CHAPTER XXIX 



WATER SUPPLY 



QN all Eastern estates the supply of pure water is essential 

 to the health of the staff and labour force. Much sickness 

 would be saved and general mortality greatly reduced if a 

 supply of good water was more general. In manufacturing 

 operations it is exceedingly difficult to produce a high quality 

 of first-grade rubber if unpurified well or river water is used in 

 the processes of washing and manufacture. Filter-beds, such 

 as are used largely in Java and Sumatra, do not give very satis- 

 factory results, as the water is always discoloured and never 

 free from animal and vegetable life. 



What is known as the " Jewell Gravity and Pressure 

 Filter " has been erected on many estates and has given great 

 satisfaction. It is simple in construction, inexpensive, and 

 easily kept in order. It is supplied in various sizes, to pass 

 from 2400 to 250,000 gallons of pure water per day. 



The installation is comparatively simple and may be ex- 

 plained as follows: Whether the water supply is drawn from 

 a well or from a river, a pump which can be worked by the 

 factory engines is required. By means of this pump the water 

 is elevated to a tank usually standing about 20 feet in height 

 from the surface of the ground. The size of this tank, of 

 course, varies according to the water supply desired. At- 

 tached to this tank is the " Jewell " filter, the main features of 

 which are an iron box containing alum, through which the 

 turbid water first passes. By means of gravity the water 

 next passes through a sand bed, contained in an iron cylindrical 

 filter, and emerges clear from a pipe at the foot. A guarantee is 

 given with the filter that it will always supply the stated 

 amount of pure water that will pass the analytical tests of 

 local Government medical authorities. The cost of this system 

 of filtering is extremely moderate. 



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