Sanitary Science. 459 



down in this paper. At our Native Location, on economical, sani- 

 tary, or efficiency grounds, I am certain that the present system in 

 vogue is superior to any conservancy system yet devised. At our 

 Municipal Sanitary Site, the same advantages are being proved, but 

 I must admit that I should have liked my work there to have had 

 a longer test before writing about it. As regards O'Brien's Closet, 

 I pointed out that it is the least offensive earth closet that I have 

 met, and I believe that if universally adopted this method could be 

 worked cheaper than the ordinary pail system, but I have stated 

 that I cannot yet recommend its general use. 



You will agree, I think, from the details I have here given 

 you, that the Pails System, as carried out in this country, is capable 

 of very great improvement, and that it is only right for the comfort 

 and well-being of all concerned that where it is intended to continue 

 such a system every effort should be made to conduct it upon 

 the best possible lines. I have carefully refrained from arbitrary 

 details ; they can be varied and still be correct. It is the principle 

 which I feel is not sufficiently well known, upon which all stress 

 should be laid. It must ever be remembered that to mix liquid of 

 any description with solid excrement is dangerous, disgusting, and 

 complicating, and has caused deaths incalculable, both through cess- 

 pools and sewers. It is, I think, entirely unnecessary to discourse 

 further on the method herein alluded to, for I am certain that if 

 any one of you will but experiment in a proper manner upon the 

 lines laid down, you will be astonished with the success that will 

 be achieved. 



So far my paper has only dealt with the disposal of solid 

 excrement, and may consequently be considered incomplete without 

 some reference to the disposal of urine and slop water. It is not 

 my intention, however, to deal with these matters at length now. 

 Suffice it to say that at my Latrines in our Native Location the 

 urine is most satisfactorily dealt with in the soft wood sawdust, 

 being ultimately buried as a solid manure. In the O'Brien Closet, 

 too, it is received into a receptacle under the perforated pail into a 

 mixture supplied by the patentee, and clauses no offence. Several 

 successful filtering urinals have been devised, and some are even 

 in use in this country and Australia, and in the Northern Countries 

 of Europe, where it has been found impossible to adopt the water- 

 carriage system, and the question of improving their other methods 

 has been directly forced home to the people. 



As regards the removal and disposal of slop-water, if other 

 means are found impracticable, a partial or complete system of slop 

 sewers could be adopted, which could be far less intricate, far 

 less expensive, than sewers to take solid sewage, and could also be 

 made self-cleansing without requiring clean water to flush them. 

 The argument that if sewers be constructed they may be made 

 to take everything, is wrong, for then, as I have tried to point out 

 throughout this paper, our troubles would begin, and it is difficult 

 to say when or where they would end. I do not wish it to be 



