The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-02-04
NO WATER WORRY
Scare Is Over, Mayor. House
Informs Citizens of Topeka.
Most of Unrest Due to Mysteri-
Gus Propaganda Here.
OFFICIALS ON AN INSPECTION
Find Engineer Hopper Has
Made Big Improvements.
Bacteria Removed by Use of
ChIorinator at Plant.
The city water scare is over.

According to an official statement
given out today by Mayor House the
chief cause for the alarm in Topeka
over the municipal water situation is
due to an insidious propaganda spread
over the city mysteriously. The may
or, after a personal inspection of wa
ter conditions and the plant here, ac-
companied by the entire board of city
commissioners, states that the supply
has been greatly increased since the
employment of G. f. Hopper, the new
erecting engineer who is in charge of
the pumping station proper. Further
more the mayor says the installation
of chlorinator at the plant removes
all danger of bacterial troubles.
The only feature that remains trou
blesome to the city officials is the
mysterious presence of bacteria in the
water before it reaches the chlorina-
tor and the identity of the person or
persons who are spreading converse
tional poison concerning the city's wa
ter operations.
incidentally the mayor and commits
sioners satisfied themselves that it now
is impossible for river water to be
pumped into the mains. Pipe lines
that could be used for this purpose
have been plugged.
Investigated Employees.
AS result of an increasing amount
| of propaganda concerning the quality
| of the city's water supply which be-
gan to grow with increasing strength
from the time Engineer G. E. Hopper
/ took charge of the plant and put
| water into the mains with a sufficient
| pressure, the city commissioners in
| putting on-a campaign of investigation
| to \quell the disrepute into which the
| water department has fallen.
Following an investigation of several
| days, during which time many en-
ployes of the plant, and others having
a knowledge Of the work at the plant
| were interviewed and asked what they
knew regarding the blot cast upon
| the city, the commissioners decided to
visit the plant. An interview with
Louie Poison, who is a labor foreman
| at the plant and who has been con-
nected with it for about twenty-five
| years, may have been the cause of
| the commissioners visiting the plant.
Poison was angry. 1t was his idea
that an attempt was being made to
cast reflections on the work and char
acter of the men at the plant who,
he alleged, were doing all in their
power. He asked the commissioners
| to come oat to the plant and look
| around for themselves and find out
to their own satisfaction what was
being done. Commissioners Tandy,
Porter, WATSON, Newland, Superin-
tendent Shaw, Engineer Hopper and a
State journal reporter formed the
party of investigation.
House in Statement.
This morning Mayor House made a
statement which covers practically all
| that came up on the investigation tour
The statement follows:
For some weeks fnsidieus prop
| aganda concerning the quality of the water
furnished by the city pumping plant has
been carried in Topeka. 1t has beer
freely asserted, and is believed by many
| has been provided by turning the river into
the mains. This theory of the situation
| apparently has been based the fact that
under the former management of the plant
the present superintendent increased ths
pressure almost from the first day he tool
charge, and has since not only maintained
it, but improved it. The propaganda hereir
The condition Of the water is one of vita
Importance to every citizen of Topeka
KNOWING. this. the city commission, has
rumors, and has made painstaking inves
tigation of conditions Mt the plant. w,
reach the following conclusion:
| Better Supply Now.
Increased water supply seems due t.
three contributing causes. The first o.
these is better handling of the machinery
and men at the plant The present super
intendent Of the water plant. q. E. Hopper
is an erecting engineer of long experience
familiar With the water problems of thi
section of the country. He has thus beer
able to greatly increase the efficiency a
increased water supply lies in the fact tina
many of the wells in the river have beel
| cleaned since he took charge of it. A goo,
deal of the water supply of the city o
Topeka is derived from points driven int
tom of these points and is filtered thru
| strainer attached to the lower end of tn
point. These strainers in the course o
years become logged and the flow o
water thru them is thereby greatly les
Ten tnns Of these points have bee
|
greatly increased. Another and minor con
tributing cause is that well No. 1 has bee
from time TO time filled with river waite
and allowed to filter into adjoining well,
This filtering process is the same as tina
of the filtering sand is the same. Summe
up, the present increased and ample waite
supply may be traced to these three causes
Bacterial Mystery.
| The presence of bacterial disturbance 4
the water is as vet a mystery which ha
so far eluded our own bacteriologist an
f Rnt thn on ,Pe S{aIe
is now in operation at the plant obviate
any further alarm that account. TIL
water situation is better than 1t has bee
for years. and due to the chlorinator
reaches the consumer free from all bac
terial disturbance"
Superintendent Jesse Shaw was pre-
vailed upon by the commissioners t.
make a statement which might go
long ways in allaying the attitude o
suspicion which has been allowed t.
develop regarding the city's water
The statement is as follows:
II have made a complete and thoro ex
animation of existing conditions at the wa
ter plant, with special reference to tn
| question of whether river waater was be
ing pumped into the mains, and find tina
I there is no connection thru which rive
1 water could be pumped.
"A line from the suction pipes, connect
ed with the well point system. thru whicl
water might be taken. was found in tn
| same condition in which 1 left it: namely
the end of the pipe plugged. so that rive
water could not be taken thru this line.
I'm the progress of the construction worl
and change of suction lines, in connection
with the Installation of low service pumps
the suction pipe taking water from wei
number one, being the well into whicl
water may be taken direct from the river
has been entirely disconnected. and par