58 Suggestions for a System of 



any great aggregation of sullage in the lowest levels of Eliza- 

 beth and Swanston streets, and others similarly situated ; 

 there would always be a fall available in that, equal to that 

 of the river itself. If the sewage were conveyed to a reser- 

 voir (commonly called a sumph) in a suitable position (say 

 the bank of the Railway near the Saltwater River) , so con- 

 structed as to be kept, as it were, hermetically closed, I do 

 not know any reason why it might not be pumped to a 

 height sufficient to admit of its being carried alongside the 

 Melbourne and Geelong Railway to a point where its dis- 

 charge into the waters of the Bay would be practically inno- 

 cuous, or where it would be available for agricultural 

 purposes. The pressure of the Yan Yean would furnish force 

 enough to work the most powerful pump that could be 

 required, and at very little expense. 



I am not, of course, competent now to discuss the details 

 of such a plan, nor could any one do so satisfactorily, what- 

 ever might be his professional acquirements, unless he had 

 the necessary levels and other details before him. And, 

 indeed, without such information, it is quite impossible to 

 show that it would be impracticable, whatever assertions may 

 be made to that effect. But if some efficient system of sew- 

 age is really required, it is time that the preliminary infor- 

 mation be obtained. To effect this would, I apprehend, be 

 within the scope of the Melbourne Sewage and Water Com- 

 mission — the first half of their functions seem left in abey- 

 ance — to direct contour levels of the city and its vicinity to 

 be taken, and to inquire whether any scheme, and what, 

 would be most available for our wants. 



Gentlemen, I have brought before you, in a general form, 

 the conclusions arrived at after many years experience by the 

 most eminent authorities in Great Britain, and the applica- 

 tion of those conclusions to our own peculiar requirements is 

 what we most stand in need of. It will be for the people, 

 the parliament, and the government of the day to say how 

 soon that application shall be made. 



There remain three other considerations, to which, before 

 closing this paper (already, I fear, too long), I must advert. 

 The first is the manufacture of the necessary pipes. I am 

 assured, on what I believe, to be competent authority, that 

 within a moderate distance of Melbourne there exists abund- 

 ance of the finest material suitable for such a purpose. What 

 we should require would be the importation of the simple 

 machinery necessary, and of some skilled workmen to con- 



