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NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



would the ground water be lowered if either 3,000,000 to 4,000,000 

 gallons per day were taken, or even as small a quantity as 700,000 

 gallons per day? It is obvious that the answer must be that it 

 would only be a short time before water would be exhausted from 

 the ground, and any waterworks constructed with a ground 

 water supply, a failure. 



As to why it is improbable that this quantity of water can be 

 obtained, there are three reasons : 



1) The rocks of the Niagara and Clinton groups as existing 

 at and about Lockport are, above the Medina sandstone, close- 

 textured — there is not much water in them. 



2) The overlying surface soil is strong, compact clay, making 

 it impossible that any considerable quantity of rainfall penetrate 

 the soil and to and into the rocks. 



3) The inclination of the strata is from northeast to south- 

 west, rendering it impossible that water in or between the strata 

 run towards Lockport. Its natural course is away from the city. 



The material for demonstrating these three propositions exists 

 in considerable detail, but as the writer's object is not at present 

 to write a treatise on well supplies but merely to point out 

 saliently a few reasons why such supplies are mostly impossible 

 in New York the matter is not pursued, aside from the paragraphs 

 following, any further at this time. 



As bearing on the subject just discussed, in Water Sup- 

 ply and Irrigation paper of the United States Geological 

 Survey, No. 61 — Preliminary List of Deep Borings in the 

 United States — by N. H. Darton, there is an extensive list of 

 deep borings scattered over New York. Mr Darton states thai 

 in Allegany county there are over 6500 borings, some of them 3000 

 feet deep. Aside from two or three wells, which yield from 50 

 to 70 gallons per minute of good water, the balance of the deep 

 wells of the State contain either gas, salt or mineral water. Deep 

 wells, almost without exception, are failures as regards furnishing 

 potable water. There are so many experiments upon this point 

 ;is to render Ihe boring of a deep well for a water supply in New 

 York State useless, although it should not be overlooked that a 

 lew of the wo] Is furnish potable water, but the chance of finding 

 such is so small as to put such wells out of the list for public 

 water supplies. At any rate, it should be understood that the 

 finding of potable water in a deep well is a matter of chance. 



II appears, therefore, thai aside from occasional limited sup- 

 plies of spring water and the lakes throughout the eastern portion 



