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New Zealand Times, Volume XXXIV, Issue 5656, 16 May 1879, Page 2

In March last we drew attention to the high rate of mortality which the Registrar General’s statistics showed had for several months prevailed in Wellington, and expressed our opinion plainly that this mortality was largely due to the bad water and defective drainage. A lengthy discussion had been conducted in our columns by certain correspondents, who disputed the harmful nature of the water. In view of the unsatisfactory close of the argument, we wrote a private letter to Dr. Hector, requesting him, if time and opportunity allowed, to have a chemical analysis of the water made, pointing out that such an analysis would effectually silence all further dispute. Dr. Hector replied on April Bas folio ws; — ** I shall have << the water in both reservoirs analysed at “ once, and give you a return comparing “ the results with previous analyses.” The result of the chemical analysis made by Dr. Hector was so startling that he deemed it his duty to communicate the facts to the City Council direct; the contents of the communication sent by him to the Council were published by us yesterday morning. The necessity for filter beds of some description has now bean amply proved. The water as coming from the distributing basin during the summer months is quite unfit for domestic use unless boiled or filtered ; and we agree with the opinion expressed by Dr. Grace on this head, that not more than 10 per cent, of the householders of Wellington are careful enough to filter all the water used by them or their children. Whatever may be the ultimate source of the city water supply, there is no time to be lost in taking some energetic stops to ensure the purification of that which is to be used by the citizens during next summer. We believe that scientific people are inclined to favor the use of the water from the Wainuiomata. In that case the watershed would have to bo strictly reserved to the State if the stream was to be kept pure and undefiled for city purposes. A proposal has been mooted to form a State forestry on the watershed of the Wainuiomata, and as this would meet the requirements of the case in every way and the land would also be beneficially cultivated at the same time, the proposal, though at present only crude and undeveloped, might in proper hands be fashioned into a definite, practicable scheme. So far as we can learn, most of the land within the ■ water-shed is of inferior quality, but not so poor as to be unsuitable for growing timber. Under forest the water supply from the land would be at no risk of serious diminution in summer time, and the contaminating influences of live stock would be effectually guarded against. The chemical analyses carried out by Dr. Hector has amply borne out the miscroscopical examination made by the medical men in town some months ago, and we have no doubt that even the most hard-headed upholder of the harmlessness of the reservoir water, will be prepared to admit that he was mistaken, and that the public outcry for filter-beds which arose some months ago could not justly be ascribed to the effects of “ sensation-mon- “ gering.” An evening contemporary was at much pains to disclose the true state of affairs, and the recent analysis has amply borne out the conclusions it deduced from them.