186 ANNUAL BEPOET 



theria and other diseases. If Minneapolis and St. Paul were to dis- 

 pose of their city cleanings by using the river for a dumping ground, 

 they should be held liable for such conduct. He hoped some action 

 would be taken to prevent this, from the very source of the river it- 

 self to where it empties into the sea 



Mr. Underwood said he had occasion with a small party to take pas- 

 sage in a boat in the summer from St. Paul, and to proceed down the 

 river as far as Lake City. The amount of sediment and offal ob- 

 served on the occasion was something he had not dreamed of He 

 thought something should be done to prevent the father of waters 

 from being polluted in that manner, and used to drain the sewers of 

 these large cities. 



Mr. Gray said when this subject came up before the county society, 

 one of the health officers of the city had met with them and assured 

 them that they should have the co-operation of himself and of the 

 city council in their effort to dispose of city garbage and getting rid 

 of all this filth. That was the question a committee now had before 

 them. It was hoped arrangements could be made with the railroads 

 for removing stable manure to different points near the city where it 

 could be used. He thought street sweepings one of the best fertiliz- 

 ers to be had, and the question was how to get them from the city. 

 Some of the rubbish was of no value. There were questions in re- 

 gard to this subject that required much thought and consideration in 

 order to make any definite proposition to the city council. As a rule 

 aldermen knew very little about the subject of city sanitation, and 

 many of them cared very little about it, either. 



Mr. Cleveland. Mr. President, this discussion has brought to my 

 mind the method considered for the disposal of sewage in Chicaga 

 some years ago. At one time I found some members of my family 

 were suffering, and we attributed it to the use of river water, Since 

 living in this city I began the use of very pure water, brought in from 

 Grlenwood springs. The disease known as winter cholera; we hear of 

 it everywhere; we had it in Chicago in the wiuter of 1880-1; it was 

 an epidemic that was almost universal, and scarcely a family escaped. 

 I hear a great deal of it here, but I have had no case of it in my 

 family. I haven't known a family that used the spring water that 

 have suffered with it. It occurred to me that possibly it might be the 

 river water that caused the winter cholera. 



In Chicago it is claimed the crib is so far out from the shore thatna 

 impurity from the city could reach it, but that never entirely satisfied 

 me; I always felt nervous about the Chicago water. I suggest this 



