Section III, 1917 [17] Trans. R.S.C. 



The Radioactivity of Some Ca^iadian Mineral Springs. 

 By Dr. J. Satterly, F. R.S.C, and R. T. Elworthy, B.Sc. 

 (Published by permission of the Director, Mines Branch.) 



It has always been stated that the beneficial therapeutic effects 

 obtained at many spas and mineral springs in Europe were greater 

 than could be accounted for by the chemical constituents of the waters. 

 Soon after the discovery that many natural waters contained radio- 

 active substances this fact was put forward in explanation of their 

 value and many investigations on the radioactivity of mineral springs 

 in Europe and the United States were carried out. A bibliography 

 of most of the principal work on this subject is given in a report on 

 the radioactivity of Canadian Mineral Springs, soon to be published 

 by the Mines Branch. 



Only two groups of Canadian springs have been examined prev- 

 ious to this work which forms part of an investigation on the mineral 

 springs of Canada undertaken by the Mines Branch in 1914. 



Professor Eve, in 1910, published the results of work on the 

 Caledonia Springs, Ontario (Trans. Roy. Soc. Can. 1910-4-iii-53) 

 and in 1913 Dr. R. W. Boyle and Professor D. Mcintosh examined 

 springs at Banff, Fairmount and Sinclair, Alberta (Trans. Roy. 

 Soc. Can. 1913, Sec. iii, 153). This paper is based on the results of 

 work on sixty springs and deep well waters in Eastern Ontario and 

 Western Quebec. 



Three centres were selected; the chemical laboratories of the 

 Mines Branch, Ottawa; at Caledonia Springs, Ontario and the 

 Macdonald physics building at McGill University, Montreal, to which 

 samples of water and gas evolved from the springs in the vicinity 

 of these centres were brought for testing. Measurements of the 

 radium emanation content were carried out with as little delay as 

 possible, the necessary corrections being made to allow for the decay 

 of emanation. For the examination of the waters for the dissolved 

 radium salts and for chemical analysis, samples of twenty to forty 

 litres were sent to Ottawa. Observations of temperatures, rate of 

 flow, and the general surroundings of the springs were made at the 

 time of collection of the samples. If gases were evolved from the 

 waters samples were collected both for analysis and for estimation of 

 radioactive constituents. 



Sec. Ill, Sig. 2 



