42 KANSAS ACADEMY OF SCIENCE. 



sumption and in the durability of boilers will compare with the sav- 

 ing of soap in the household. Therefore, the location of many 

 factories depends not "only on the quantity of the water-supply, but 

 also on the quality. 



The most important general public use is for fire protection. For 

 this purpose the primary need is an abundant supply. An abundant 

 water-supply lowers the rates of insurance, and it is far better to pay 

 a small tax for fire protection of this kind than to pay a heavy insur- 

 ance rate. 



Then, the water serves to sprinkle streets, to water lawns, to flush 

 sewers, to give drinking and ornamental fountains. These uses add 

 to the comfort of the people and to the attractiveness of a city, in- 

 creasing the value of property. 



With the cheap power available throughout the oil and gas region, 

 an abundant supply can be easily obtained for general public use, 

 and with care as to the quality, this supply will also serve the manu- 

 facturer and the household. It must be remembered that the first 

 need is a pure water for drinking ; the second, a water as soft as pos- 

 sible for laundry and boiler use ; third, an abundant supply for flush- 

 ing sewers and for fire protection. 



The water available for water-supplies in southeastern Kansas may 

 be classed as rain-water, ground- water, and surface-water. Let us 

 consider each with reference to its advantages and disadvantages 

 when applied to the various needs of the community. Rain-water — 

 and by that I mean water collected on roofs and stored in cisterns, 

 commonly termed cistern water — is seldom obtained pure. It washes 

 from the air the dust that is blown from the highways and the gases 

 that are present from the fumes of the chimneys of houses, factories, 

 and furnaces. It washes from the collecting surface the dust, excre- 

 ment of birds, and decayed leaves. 



The cistern into which this water flows generally contains a filter 

 of soft brick, which is supposed to remove all impurities. This filter 

 will be effective at first, but it soon becomes saturated with the foul 

 matter removed from the water and is then a breeding-place for bac- 

 teria, and serves to inoculate the water which passes through. 



The rain which falls after the air is washed and the collecting sur- 

 face is cleansed is quite pure. If care be taken to save only this part 

 of the rain-water, water of a satisfactory quality for any purpose will 

 be obtained. Most cisterns have an arrangement by which the first 

 part of a shower can be diverted ; but usually no attention is paid to 

 it, and as Professor Palmer, who conducted the "Chemical Survey 

 of the Waters of Illinois," has said, "It soon reaches a state of noxious 

 desuetude." 



It contains no mineral salts, and hence is soft, and is, therefore, 



