Wellington Philosophical Society. 583 
Sevento Meerine. 80th November, 1879. 
J. Carruthers, M. Inst. C.E., Vice-president, in the chair. 
1. “On the Cleansing of Towns," by J. Turnbull Thomson, O.E., 
F.R.G.S., F.R.S.8.A., Surveyor-General of New Zealand. (Transactions, 
p. 38.) 
Mr. Field thought that credit was due to Mr. Thomson for bringing before the New 
Zealand public in a concise and handy form the opinions of Sir John Bazalgette and 
other eminent English engineers. He regretted, however, that the Surveyor-General had 
not made any allusion to the sewage farm and irrigation works of Bedford, a town 
which in point of size as well as in many other particulars closely resembled the 
City of Wellington. As was well known, Mr. Climie had, in his report, recommended 
that the sewage of the whole city should be ciegos on the low land at the south-west 
corner of Evans Bay. Mr. Clark also had, in general terms, agreed in this opinion. But 
various objections were raised, and hitherto nothing had been done. He remembered, 
when he was last in Bedford, in the autumn of 1876, carefully going over the sewage 
farm, and being much pleased with the excellent system of drainage in that town. 
Previous to the year 1868 the beautiful river Ouse had been poisoned by imperfect drains ; 
but for the last eight or nine years a complete system of water, sewerage, and irrigation 
works had been in existence, with highly satisfactory results. Through the centre of the 
town ran one main sewer, receiving in its course the discharge of the lateral drains, and 
emptying the whole into a tank 17 feet deép, from which it was pumped up and distributed 
by pipes over the irrigation farm. This farm of 180 acres was rented by the Corporation 
at the high rate of £1,000 (about) per annum, but this charge was more than repaid by 
the produce, which, on the lowest average, would sell at more than £1,500, in addition 
io which some grass land was sublet for £200, thus bringing the total annual receipts to 
£1,700 odd. Italian rye grass and roots of various descriptions formed the principal 
crops, and grew with a remarkable luxuriance. As to what had been said with regard to 
the stench arising from sewage farms, he could from personal observation assert that Mr. 
Thomson was entirely mistaken, and that, except in very rare instances, no offensive 
odour could at any time be detected l 
Mr. O’Neill considered the paper a very valuable one, but hoped there would be an 
opportunity afforded of renewing the discussion ; the subject was a very wide one, and 
he was not prepared to enter upon it on the present occasion. 
Dr. Newman said that very little real progress had been made in the last ten years 
in our sanitary knowledge. A great deal was talked and written about the subject, but 
no fresh light had been thrown on the matter for some years past. He thought the 
subject was talked threadbare. All our experience had taught us was that there were 
only two systems—the wet and the dry. In the Sahara and similar districts the wet 
system was impossible, but where, as in Wellington, there was abundance of water and 
good outlet, there was no question but that the only way was to cast it into the sea. A 
sewage farm had never yet been made to pay. It was a great error to suppose that 
sewage was very profitable; it was really almost valueless, and the products of precipi- 
tation not worth the cost of carting. Food, such as bread and meat, ete., if buried, might 
sewage was almost worthless. One modern improvement was the use of ement pipe 
instead of earthenware pipes. 
