74 The Filtration Works for the Improvement oj the 



itself to me, that when you have all these tanks ready and leave 

 them for a month or so, will there not be on the surface an 

 accumulation of animal and other matter of a more or less 

 injurious character ? A serious difficulty and expense is that of 

 getting rid of the impurities that are left in the filter by the 

 process of filtration. I entirely agree with the suggestion of 

 Mr. Greenhill, that we should filter our water at home, and keep 

 our filters thoroughly clean. We should at the point of con- 

 sumption have full control of the filtering process. 



Mr. Richard Patterson — I have visited the filter beds which 

 have been so lucidly described by Mr. Macassey, and I should 

 urge my fellow citizens at the earliest opportuiiity to see these 

 works for themselves ; it will shew that the Commissioners are 

 doing a most excellent work, and all ratepayers will be satisfied 

 that they are getting good value for the rates they are paying. 

 The _;^7o,ooo I consider a mere trifle as compared with the 

 vast amount of good that will result from the works which have 

 been projected and are now in course of construction. I listened 

 with surprise and almost horror to the remarks of Professor 

 Letts, who I am sorry to see has gone out of the room. I 

 believe if he had made his remarks at the temperance meeting 

 which is being held in the Exhibition Hall to-night there would 

 not have been a teetotaler left in all Belfast. I have no hesita- 

 tion in saying that for years we have been getting a liberal 

 supply of very good water, and I think that the death rate 

 which Professor Letts dwelt upon as being so high may be 

 attributed to other causes rather than to impure water. 



Mr. J. H. H. SwiNEY — As to the matter of the cost of these 

 filters, which Mr. Macassey has said will be ^70,000, I worked 

 that out at so much per square yard ; and it may be of interest 

 to tell yon that filters recently constructed at Warsaw and St. 

 Petersburg cost respectively £'^ 8s. od. per square yard and 

 £'^ 7s. od. per square yard, while here in Belfast the cost is only 

 £2 13s. 8d. per square yard. As to the necessity for the filtra- 

 tion of the water here the only fault I have to find is that it was 

 not begun sooner. I suppose it is from 20 to 25 years since the 



