﻿HYDROLOGY 
  OP 
  NEW 
  YORK 
  715 
  

  

  quantities, 
  although 
  disagreeable, 
  is 
  not 
  specially 
  unhealthful, 
  

   nevertheless 
  excessive 
  hardness 
  taken 
  in 
  conjunction 
  with 
  sul- 
  

   phureted 
  hydrogen 
  produces 
  unsatisfactory 
  water 
  and 
  the 
  writer 
  

   would 
  hesitate 
  to 
  recommend 
  a 
  water 
  supply 
  containing 
  large 
  

   amounts 
  of 
  sulphur 
  eted 
  hydrogen, 
  with 
  a 
  high 
  degree 
  of 
  hardness, 
  

   if 
  it 
  were 
  possible 
  to 
  obtain 
  anything 
  else. 
  Such 
  a 
  water, 
  in 
  short, 
  

   should 
  only 
  be 
  used 
  as 
  a 
  last 
  resort. 
  

  

  On 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  in 
  Illinois 
  and 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  other 
  western 
  

   States, 
  a 
  very 
  large 
  proportion 
  of 
  the 
  water 
  supplies 
  is 
  derived 
  

   from 
  wells. 
  We 
  conclude, 
  therefore, 
  that 
  broadly, 
  the 
  question 
  as 
  

   to 
  whether 
  a 
  well 
  supply 
  is 
  either 
  desirable 
  or 
  possible, 
  is 
  deter- 
  

   mined 
  largely 
  by 
  locality. 
  

  

  In 
  regard 
  to 
  special 
  conditions 
  at 
  Lockport 
  a 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  

   wells 
  have 
  been 
  drilled, 
  not 
  only 
  within 
  the 
  city 
  limits 
  but 
  in 
  

   the 
  surrounding 
  country. 
  A 
  considerable 
  number 
  of 
  these 
  wells 
  

   are 
  reviewed 
  in 
  detail 
  and 
  none 
  of 
  them 
  yields 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  few 
  

   thousand 
  gallons 
  of 
  water 
  per 
  day 
  — 
  usually, 
  from 
  a 
  few 
  hundred 
  

   to 
  two 
  thousand 
  or 
  three 
  thousand 
  gallons 
  is 
  the 
  limit. 
  One 
  of 
  

   the 
  wells 
  is 
  reported 
  to 
  have 
  flowed 
  when 
  originally 
  bored 
  in 
  1888. 
  

   At 
  the 
  present 
  time 
  the 
  water 
  stands 
  permanently 
  from 
  ten 
  to 
  

   twelve 
  feet 
  below 
  the 
  surface. 
  This 
  fact 
  indicates 
  a 
  permanent 
  

   reduction 
  of 
  ground 
  water 
  of 
  that 
  amount 
  in 
  fifteen 
  years. 
  

  

  Moreover, 
  the 
  source 
  of 
  all 
  the 
  water, 
  either 
  upon 
  the 
  surface 
  

   or 
  within 
  the 
  ground, 
  is 
  the 
  rainfall. 
  The 
  average 
  rainfall 
  of 
  the 
  

   western 
  plateau, 
  which 
  includes 
  western 
  New 
  York 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  

   valley 
  of 
  Seneca 
  lake, 
  is 
  for 
  the 
  twelve 
  years 
  from 
  1891 
  to 
  1902, 
  

   inclusive, 
  37.03 
  inches, 
  but 
  the 
  rainfall 
  at 
  Rochester 
  for 
  the 
  year 
  

   1888 
  was 
  only 
  27.34 
  inches, 
  while 
  in 
  the 
  preceding 
  year 
  of 
  1887 
  it 
  

   was 
  only 
  20.61 
  inches. 
  We 
  had, 
  therefore, 
  two 
  years 
  of 
  low 
  rain- 
  

   fall, 
  the 
  rainfall 
  of 
  1887 
  being 
  the 
  lowest 
  for 
  the 
  period 
  of 
  thirty- 
  

   two 
  years 
  during 
  which 
  observations 
  have 
  been 
  kept 
  by 
  the 
  United 
  

   States 
  Weather 
  Bureau 
  at 
  Rochester. 
  If, 
  therefore, 
  this 
  well 
  

   actually 
  flowed 
  in 
  1888, 
  it 
  is 
  certain 
  that 
  the 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  

   wells 
  put 
  down 
  since 
  that 
  time 
  have 
  materially 
  lowered 
  the 
  

   ground 
  water 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  extremely 
  doubtful 
  if 
  now 
  more 
  than 
  

   100,000 
  gallons 
  per 
  day 
  are 
  being 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  ground 
  from 
  

   wells 
  at 
  or 
  near 
  Lockport. 
  It 
  follows, 
  therefore, 
  from 
  the 
  known 
  

   facts 
  of 
  wells 
  at 
  and 
  about 
  Lockport, 
  that 
  there 
  is 
  no 
  possibility 
  

   of 
  obtaining 
  an 
  adequate 
  supply 
  for 
  the 
  city 
  — 
  at 
  any 
  rate, 
  on 
  

   the 
  basis 
  of 
  present 
  use, 
  which 
  as 
  per 
  a 
  statement 
  made 
  by 
  the 
  

   superintendent 
  of 
  waterworks 
  under 
  date 
  of 
  January 
  1, 
  1903, 
  

   is 
  at 
  the 
  average 
  daily 
  rate 
  of 
  4,500,000 
  gallons. 
  

  

  The 
  problem 
  reduced 
  to 
  its 
  simplest 
  terms 
  is 
  this. 
  If 
  the 
  tak- 
  

   ing 
  of 
  perhaps 
  100,000 
  gallons 
  per 
  day 
  has 
  lowered 
  the 
  ground 
  

   water 
  10 
  to 
  12 
  feet 
  in 
  fifteen 
  years, 
  during 
  which 
  time 
  the 
  rainfall 
  

   has 
  been 
  mostly 
  several 
  inches 
  above 
  the 
  average, 
  how 
  much 
  

  

  