water a day are passed through mechanical filters and thence to the paper machines and about 2,000,000 in addition are used in the rag mill. The "Rag mill pump," and the "town pump," as the pump used for the Piedmont water supply is known, are located at the lower end of the mill pond about 12 feet below the level of the water in the mill pond, and consequently the water is allowed to flow by gravity to a small concrete surge tower about 4 feet in interior diameter, and about 15 feet high, located at the side of the pump house. The town pump is a Worthington with a capacity of approximately 750 gallons per minute when operated at 54 strokes.

Character of Water Supply.

Savage River: Character of the Watershed. The Savage River rises in a bog between the Big and Little Savage mountains in Garrett county, Maryland, a mile or so from the Pennsylvania state line and nearly the same distance from the Alleghany county line. It flows in a southwesterly direction for about 20 miles to a gap between Big Savage and Backbone mountains, where it turns almost at right angles and flows southeast about four miles, when it empties into the north branch of the Potomac. The watershed above the junction with the Potomac contains about 120 square miles of mountainous territory that was once heavily forested with white pine, spruce and some hardwoods, as beech, maple, walnut, oak, hickory, ash and locust. The pine and spruce have been almost entirely cut off and the hard woods are rapidly disappearing. The company that is conducting the lumber operations on the watershed expect to be entirely through and have their camp removed by the winter of 1916.

The valley of the Savage river is a much disturbed area geologically, and the river owes its existence to the weakness of the rock along an anticlinal fold. The Savage river follows very closely, though a few miles to the east, the crest of this fold. The area is bound on the northwest and southwest respectively, by Meadow mountain and Big Savage mountain, two Pottsville ledges between which is the anticlinal region occupied by Devonian and Lower Carboniferous rocks. All the Upper Carboniferous deposits, including the Pocono sandstone, Greenbrier, Mauch Chunk, Pottsville, Alleghany, Conemaugh and Monongahela formations, in the order named, the Monongahela being the highest, having been ground off practically level with the top of Meadow mountain and Big Savage. This erosion carried with it all the coal measures that appear in the synclinal fold of Georges creek. The same coal measures again appear on the Castleman river, where they are worked. There are small areas of the Greenbrier formation occurring in one or two spots, namely, particularly along the top of Savage mountain and in the swamps at the head of Swamp Run, Little Savage river and Poplar Lick Run. The two narrow strips thus located are the only outcrops of lime rock in the drainage area.

The erosion having carried away all the coal measures and limestone in the valley, there need be no fear of any water supply taken from this river being polluted by further coal mining operations or quarrying.

The soil on the watershed is very thin, and there is almost no land available for cultivation, except on the tops of the mountains. There are a few places where the bottom lands widen out sufficiently for a farm or two to lie on the flats, but in most places the mountains rise almost precipitously from the stream to as great heights as 1,300 feet above the river bed. The hills between the various tributaries are very steep and afford no farming lands on their sides. On the tops of the mountains where the land is comparatively level, the soil is too thin to encourage much agriculture. Consequently the whole water shed is very sparcely settled. This denuding of the water shed, together with the general character of the valley of the Savage river and tributaries as to the steepness of the hillsides, rapidity of the descent of the vallies and the thinness of the soil over the rock, render the stream one of high flood rates and low dry weather flow.

Altogether the Savage river, so far as any contamination is concerned, is a splendid source for a water supply, and will be even better in a short time when all lumber operations have ceased. There is, however, the chance that this area will present a splendid opportunity for peach growing, though there is no prospect of this industry being developed in the immediate future.

Pollution of the Savage River Above Westernport Dam. The diversion dam for the Westernport water supply, which is approximately 100 feet in length by 12 feet in height, is located about three-quarters of a mile below Bond. Bond is a lumbering town of thirty-odd dwellings, a boarding house, store, office, blacksmith shop, saw mill and planing mill. Nearly all the men in the town get their employment with the lumber company and will leave when the company closes its operations this winter. There are one or two houses in Bond and three below the town, and consequently nearer the dam, that will be occupied in all probability after the saw mill has been moved. These houses fortunately do not stand near the bank of the stream, and the drainage is not directly into the river. Four of the dwellings and the office have flush closets that formerly discharged into the Savage river. As soon as this fact was noted, I required that a cess-pool be constructed at some distance from the river's edge, and that the wastes be discharged into this. This change was made. Bond has always had a high typhoid rate until the last two years, when the manager of the lumber company, suspecting that a certain spring was the source of the trouble had it closed, with the result that an immediate drop in the number of cases of typhoid was noticed.

There are a number of scattered farm houses along both branches of the stream from Bond to the mouth of Elk Lick Run where there is a group of five houses and a school known as Merrill. None of the dwellings have their privies directly on the river bank, though the outhouse for the school overhangs the stream.

At the head of Poplar Lick Run there is a small town known as New Germany. The slope from the houses to the mill pond are steep and drainage probably finds its way rapidly into the stream. At the time of my first visit there were three lumber camps located on this

run.

One of them was two miles above New Germany and sheltered twenty men; the second camp was at a farm house in the town and fifteen men were stationed here during the winter, while the third camp was about half way between New Germany and the mouth of the run. At this point there were twenty men. The drainage from each of these camps was directly into the stream, and in two cases the out houses were built over small runs coming in from the side. Pollution of Savage River Above Piedmont Dam. The dam for the Piedmont water supply is located a mile below "Bond Signal Tower" on the Baltimore & Ohio railroad. In addition to the possible sources of pollution that may contaminate the water above the Westernport dam this intake receives the water from Crabtree creek, which stream parallels the Baltimore & Ohio railroad to Altamont, where it has its source. The location of the railroad on a steep mountain side some 100 feet above the stream makes it possible for the wastes from the toilets on the railroad coaches to pass rapidly into the creek.

