The Nelson Evening Mail. THURSDAY, MAY 9, 1867.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume II, Issue 107, 9 May 1867, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. THURSDAY, MAY 9, 1867.

We ivould strougly advise any individual in the community who may be sceptical as to tlie imperfections of our present system of sewerage, to descend into the cutting which is now being made in Bridge-street, and we are verj much mistaken if his olfactory organs do not immediately detect the presence of a very powerful and most offensive odour, so strong, indeed, as to have been at first mistaken by the workmen for kerosine. This, no doubt, arises from the percolation of the town drainage, with its concomitant impurities, through the soil; and our readers will not be slow in forming a similar inference to that which suggested itself to our mind when this foul odour was first brought uuder our notice, with regard to the water drunk by the inhabitants of the city generally.' It is a matter of notoriety that the researches of Dr. Snow, in 1854, traced the appalling mortality in a very populous district in London to the use of water taken from a particular pump. which was supplied from a well tainted by sewage. There can, iu fact, be no more certain way of procuring an extension of an epidemic of cholera than by supplying a population with water so befouled. What is important to understand is, that no ordinary external signs of smell, taste, or color may betray the contamination. On the contrary, wells which are most thoroughly tainted by soakage supply frequently a water which is peculiarly palatable. The nitrates and chlorates which are at once the product and the index of putrefactive organic poisoning add a certain sparkle and a not unpleasant flavor to the water; so that the most dangerous pumps are often the most attractive and have a wide popularity. The warning is one which ought to be taken to heart, and pump water generally will be best avoided, unless it be certain that the wells supplying it do not draw from the soakage area, but are deeply sunk and yield pure water. To ascertain this accurately requires a certain chemical skill ; but a simple way of examining water is to allow it to stand for some days in corked bottles, exposed to light, and in a tolerably warm place. Water that will not bear the test of standing should be rejected at once. Many persons can use a microscope who cannot test water chemically. Good clean water shows no microscopic objects; if the signs of organic matter are clear, water may be rejected at once. The means of applying tests for estimating organic matter in water in reference especially to sanitary purposes are clearly described in a little pamphlet published by Dr. Angus Smith. In case of doubt, all persons will do well to abstain from pump water.