PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESSES. 43 



good for laundry use and for boilers. Owing to the necessity for large 

 storage to tide over a dry season, it is not suited to general public use, 

 although cisterns are often built in small towns for fire protection. 



From what has been said, one would conclude that, as a rule, cis- 

 tern water is not well suited for drinking, and that its value for drink- 

 ing or for fire protection is inversely proportional to the size of the 

 city or town in which it is collected. 



The second available source of water-supply in southeastern Kan- 

 sas, namely, ground- waters, includes water of deep and shallow wells 

 and water from springs. Deep wells are not possible in the greater jjor- 

 tion of southeastern Kansas, as oil and salt water are found. The 

 majority of the people rely on shallow wells for their drinking-water. 

 In the country, with due care to prevent contamination, these are very 

 satisfactory. They are liable to receive seepage and drainage from 

 the surface down, and, therefore, in cities and villages are to be avoided. 

 One may be careful of his own house, drainage, and sewage, but one 

 cannot control the house drainage of a careless neighbor. That 

 ground- waters are affected by the presence of people is shown by in- 

 vestigations in Massachusetts. These show that 100 persons to the 

 square mile increase the normal chlorine of the district by 0.5 parts 

 per million. 



The users of wells rely on the powers of the earth as a filter. The 

 earth is a good filter, but must not be used beyond its limits. It has 

 been shown that sewage thrown continuously on the ground in the 

 same place will very quickly saturate the earth with impurities, and 

 then contamination will be carried long distances, especially if the 

 seepage finds an underground passage. A case is on record of 

 typhoid germs being carried a mile underground, then contaminating 

 a spring, causing a serious outbreak of the fever. ( Lausanne, Switz- 

 erland). 



Intermittent additions of sewage to the same spot, allowing time 

 for the air to come in contact with the earth, will be satisfactorily 

 filtered, for the earth allows the growth of bacteria which, in the pres- 

 ence of air, destroy the organic matter and the harmful germs. 



Wells that have been used a long time are usually considered safe. 

 Again and again I have been told that a well under examination has 

 been used for years, causing no illnesses. These wells sometimes 

 contain diluted sewage from healthy sources as a result of small seep- 

 age. These sources may at any time become contaminated and danger- 

 ous. Diluted sewage containing no pathogenic germs may be drunk 

 with impunity. Still more safely can a perfectly treated sewage be 

 taken internally. When people are offered such sewage, though they 

 are told that it is perfectly germ free, yet they hesitate to drink. 