In addition there are a number of scattered farm houses and two small towns, Wilson and Swanton, the former a group of about seven houses, while the latter consists of about twenty dwellings and two stores. Several of the dwellings have their privies directly over a `small stream that is tributary to Crabtree creek at this point.

Pollution of the Supply From the Potomac River. The Potomac River, which has a watershed of 270 square miles above Piedmont, is grossly polluted by the drainage from a number of towns, coal mines and various industries along its banks. Practically opposite the dam at Luke there is the small town called West Virginia Central Junction or Beryl. An open drain receives the waste from a number of houses and after passing under the railroad track, empties into the Potomac river a short distance above the dam. It is, however, extremely unlikely that pollution entering at this point would affect the water supply as the intake is at the further end of the dam some 300 feet directly across the river.

Montgomery Run empties into the Potomac river less than half a mile above the dam at Luke. There are a considerable number of houses along this run, and in every case the outhouses over-hang the stream. For several years Montgomery Run has not been without typhoid fever, and it is very likely that the Piedmont water supply may be dangerously polluted by this run.

About a mile above the dam is Franklin, a small West Virginia town of about 12 houses, that owes its existence to the Buxton coal mine. There is a small ditch in the town that carries some waste to the river. Bloomington, on the Maryland side of the Potomac at its junction with the Savage river, is another town that is dependent on the coal mines in the region for its existence. This town is supplied with water from the Piedmont mains, a 2 inch galvanized iron line having been laid into the town. The drainage from this town is partly into the Savage river on one side and partly into the Potomac on the other. Above Bloomington there are many small mining towns of from 20 to 60 houses, located for the most part on the south bank of the

Potomac. The privies in many cases are erected directly on the bank of the river, and it is said that at the time of the break in the Stony River dam many were demolished and that the contents of almost all were washed down stream.

At Gorman and Bayard there are two large tanneries that discharge their wastes into the Potomac. The tannery at Bayard was not in operation at the time of my visit, but the waste from Gorman was causing a considerable discoloration of the rocks in the river below that town. The tan liquor unites with the iron wastes from the coal mines, forming a black dye that is very disagreeable in appearance. The wastes from the coal mines are very objectionable, as they are heavily charged with iron that stains the rocks in the river, and are in a measure accountable for the slimy growths that are noticeable as far up stream as Schell.

Despite the fact that pollution of the Potomac river steadily increases as it proceeds down stream, bacteriological analyses of the river show there is a tendency for the total numbers of bacteria present to become less rather than greater. The analyses of samples taken from above the dam at Luke usually show a comparatively low bacteriological content, when the great volume of polluting material entering is considered. This is undoubtedly due to the deposition of the bacteria in the quiet stretches of the river, as back of the Luke dam, for example. This deposition is probably brought about by the iron wastes from the coal mines forming the hydroxide which acts as a coagulent and settles to the river bottom, entangling and dragging with it bacteria and other minute particles. It is probable that the apparent purification of the stream noted above is due to this cause. This phenonomen is, however, only apparent, as the bacteria thus entangled by the hydrate of iron are not necessarily killed, but, on the other hand, may exist for even a greater length of time than they would if they were really floating down stream. This is due to the fact that the coagulant carries down in addition, minute particles of organic matter that serve as food to sustain bacterial life. Deposits of these included organisms accumulate on the bottom of the river during periods of low flow, only to be taken up and carried down stream again with floods, so that during times of high water or sudden freshest, the numbers of bacteria may increase enormously. For this reason, strange as it may appear, it is probably safer to use the Potomac river for a drinking water 'supply in summer or at times of low flow than in winter or spring when the volume of the river has been greatly increased and with it the scouring effect. This is contrary to the usual supposition that the greater the volume of diluting water, the less the danger. The statement in regard to the Potomac river, besides being verified by actual bacteriological analyses is in a measure borne out by the experience of local doctors. Several of them stated to me that at times of low flow, namely the summer months, when typhoid is usually at its maximum, they had very few cases, but that immediately following any sudden flood a marked increase in the number of typhoid patients was always noticed.

The reservoir for the Piedmont water supply, which is constructed on a hillside back of the town, is made of cut stone and has a capacity of 650,000 gallons. The rear wall of the reservoir is close against the hillside. Formerly precautions were taken to prevent drainage from the slopes flowing over the rear wall, as is evidenced by the remains of a trench. This trench has since filled up, and at the time of my visit the surface water could be seen passing directly into the drinking supply.

STONY RIVER DAM SHOWING BREAK AT FAR END.

Above the reservoir there are several openings from abandoned coal mines. The galleries of these mines collect much water that is heavily charged with sulphur and iron, and this water can be seen coming out of the ground and flowing into the reservoir. In places where the water has collected the rocks are all badly stained with iron. Cows are pastured on the hills during the summer and much manure falls at points where it can be washed into the reservoir.

Stnoy River Dam. A study of the dates of onset of the typhoid cases in the Tri-Towns brought to light an interesting factor in the history of the outbreak that would not otherwise have been discovered. It was noticed that in the early part of February, 1914, there was a sudden increase in the number of typhoid cases. For several days. two or three cases developed each day. At first I could not account for this fact until it occurred to me that at noon on Thursday, the 15th of January, the Stony river dam of the West Virginia Pulp & Paper Co. burst, permitting a flood of water to pass down the Stony and Potomac rivers. This sudden rush of water, besides wrecking many privies and washing the contents of others into the stream, swept the accumulation of iron hydroxide and bacteria off the river bottom and carried them down the Potomac. Much of this filth undoubtedly passed into the mill pond at Luke. The flood wave reached Piedmont about 1:30 of the afternoon of January 16th. It happened that both