The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1910-01-25
WATER is MUDDY
Fire Pressure Fills City Mains
With Dirt Again.
Impossible to Repair Leaks in
Pipes at This Time.
SHOULD BE BOILED.
SHOULD BE BOILED.
When River Water Enters Mains
People Should Beware.
Superintendent Shaw Can See
No Relief for Few Days.

The city water was in a stormy stage
last night. This morning the clouds
still remained but the thunder and
lightning had departed. This afternoon
the dark clouds have broken and the
sun shines now and then.
In other words the people of the city
have had another siege of dirty water
to drink and to Splatter on the face and
hands like mud pies. The pipes that
were broken at the water plant during
the high wate.- nd ice gorges have not
been repaired on account of the hlgh
water and when it is necessary to draw
on the broken pipe because OF nre
pressure the mains are filed once more
with the dirty water.
At the Y. NJ. c. A. building num-
Der of the young men attempted 10
take shower baths last night and When
they emerged from beneath the shower
they looked like boys at the odd swim
min hole" with the muddy water drip
ping down their faces from their hair
and the traces Of mud balls from head
to foot. The old games of last one out
gets mUdGed" and wipe the frog TO-
tacco from your chin were repeated.
Another man in town reported to the
Office this morning that he had tried for
two hours to make his two young boys
take a bath and when they finally con-
scented and leaped in the tub it took
another hour to scrape off the mud.
People Must Wait.
Until the river goes down to normal
stage and the water department can
get at the well pipes leading down into
the dry wells and the points the con-
clifton will not be relieved-fn case a
fire alarm comes in. II there were no
fires and 1t was not necessary to con-
meet the pumps with the wells in the
river the water for domestic purposes
could be supplied clear and cool. But
when the fire alarm comes in the big
high pressure pumps get up speed ana
pull from the river.
The muddy water last night was cauS-
ed by the two fire alarms that came in
yesterday afternoon. If either of the
fires had lasted very long the mains
would have been in bad shape but
luckily neither of them lasted over 20
minutes.
There are from one to twenty wrong
impressions of the manner in which
the city gets its water. Some people
think that normally the plant pumps
filtered river water into the mains. 9th
ers think that the water from the big
we'll must come from the river first
Others think that the pipes broken in
the river were simply placed in the
stream and the water drawn out in this
manner. The rest who do not Know
give it up and say that they don't know
and don't care as long as the people
get good healthy water.
How the City Gets Water.
The city water is taken from Al dry
wells which are sunk 80 feet below the
surface of the ground into a flow of
water under the river. These wells are
six and eight inches in diameter and
about ~ feet deep. Each pipe sunk in
these wells is connected to a point
which is a screen of brass into which
the water flows by suction from the big
pumps.
Some of these wells are out under
the stream of the river. but a big ma
jOrity of them are on the bank and
under a big sand bar, which extends
out into the river Just below a rip
zap" When the river is at its normal
stage the wells. with a few exceptions,
are all out from under the stream At
this stage Of the river all of the wells
are under water.
Some OF the pipes leading to the
wells are Just above the sand in the
river and others are about five feet
below. 1t IL thought that during the
ice gorge in the river few days ago
the ice sprung one of the pipes and
made the 1eak-it is not known lust
where this leak is.
The water furnished the city is not
from tie river. The river water and
the w;ter from the city wells have
been analysed and 1t has been found
that they are entirely different. The
river water is soft and the we'll water