London's Pulse: Medical Officer of Health reports 1848-1972
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Hints from the Health Department. Leaflet from the archive of the Society of Medical Officers of Health. Credit: Wellcome Collection, London
Kensington 1884
[Report of the Medical Officer of Health for Kensington]
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Companies, it being no longer necessary to impound the worst flood
waters, and to the action of the conservators, the average quality of the
water supplied has become better year by year, and more uniform
throughout the year. The river Lea water was better last year than that
drawn from the Thames. Of Thames derived waters the New River
Company supplied the best and the Southwark Company the worst.
Deep.well waters undergo such a prolonged, exhaustive and inimitable
natural filtration through great thicknesses of porous strata, as to render
it extremely unlikely that any suspended organic matter known to be
prejudicial to health, should have escaped removal. Hence these
waters are "uniformly pure and wholesome."
The following table exhibits the proportional amounts or organic elements, (organic carbon and organic nitrogen), in the waters of the Companies which supply Kensington, the Kent Company's water being used as the standard of purity for comparison:—
| Name of Company. | Maximum. | Minimum. | Average. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kent | 1.3 | 0.5 | 0.8 |
| Chelsea | 4.6 | 2.2 | 2.8 |
| Grand Junction | 5.3 | 2.2 | 2.8 |
| West Middlesex | 4.0 | 2.1 | 2.8 |
The Companies^drawing from the river are now in possession of much more
adequate appliances for storage and filtration than formerly, and to
this cause, in part, it was due that during the past year there was a
remarkable freedom from an excessive proportion of organic matter,
and an almost uniform clearness even during the winter months.
Owing to the dryness of the summer season, moreover, there was
little surface drainage of cultivated land, the supply of water being
chiefly derived from deep.seated springs. On this account the river
water was exceptionally free from organic contamination during many
months, and consequently the inhabitants of London, instead of suffering
from the exceptionally hot weather, were supplied with water
unusually free from organic matter. The improvement in respect of
freedom from excessive amounts of organic matter is very striking, and
has been practically continuous since 1868 when systematic analyses
were first undertaken.
But with the proportion of organic matter at its minimum, there is no
certainty that the water does not contain the germs of zymotic disease,
there being no guarantee against such morbific matters gaining access
to the river, and there being nothing in the subsequent treatment to
which the river water is subjected by the Companies that will ensure
the removal of matters of this description. On this account, several of
the Companies themselves, it is stated, are now impressed with the
necessity of ultimately abandoning the rivers Thames and Lea as