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51
WATER-SUPPLY.
which tend to determine its fitness for human consumption.
Considering the great share of public attention
which these questions at present very properly obtain,
the many projects which are broached for improving
the quality of our metropolitan supply, and
the importance of your being in a position to decide
as to the merits of any plan which may affect the
City of London, I have thought it desirable in this
Report to submit to you some general observations
on the subject. During the last few months, I have
accordingly been collecting such information as
might, in my judgment, be useful for this purpose.
In pursuing one portion of my enquiry—that which
relates to the chemical constitution of certain waters,
I have availed myself of the permission of your
Honourable Court to procure a limited amount of
assistance from some one more conversant than
myself with the practice of analysis. For this purpose
I have addressed myself to Mr. Taylor, lately
Lecturer on Chemistry at St. Thomas's Hospital, a
gentleman in whose skill and impartiality I can implicitly
trust. His account of the very careful analyses
which he has made is subjoined to my Report*.
Concurrently with the experience of other chemists,
it has furnished me with material for many of the
conclusions which I am about to lay before you.
The water which is supplied by the New-River
and East London companies for the consumption
* Appendix No. VI.