ON THE CIRCULATION OF UNDERGROUND WATERS. 65 



those adjoining the more densely crowded centres, becomes keener and keener, 

 and the parliamentary and other preliminary expenses larger and larger. 

 Rival townships after severe competition obtain the whole of the water 

 rights of a district to the exclusion of those who, from apathy, ignorance, or 

 want of funds, neglected to claim a portion of the supply naturally belong- 

 ing to them. 



The Local Government Board and Parliamentary inquiries at the best 

 only endeavour to ascertain whether any water-scheme laid before them is 

 likely to fulfil the particular objects proposed ; and they have no means of 

 judging whether it is the best scheme, or whether it will interfere with the 

 interests of other districts who may not be represented. To take two cases 

 in point : — 



Tho urban sanitary district of Pemberton, near Wigan, with 10,374 

 inhabitants, situated on the Coal-measures, has suffered much from an in- 

 adequate supply of water. After much opposition in Parliament, an Act has 

 been obtained to construct reservoirs to impound waters flowing off cultivated 

 land, and consequently belonging to that class considered suspicious by the 

 Rivers Pollution Commission. 



In the adjoining urban sanitary district of Ashton-in-Makerficld, with a 

 population of 7463, situated on the Pebble Beds of the New Red Sandstone, 

 which at present gives a very inefficient supply of water from shallow and 

 dangerous wells, an Act of Parliament has been obtained, after much cost, 

 opposition, and litigation, to construct works to obtain surface-water from 

 adjoining cultivated land on the Coal-measures, which will, moreover, neces- 

 sitate constant pumping. 



Colliery-shafts sunk in the New Red Sandstone and Permian formations 

 south of this district yield an almost inexhaustible supply of pure water ; and 

 your Committee cannot but feel it a matter of regret that this source of 

 supply should be so systematically disregarded, which could not be the case 

 were the Local Government Board empowered to see that districts choose 

 the purest water and cheapest scheme available in a given area. 



The supply of New Red water just referred to, east of Ashton and 

 Golborne &c, may possibly be made available for the additional supply of 

 Liverpool, the water-pipes of which borough pass through the district in 

 question from Rivington. 



Your Committee are of opinion that it is desirable that they should con- 

 tinue to inquire into areas where New Red and Permian water may be 

 obtained by means of deep wells. 



That, looking to the national importance of utilizing the underground 

 waters of England, it is desirable that the sphere of their inquiry should be 

 extended so as to include the Oolites, which the results obtained by the Rivers 

 Pollution Committee prove contain an almost inexhaustible supply of pure 

 water, which is not made available for the supply of the population living 

 upon it until it is hopelessly contaminated with sewerage. 



That the result of their labours since the formation of the Commission 

 has been to prove that there is an available daily supply of water from the 

 New Red Sandstone and Permian of England of not less than 3600 million 

 gallons of water, the quality of which is remarkably free from organic im- 

 purity, and the hardness of which does not in tbe least appear to affect the 

 health of the population at present taking their supply from it, the death- 

 rate of this area comparing well with the best soft-water district. 



1877. 



