
disgrting. He looks at II as the car
rier of the vicious and active agents
of disease. The lalty thinks of dir
las chiefly disgusting and as mostly dry
or solid. but the modern sanitariar
knows that the most dangerous ant
huspicious dirt 10 not the dry or solit
but often watery or fluid-as Is founC
I'm sewage. Many believe that dirt u
always dirty looking--iar from IL
This II deluslon.
II will take 4 long time to teach the
people that the worst and dirtiest anC
deadllest dirt IL not the kind that IL
the mott repulslve but the dirt tina
may move absolutely hidden from tho
eve i'm waters not suspected, and may
even have a sparkling and refreshing
lappearance. In waters Of this kline
where there Is no odor or color tc
lead one to suspect the presence Of q
deadly foe. the bacteriologlst only with
"A hiah power microscope can detec'
Iactive agents of disease. Little streams
of sewage may thus meet and mingl'
with pure waters, becoming lost II
the ;lmpid stream, weighing 1t dowr
with dirt an fOulness, and charging II
| with rho germs Of death.