DEATHS OCCURRING IN STATE INSTITUTIONS UNDER THE BOARD OF CONTROL FOR THE BIENNIAL PERIOD ENDING JUNE 30, 1901. *

* Data kindly furnished by the honorable Board of Control. -SECRETARY.

VIII

MUNICIPAL SANITARY ENGINEERING

BY CHARLES FRANCIS, DANENPORT, CIVIL ENGINEER, IOWA STATE BOARD OF HEALTH

The need of sanitary engineering in this great section of our country, which we know as the middle west, is evidenced in many ways: So many in fact, that it would be futile to attempt enumeration, so that but a few of the most pronounced will be discussed here.

The immediate purpose of this paper is to call attention to the fact that the people—the public-the masses-whatever their name may be—are very indifferent to, if not profoundly ignorant of, the fundamental principles of sanitary science, and many of the primary rules of hygiene.

Moreover, this indifference or ignoronce is by no means confined to that large class of people who work with their hands, who have neither time nor inclination to think upon these things, and for whom the consideration of these matters is naturally (and rightly also) left to others.

This same carelessness in sanitary matters obtains very largely in what is called "the better class"-those who have rather more money, and are supposed to work with their brains-who appear to be so fully occupied with business (which has come to mean merely the chase for the dollar) that they have no time to get acquainted with themselves or their environment.

Great statesmen have told us that this is a government of the people, by the people and for the people. In all the great crises through which our nation has passed, it has been the voice of the people that has shaped The people, then, having such a heavy responsibility, should use every means to enlighten themselves in every direction, as far as possible, so as to be able to govern well.

our course.

During political

Then political education is looked after very sharply. campaigns, those political leaders supposed to be best acquainted with great national questions, go about explaining why this or that policy should be adopted, and vast quantities of campaign literature" are circulated so that this great factor in our national safety and welfare the voice of the people", may be intelligently declared.

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Large sums of money are expended-campaign funds; and nothing is left undone to educate the people as to the policy which they should adopt to insure their prosperity and happiness.

Now the question arises, and it appears to be a reasonable one:-Why should this careful education of the people, and training of public thought be confined to politics; Why should not such vital questions as Public

Health, Municipal Sanitation, and other like matters affecting the people qnite as closely as politics receive similar attention?

These are plain questions and demand a plain answer, and we do not have to go very far to find it. It is this: There is no money in it. On the contrary, the study of these matters only discloses the fact that proper Sanitary methods are expensive, which means increased taxation, and "we are taxed enough now, goodness knows."

If the people would only treat these great questions relating to public health, as they do the public schools-and they are undoubtedly of equal importance-it would only be a short time before our sanitary systems would be in true scientific line, and we should all understand them and take the interest in them that they deserve.

The first rule of health is KEEP CLEAN; ourselves, our clothing, our dwellings, premises, barns, stables, alleys, and all that we have to do with. Everybody knows this, and most of the people live up to it.

When a community can afford it, a system of water supply is introduced. This necessitates a system of sewerage, by which the sewage is removed from the residences, etc., in the community. This sewerage system is carefully worked out by the engineer, who calculates with great pains, the proper dimensions of the sewers and their grades, so that they will all fit together and form a "sewerage system," and so far everything is done in true scientific fashion.

But how many people have given a thought as to what shall be finally done with the sewage collected by this carefully prepared system, except that it shall be discharged into the neighboring stream below town?

If there be a stream near town there is no question as to the feasibility of constructing a system of sewerage; if there be no stream near by, it is very doubtful if a sewerage system is built, in fact it may be set down as a moral certainty that it will not be built, because there is no place to discharge the sewage. The stream is necessary to carry away the sewage. Never mind about the people living on the streams lower down, "let them take care of themselves, our sewage is carried away from us."

It seems necessary to state, in view of the almost universal custom (perhaps better to omit the almost) that attains in Iowa of discharging sewers into streams, that this method of disposing of sewage is wholly wrong and as it is entirely unnecessary in this section; it is very nearly criminal.

To show this, we have only to take one Iowa city and its sanitary methods as an example.

The city of Davenport, on the Mississippi river, has about 40,000 inhabitants, with a most excellent water supply taken from the river, and a very fair system of sewerage.

The sewage collected by this system is discharged into the river at various points on the water front, and the garbage is collected in the most approved form of iron carts, and dumped into the rlver by a very efficient dump boat.

These are the sanitary methods of all the cities or communities in Iowa where there is a system matic water supply and sewerage, systematic or sporadic, if the word may be permitted.

In general it may be said, that for the river cities, there is and can be no other source of water supply than the rivers upon which they are situated. It would seem to be reasonable to say the least that these cities should endeavor