120 THE STORY OF THE BACTERIA. 



danger of the spread of this disease becomes 

 of great importance. 



The great water supply of the city of New 

 York, the Croton, is of this character. The 

 water comes from a large territory known as 

 the Croton water-shed, and is naturally a very 

 good water supply indeed ; but along the 

 streams and reservoirs which collect the water 

 are numerous villages and scattered dwelling- 

 houses. While some attempt is made to keep 

 the banks of the water-ways free from sources 

 of sewage and waste contamination, as they 

 are largely private property this is not ade- 

 quately done, and at any time an epidemic of 

 typhoid fever in houses or villages along the 

 Croton streams and lakes would be liable to 

 cause a dangerous contamination of our city 

 supply. 



There are two ways in which this positive 

 danger can be obviated. One is by the pur- 

 chase, by the State, of a strip of land along all 

 the shores of the Croton water system, and 

 the removal to a safe distance of all possible 

 sources of contamination. 



Another means of security, which, perhaps, 



