April 2, 1894.] THE TROPICAL 
AGRICULTURIST. 
4. Impure Water. 
Character or Constituents. 
Physical characters 
Chemical Constituents. 
Colour yellow 
or brown, turbid, 
and not easily 
purified by coarse 
filtration ; large 
amount of sus- 
pended matter ; 
any marked smell 
or taste. 
1 Chlorine in chlorides above 
2 Solids in solution, total ,, 
,, volatile ,, 
3 Ammonia, free or saline ,, 
albuminoid ,, 
4 Nitric acid No 3 in nitrates 
Nitrous acid No^ in ni 
trites 
5 Orygen absorbed by organic 
matter in 15 niins. by per 
manganate and acid at 80 * 
F. (27 ®C.) above 
Do in 4 hours at 80 ®F, 
27 ® C. ) above 
6 Hardness, total ,, 
,, fi.Kcd ,, 
7 Phosphoric acid in phosphates 
Sulphuric acid in sulphates 
above 
8 Heavy metals 
9 Hydrogen sulphide, alkaline 
sulphides 
Microscopic characters 
Grains per gallon. 
S-OOOOo 
50-00006 
o-wmb 
0.0070 
0-0087 
0-7000 
0-0350 
0-0700(; 
0-2800 
20 3 -00 
6 =00 
very heavy traces 
3-0000 
any except iron 
present 
Bacteria of any 
kind ; fungi ; nu- 
merous vegetable 
and animal forms 
of low types ; 
epithelia or other 
animal structures; 
evidences of sew- 
age ; ova of para- 
sites, &c. 
Remarks. — Dark-coloured waters may be 
usable, when the impurity is vegetable. 
a Chlorides perse are not hurtful unless they 
are magnesian or in some qunntity. 
. b Some waters which are organically pure 
contain a great excess of solids. 
(■ In absence of free ammonia, or much chlorine, 
this may be due to vegetable matters. 
N.B. — The inferences to be drawn from l)io- 
logical examination (cultivation of niinnte or- 
ganisms in nutrient media) are still too uncertain 
to enable any definite rules to be laid down. 
Generally speaking the fewer organisms the better, 
especially when they licjuefy the gelatine or 
otlier medium in which they are grown. 
A water such as the above ought to be abso- 
lutely condemned ; should stress of circumstances 
compel its use, it ought to he well boiled and 
filtered, or, better still, distilled. 
Ceylon Spring Waters. 
As an example of the freedom from, organic 
matter of Ceylon spring water of the best quality, 
I might instance a spring water which flows into 
the scouring cidvert of the Labugama reservior. 
This water when tested was found to be as nearly 
as possible quite free from organic matter, the 
number obtained expressing albuaiiuoid ammonia, 
being only -0001 grains per gallon. 
Springs fed by river waters may show a very 
much higher proportion of albuminoid matter. 
The following are examples of Ceylon spring 
waters of a much lower degree of purity than the 
spring at Labugama. 
No. 1 represents water from overflowing spring 
near spill of the :\]aha Eliya at Ambala. 
No. 2 represents the same after being filtered 
through sand only. 
No. 3 represents water from Ambala main 
springs. 
No. 4 represents filtered water from Ambala 
main springs. . 
4 
Grains 
per gallon. 
•0011 
' 0103 
32^5000 
6 5000 
26^5000 
41900 
Fainttrace 
•2888 
* 
•0872 
c 
lit 0 S 0 C! 0 ^ <o 
0000= « 
•JO SOO-*Sc !M 
90 99.97-K-i* 0 
05 ac 0.J .5 " 
iters. 
rains'' ' 
gallon. 
io ooo-*So;a030 
Cm 
s 3C 'ij ih .5 ' 
1* 
1 
rains 
gallon. 
233 00005C oac 
— ' r- crs .5 " r- " 
Inalyses 
solids 
ours ... 
C-3 
•S| 
•-1 
S B 
C 
O « sS 
Cm O 
5 >■ 
I 
C :S aj 
•!; s 
c .2 ° c a 
g^s^ § " H 
a X c« _ - a) o 
4J -.^ K ^ 
£ < X 2 =^ 
no -P 
a = 
■§ s * 
■2 ?„ 
*J «J *i .*> 
•-•-ox 
o 
12; 
Neither of tliese two waters, either in th« 
filtered or unfiltered state, is of fir^t class quality 
Tlie filtering medium iia.'^ abided to instead ut 
subtracting from the solid ingredients. 
