CHAPTER V 



THE SUPPLY AND USES OF WATER 

 I. THE WATER SUPPLY 



73. The uses of water in the household are many, such as for 

 cooking, cleansing, carrying away waste matter from the house 

 to the sewer or cesspool, heating by hot water or by steam, 

 furnishing power for small motors in laundry or churn, cool- 

 ing directly or by the use of ice in the refrigerator, watering 

 garden and lawn, sprinkling dusty paths, and so on. The 

 uses in the home have been rapidly multiplying in recent 

 years, and this has made necessary a significant change in the 

 sources and control of the supply. 



The average daily quantity of water used in such ways is aston- 

 ishingly large. If we include with the domestic uses those of 

 the community at large, for sewage and sanitary purposes, 

 fires, water power, manufacturing, transportation, fountains, 

 and general waste, the total quantity used by a community 

 reaches an almost unbelievable amount. 



A few years ago a single well or spring supplied the needs of 

 several families; to-day such a supply would be insufficient 

 for a single family. It has been estimated that the average 

 quantity used for each individual was formerly between two 

 and three gallons a day. To-day the average daily consump- 

 tion for each individual in a community of moderate size is 

 nearly thirty-five gallons. In manufacturing cities and towns 

 the mean daily consumption for each person reaches approxi- 

 mately one hundred gallons. 



186 



