The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1912-02-15
MAYOR FRANKIE IS GRACIOUS
Officials Well Satisfied with Working
Of Gravity Filter in Small Wisconsin
City, but See Demand for Larger
Plant for Kenosha Water Company.

The members of the special commit
tee named by the common council to
investigate plans for securing purer
water made their first trip en- Sunday
afternoon when they went to South
Milwaukee to investigate the workings
OF the gravity filter in use there. The
make UP of the party included Chair
man James Filbin, Aldermen Peter
Pirsch, N. J. Werner and Herbert
Thomey, City Engineer Baltzer and
City Health Officer John B. Spalding.
The members of the party went to
South Milwaukee early Sunday after
noon and spent the entire afternoon
examining the filtration plant. Mayor
Charles FRANKIE Of the city entertained
the Kenosha officials and the men in
charge of the filter were kept working
all afternoon in order that the Keno
sha visitors might see just what kind
of work is done by it. After reaching
South Milwaukee the members Of the
committee were forced to walk two
miles through the snow in order to
reach the building where the filter is
installed. This filter cost the city of
South Milwaukee $4,000 and it has a
capacity of a million and a half gal
Ions OF water daily. The water taken
from the filter was remarkably clear
and it was claimed that repeated tests
of it had shown that it was SO per
cent pure. The officials at South Mil
Waukee stated that the filter was n COM
plete success and that the cost of
operation had not been burdensome.
After an examination the kenosha
officials were convinced that this sort
of a filter would not be suited to the
demands of Kenosha on account Of the
large amount of flow surface demand
ed. 1t is claimed by the city engineer
that it would be impossible to install
q filter Of this type large enough to
take care of the demands of kenosha
on the lot owned by the city adjoining
the pumping station. The Kenosha
committee has found that to take care
of Kenosha it will be necessary to
have a filter Of at least twelve million
gallons daily capacity and in order to
get such capacity it would be neces-
sary to have more than an acre of
land ON which to install it. If the
old plan of removing the water plant
to a point north Of the city should
be carried out this type of filter could
be installed.
South Milwaukee officials claim that
they realize that the capacity Of the
! filter installed there is none too large
and that other unites will have to be
added within short time. A new in
take has just been constructed at the
| city It is twenty-four inch pipe
and it goes out into the lake but>3,700
feet, the officials depending entirely on
the filter to insure the purer water.
| The visit OF The committee TO South
Milwaukee was devoid Of any exciting
incident. On Thursday morning the
members of the committee will leave
for a trip Of inspection which will in
clude the Naval Training Station and
the University Of Chicago. a week
from next Saturday evening the mem
bers Of the committee will leave for
their long trip to Moline, Ill, and To
ledo and on their return. they will set
date for visit to Ashland. Three
filters of each class will be investigat-
ed.