860 PROCEEDINGS OF SECTION J. 



can be found within a reasonable distance of a town. To 

 arrive as near this perfection as possible, filtration must be 

 resorted to. In a small community the extra cost of con- 

 structing filter-beds would be a serious item. People should, 

 as a rule, possess a house-filter for purifying water used 

 exclusively for drinking, but it is not every cottager who can 

 afford even this simple luxury. Means might be devised 

 with no great difficulty for supplying filtered water in separate 

 tanks, placed in different parts of a township, so that those 

 requiring it should make it their duty to obtain it. Ordinary 

 iron tanks, erected on staging, might be so arranged, and 

 internally fitted with frames holding the filtrating medium. 

 The water could flow into one tank automatically by a self- 

 acting ball-tap, and passing the filter rise by a syphoned pipe 

 into an adjoining cistern, from whence it would be drawn off 

 in the ordinary manner, or it could be drawn direct from the 

 filter tank. Unless the case is exceptional, it would not be 

 necessary to filter the whole of the water supply of a small 

 country town. The mains, however, should be regularly 

 scoured out at all convenient points where deposit is likely 

 to settle and accumulate. 



Where a supply fails in a township and expensive methods 

 have to be resorted to in obtaining it, the water as a con- 

 sequence is sparingly used when most needed, and moreover, 

 being kept stagnant, is liable to become unwholesome. It is 

 desirable therefore that some action should be taken by the 

 central government, and liberal assistance offered to local 

 bodies to place the small municipalities on a fair footing with 

 larger and more wealthy towns. 



During the year 1890 the Tasmanian Legislature passed 

 an Act cited as " The Local Public Works Loan Act." This 

 empowers the Governor in Council to grant loans for water 

 supphes, among other objects, to any pubhc body having the 

 charge of such works. These works must be approved of by 

 Parliament, and plans and specifications, together with an 

 estimate of cost, are to be previously submitted to the 

 Engineer-in-Chief for his report. Lately one or two munici- 

 palities have taken advantage of this Act and have bestirred 

 themselves to obtain better and more permanent supplies of 

 water for domestic and other uses ; and now that a start has 

 been made the difficulty of convincing others to entertain 

 similar proposals will probably be less than heretofore. The 

 Treasurer is authorised to issue any sums of money as required, 

 under the aforesaid conditions, out of moneys raised by the 



