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39
V.—WATER SUPPLY.
The mains of several Water Companies extend through the
different parishes in the District, and form the main source of
supply to the inhabitants. Part of Addington is supplied from
the waterworks belonging to the Croydon Corporation; Kenley
and Purley, in Coulsdon parish, and Sanderstead, are supplied by
the East Surrey Water Company; Beddington, Wallington,
Woodmansterne, and Morden, by the Sutton Water Company;
and Mitcham and Merton by the Lambeth Water Company.
Other sources of supply, such as deep wells, artesian wells,
and shallow surface wells, exist in various parts, and in eight
cases have been analysed by Dr. Stevenson. Five of these water
supplies were condemned by him as unfit for drinking purposes,
Water Company's water being in each case substituted ; one was
stated to be suspicious, while the remaining two were certified
to bo of high organic purity.
As the year closed, a room was provided, and the necessary
materials and chemicals obtained at a small outlay, for establishing
a laboratory for the chemical examination of water-samples, and
in the coming year the Medical Officer of Health will be in -a
position to analyse drinking waters, and samples of effluent from
the Sewage Works, at a much diminished cost to the District,
It would be as well if apparatus were obtained, to enable the
more important bacteriological investigations connected with
water, as well as certain diseases, to be carried out at this
laboratory.
Besides the above cases, there were two others where it was
unnecessary to analyse the water, and in which steps have been
taken to remove the existing source of supply.
One was the case of four houses supplied by a spring, on
the banks of the river Wandle in Beddington, which was unprotected
from contamination by surface water from the adjoining
road, and was also occasionally fouled by escapes of gas from the