LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR, DIVISION OF HYDROGRAPHY, Washington, February 4, 1897. SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith a paper entitled "Sewage Irrigation," by George W. Rafter, and to recommend that it be published as the third number of the series of papers upon water supply and irrigation. The manuscript of this paper as submitted by Mr. Rafter contains a considerable number of details, which have been to a certain extent generalized, and also gives a discussion of sewage purification in the United States, with descriptions of the works erected at various localities, together with an appendix containing a list of publications relating to sewage irrigation. The limit. of 100 pages has, however, necessitated the dividing of the manuscript into two parts. The first constitutes this paper, while the latter has been held for publication in a future number of this series. It refers mainly to the results attained in various portions of the United States, and gives a few examples from the neighboring Province of Canada. The changes that have been made in Mr. Rafter's paper have been in the direction of adapting it to popular use, in order that the necessities and benefits of sewage irrigation may be more generally appreciated by the public. Very respectfully, Hon. CHARLES D. WALCOTT, F. H. NEWELL, Hydrographer in Charge. Director United States Geological Survey. SEWAGE IRRIGATION. BY GEORGE W. RAFTER. IMPORTANCE OF SEWAGE IRRIGATION. Owing to the rapid growth of urban population during the past few decades, and the consequent increase of pollution of streams from which water supplies are obtained, the subject of sewage disposal has come to be one of prime importance. As regards the United States, however, it is only within the past few years that the subject of sewage purification and its relation to the purity of streams has attracted general attention. In view of the large number of people concerned and the benefits to be derived from the dissemination of information on this subject, there is probably no topic relating to water supply and irrigation which is of greater importance to the country as a whole. The citizens of all our municipalities are interested as a mere matter of sanitation in the innocuous disposal of sewage. Independent of commercial considerations, the towns should welcome any suggestion looking toward ridding them of what is in most cases a dead weight on the hands of the municipal authorities. The farmers, especially market gardeners in the vicinity of towns, should be able to utilize sewage with advantage to themselves, thus rendering beneficial what is otherwise a source of danger to health. It is the object of this paper1 to point out to American farmers and to municipal authorities There is nothing especially new or original with the author in the methods of sewage irrigation which are here presented. It is merely proposed to describe, so far as possible in nontechnical language and for the benefit of American farmers, not only what is being done to-day abroad, but also what is being done here at home. The author wishes in this connection to acknowledge his obligation to a number of sanitary engineers who have kindly placed at his disposal information and illustrative material embodied in this paper. In addition to courtesies received from gentlemen connected with the management and operation of sewage farms abroad, as acknowledged in the paper in connection with the discussion of the several farms described, the author is under special obligation to James Forest, esq., now honorary secretary of the Institution of Civil Engineers, for information as to how and where to see the best examples of sewage farming in England. Among American engineers to whom acknowledgment is due may be mentioned Samuel M. Gray, M. Am. Soc. C. E., of Providence; Allen Hazen, Assoc. M. Am. Soc. C. E., of Boston; Frank H. Snow, Assoc. M. Am. Soc. C. E., city engineer of Brockton, Massachusetts; George H. Carpenter, C. E., city engineer, Pawtucket, Rhode Island; Carroll Phillips Bassett, M. Am. Soc. C. E., civil and sanitary engineer, Summit, New Jersey; Benezette Williams, civil and sanitary engineer, Chicago; George H. Frost, C. E., business manager EngineeringNews; M. N. Baker, Ph. B., associate editor of Engineering News; Col. George E. Waring, M. Inst. C. E., street commissioner, New York; and Harrison P. Eddy, C. E., superintendent of sewers, Worcester, Massachusetts. |