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14
Metropolitan Companies was:—New River 1.3, Chelsea 2.2, West
Middlesex 2.4, Grand Junction 2.5, Lambeth 2.9, East London 2.9,
and Southwark 3.1.
The river waters supplied to London have now fully assumed
their summer quality, and contain scarcely half as much organic
impurity as they did during the winter. Their efficient filtration
has also become much easier to accomplish, nevertheless the
Southwark and Grand Junction Companies delivered slightly
turbid water, containing numerous moving organisms, to their
customers. The remaining samples were clear when drawn from the
Companies' mains."
The greater part of this District, it is known, is
supplied with water by the Southwark Company, and this
water is shown by Dr. Frankland's last published tables
to contain a larger amount of solid impurity than, with
one exception, any others submitted to analysis.
The Medical Officers of Health refer with considerable
regret to the still incomplete arrangements to meet the
requirements of the Act which was passed some time since
to afford the entire Metropolis a supply of water on the
constant service principle. What causes the delay it is
somewhat difficult to discover. Perhaps there never was
an Act of Parliament so completely ignored in many
districts as the one in question.
The Local Summaries will be found to contain remarks
upon questions of more or less local and general interest,
but to which it will be unnecessary to allude at much
greater length in this place than will suffice to recommend
the suggestions they embody to that consideration of the
Board which their importance deserves.
Amongst the observations made in these Summaries
are some few from both the Health Officers of Battersea
upon the catastrophe (previously referred to), of a number