202 The Raw Material. [May, 



good as new, without the addition or loss of any material; simply a 

 change in the arrangement of the atoms, 



AVater never exists quite pure in nature ; even the rain absolves 

 the various impurities such as ammonia, carbonic acid, sulphuretted 

 hydrogen, etc. although in country places but a very small quantity 

 of these impurities exist, and rain water caught in clean vessels in 

 such places is very nearly pure. If we wish it perfectly pure, we 

 must distill it with care and bottle it tight. After the water has fall- 

 en upon the earth, it dis.solves many native salts so completely that 

 they will not subside when it is at rest. The amount of these will 

 of course depend upon the nature of the soil. Water flowing over 

 granite and primitive rocks take up but very little foreign matter. 

 Among the purest natural waters hitherto examined is that of the 

 Loka in the north of Sweden, which flows over hard impenetrable 

 granite and other rocks upon which water produces little impression. 

 It contains only one twenty-fifth of a grain (0.0566) of solid min- 

 eral matter in the imperial gallon, while sea water contains 2250. 

 grains in a gallon, or more than 60,000 times as much as it. The 

 Croton water that supplies New York contains 10.93 grains, the 

 Schuylkill, bh grains, that furnished to London, about 30 grains to 

 the gallon. 



Other drinking waters contain even more than these; some which 

 are in constant use contain twice as much : even the waters of the 

 holy Jordan contain 73 grains to the gallon, but generally, in the 

 waters of average purity, which are employed for domestic purposes, 

 there are not present more than from 20 to 30 grains of solid mat- 

 ter in the gallon. Next in purity to rain water comes river water, 

 then the water of lakes, after these common spring waters, and then 

 the water of mineral springs : The waters of the Black sea and sea of 

 Azof, which are only brackish, follovr next ; then those of the great 

 Ocean; then those of the Meditterranian, and last of all comes those 

 of lakes, which, like the Caspian sea, the Dead sea and Lake Aral pos- 

 sess no known outlet. To this category might be added the great 

 Salt Lake of Utah, three barrels of whose water make one of salt. 



The ordinary impurities of spring water are not injurious to its 

 palatable qualities but are decidedly beneficial. Pure distilled water 

 has the mo.st insipid taste of any. The salts contained in spring wa- 

 ter undoubtedly aid in the formation of the solid parts of the animal 

 frame. The list of substances contained in good drinking water is 

 quite a formidable one ; thus, in the waters of the Delaware, we find 



