WATER SUPPLY 333 



(Adapted from Bailey in the Cornell Rural School 

 Leaflet. ) 



Reference: Farmers' Bulletin, 229. 



LESSON XCVI 



THE WATEE SUPPLY 



We are likely to have little rainfall in August and our 

 attention is often called to the quality as well as the 

 quantity of our water supply. 



Pure water. There is nothing of more importance 

 to the health, comfort, and convenience of a farm and 

 household than an abundant supply of pure water. It 

 is not easy to find absolutely pure water. Some of the 

 impurities in drinking water are harmless; others are 

 very injurious. The most dangerous impurities in water 

 are the minute plant forms, called bacteria. One kind of 

 bacteria occasionally found in drinking water, causes the 

 typhoid fever. It is impossible to judge by the appear- 

 ance or taste, whether water contains these dangerous 

 bacteria. It may be perfectly clear and have the finest 

 taste, and yet be unsafe to drink. 



Sources of drinking water are: 1. Springs. Spring 

 water is almost always pure if the spring is deep and a 

 good distance from foul places, such as barnyards and 

 open drains. 



2. Lakes and reservoirs. Water supplied to cities is 

 often taken from rivers and lakes, and purified to a cer- 

 tain extent and stored in reservoirs. If there is any 

 doubt about the purity of the city water, people are ad- 

 vised to boil it in order to kill all the dangerous bacteria. 



