10 



general way. Ordinarily, it is impossible to tell from the ap- 

 pearance, taste and odor of a well water whether it is safe for 

 drinking or not. A clarified sewage in an ordinary glass may be 

 clear and colorless and may have no very marked odor and is 

 often not to be distinguished from spring water. The senses 

 are wholly unreliable when it comes to deciding whether a 

 water of good appearance and free from taste and odor is safe 

 for drinking or not. On the other hand, if a well water which 

 has usually been satisfactory becomes suddenly objectionable 

 to taste and smell its use should be discontinued until an 

 examination has been made. 



Unpolluted waters are not usually affected by objectionable 

 tastes and odors, though even to this rule there are exceptions, 

 since quite often waters derived from hardpan soils have at 

 times a noticeable taste and odor, even though analysis shows 

 that the water is not polluted or otherwise objectionable for 

 domestic use. 



The sudden appearance of turbidity or color in a water 

 which has always apparently been clear and colorless is also 

 good cause for suspicion of the quality of the water even though 

 it is free from taste and odor, and a water which becomes sud- 

 denly turbid or colored should not be used until its safety has 

 been ascertained. 



If the well is so located that there is no danger of pollution 

 from sewage or other objectionable matter, slight changes in 

 the quality of the water need cause no serious alarm. There 

 are undoubtedly a great many cases in this State where a farm 

 well is not located in such a way that its water can be used 

 with safety for drinking, and in such cases a new supply is a 

 necessity. 



As to the best method of obtaining a new supply, it is im- 

 practicable to lay down any definite rules, since circumstances 

 vary so widely from place to place that a rule by which a good 

 well might be secured in one place would not produce satisfac- 

 tory results in the next. 



In the sandy and gravelly regions — found mostly in the 

 southeastern parts of the State, but to a considerable extent in 

 the river valleys of the central and western portions — it is 

 usually not difficult to secure ground water in large quantity 



