Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1920-01-29
THAW HELPS WATER,
SAYS Chief DAVIS.
Declares Ice-coated SchuyIkill
Has Retained Gases That
Naturally Form
MAKE MORE TESTS TODAY

The unpalatable condition of the
o;tvis water supply is clearing up rap
div because Of the recent thaw, Chief
nayis. of the Bureau of Water, an
nounced today. go,
river. where 30 per cent Of the supply
is obtained. is partly to blame for the
nnnleasant odor and taste OF the water
noticed recently, according to MIR. Da-
vis. ..-.L, 4.
do gases from decaying vegetation,
which. owing to the ice, cannot escape
s,on, the water. The city's filters eau
not remove gases or liquids, the chief
I'VE know there is continual flow
% waste and sewage into the river"
Mr. Davis declared, ''and we know
there is decaying vegetation matter.
These factors were aggravated by the
ice coating.
Continual Tests Made
Continual tests are being made of
10Th raw and filtered water at the
laboratories at Belmont and Torres
Incidentally, the water bureau head
gave his reasons for the death of fish
IN the river and in the city aquarium.
Fish, he said, take in air through their
rills, expelling it from their mouths.
Because the ice coating prevented
nroner aeration. the chief believes the
ssb aid not obtain sufficient amount Of
oyvgen and virtually suffocated.
"But as persons do not breathe the
rsv fish do" Mr.. Davis continued.
There is no danger to the human family
from that source. and physicians say
tbe infnitesimal amount of gas taken
iTto the stomach through drinking water
is not harmful
Tests of the Schuylkill river water
are beinc made today by the State De-,
nprtment of Health and by the city
water bureau.
MANY miles are being covered by these
tests. which may extend as far as Read
Inc. Above Mauayunk there are many
mills and factories from which liquids
nsed in the various industries pour into
the stresm. On account Of these es-
tahlishments, Chief Davis. said the
river is grossly polluted and should be
abandoned as source of drinking
water.
DIR. Furbush Starts Inspection
Dr. C. Lincoln Furbush, director of
nublic health, today started an iuspec
fion of the Schuylkill river, Jointly with
the state Department of Health aud
municipal Department of Public Works.
The present widespread epidemic of
stomach trouble, the director said, is
probably due to the grip and has no
connection with the disagreeable taste
Of city water.
Stomach trouble, such as we are
experiencing here" added Doctor Fur
BUSH sis also prevalent in other Sec
tions of the country. / know persons
suffering from this malady who have
had nothing but bottled water to drink
This apparently would establish the
fact that the source of the disease is not
the water supply. 1t is probably q
symptom of the mild form of influenza
which is epidemic this winter"
Tests Cover Many Miles
II has been found that very large
amount of water is being wasted. Di-
rector Winston, of the Department oi
Public Works. has ordered the whole
sale flushing of streets stopped for the
present to conserve the supply.
By an extension of the Queen Lane
filters and pumping station, Mr.
Winston said, the city's water supply
will be increased by O,O00, 900 gallons
daily. 1t is most needed in the centra
and southern sections of Philadelphia