Annual Conference on National Water Supply, Sewage and Health 1879 (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1879 Excerpt: ...In the admirable Fifth Report of Mr. Simon, an abstract is given of the history of no loss than 146 epidemics of typhoid fever investigated by his department during the four years 1870-3. In all these cases great excremental pollution of air or water--generally of both--was found. Since then several very remarkable outbreaks of the same kind have been investigated by the Local Government Board with tho same result. These reports may bo broadly divided into three sections, those Bhowing tho impurity to be imparted (1.) at the Bource; (2.) in transit from the source to the reservoirs; (3.) when stored in tanks or cisterns. It will be obvious that the two last dangers concern town water only, i.e., that delivered in pipes to the several houses. The first mentioned source of impurity is, therefore, the ono which wo most commonly find as concerned in rural districts with the spread of typhoid fever. In country pise. wells are not uncommonly found in close juxtaposition with privies, and soakage from the line to the former inevitably ensues. The water Eit perhaps be drunk for a long time without any grave danger to health, but as soon as the iniecoor. of typhoid fever gets into the well most serioosresults follow. Thus, at Hawkesbury Upton, wh.oh is situated upon fissured oolite, the sewage u discharged into the fissures, Into the same fisrored rock are sunk the wells, and when a case of eaten: fever occurred at the top of the village the disea spread through the whole village through the medium of the privies and wells. The use of brook water again, when infected with the conUgium of enteric fever, has been proved in innnmerable instances to have been the cause of epidemif of the disease. Perhaps one of the most convincing cases of this sort occurred at the orph...