﻿HYDROLOGY 
  OF 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  557 
  

  

  ciation 
  and 
  of 
  the 
  Society 
  for 
  the 
  Protection 
  of 
  the 
  Adirondack^ 
  

   and 
  are 
  actually 
  interested 
  in 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  these 
  associations. 
  

  

  People 
  owning 
  cottages 
  on 
  the 
  margins 
  of 
  natural 
  lakes 
  likely 
  

   to 
  be 
  made 
  into 
  reservoirs 
  object 
  very 
  strongly 
  on 
  the 
  ground 
  

   that 
  the 
  raising 
  of 
  the 
  water 
  will 
  be 
  prejudicial 
  to 
  health. 
  On 
  

   this 
  point 
  the 
  writer 
  can 
  not 
  but 
  think 
  that 
  the 
  popular 
  opinion 
  

   is 
  based 
  on 
  misinformation, 
  although 
  it 
  is 
  freely 
  admitted 
  that 
  

   the 
  Adirondack 
  region 
  is 
  now 
  extremely 
  healthful 
  and 
  the 
  State 
  

   ought 
  not 
  to 
  either 
  do 
  anything 
  itself, 
  nor 
  permit 
  anything 
  to 
  be 
  

   done 
  which 
  would 
  deteriorate 
  it. 
  The 
  popular 
  view, 
  however, 
  

   that 
  the 
  construction 
  of 
  reservoirs 
  must 
  necessarily, 
  produce 
  

   unhealthful 
  conditions 
  is 
  thus 
  far 
  not 
  sustained 
  by 
  any 
  consider- 
  

   able 
  amount 
  of 
  well-attested 
  facts. 
  The 
  writer 
  is 
  disposed 
  to 
  look 
  

   upon 
  such 
  view 
  as 
  largely 
  a 
  fad. 
  Indeed, 
  he 
  has 
  taken 
  special 
  

   pains 
  to 
  study 
  the 
  question 
  both 
  in 
  this 
  country 
  and 
  abroad, 
  and 
  

   has 
  thus 
  far 
  to 
  learn 
  of 
  a 
  case 
  where 
  well-attested 
  facts 
  show 
  that 
  

   any 
  considerable 
  amount 
  of 
  ill 
  health 
  has 
  been 
  caused 
  by 
  properly 
  

   constructed 
  reservoirs. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  Adirondack 
  region, 
  where 
  at 
  the 
  heads 
  of 
  nearly 
  all 
  the 
  

   lakes 
  there 
  are 
  now 
  extensive 
  marsh 
  areas, 
  the 
  conditions 
  will 
  be 
  

   materially 
  improved 
  by 
  cutting 
  the 
  timber 
  and 
  covering 
  the 
  marsh 
  

   areas 
  with 
  water, 
  the 
  more 
  especially 
  when 
  the 
  new 
  water 
  surface 
  

   is 
  high 
  enough 
  to 
  cover 
  the 
  entire 
  marsh 
  area, 
  a 
  condition 
  which 
  in 
  

   the 
  majority 
  of 
  cases 
  may 
  be 
  easily 
  attained. 
  Moreover, 
  the 
  Adiron- 
  

   dack 
  lakes 
  and 
  ponds 
  have 
  at 
  their 
  sides 
  mostly 
  sand, 
  gravel, 
  

   boulder 
  or 
  natural 
  rock 
  beaches, 
  on 
  which 
  the 
  annual 
  fluctuation 
  

   can 
  have 
  absolutely 
  no 
  effect. 
  The 
  marsh 
  areas 
  are 
  usually 
  in 
  the 
  

   continuation 
  of 
  the 
  valleys 
  at 
  the 
  heads 
  of 
  the 
  lakes. 
  As 
  just 
  

   stated, 
  as 
  soon 
  as 
  we 
  attain 
  an 
  elevation 
  of 
  about 
  1800 
  feet, 
  July 
  

   is 
  practically 
  the 
  only 
  month 
  without 
  frost; 
  but 
  the 
  reservoirs 
  

   will 
  ordinarily 
  be 
  full 
  or 
  nearly 
  full 
  of 
  water 
  during 
  July. 
  It 
  is 
  

   mostly 
  only 
  in 
  the 
  cooler 
  months 
  of 
  September 
  and 
  October 
  that 
  

   the 
  conditions 
  of 
  runoff 
  are 
  such 
  as 
  to 
  require 
  their 
  being 
  greatly 
  

   drawn 
  down. 
  There 
  seems 
  little 
  reason 
  to 
  doubt, 
  therefore, 
  but 
  

   that 
  the 
  effect 
  of 
  constructing 
  the 
  reservoirs 
  will 
  be, 
  on 
  the 
  whole, 
  

   to 
  increase 
  the 
  healthfulness 
  of 
  the 
  region 
  by 
  doing 
  away 
  with 
  

   numerous 
  marsh 
  areas 
  which 
  are 
  now, 
  during 
  the 
  warm 
  weather, 
  

   possibly 
  the 
  source 
  of 
  malarial 
  influences. 
  

  

  