Rensselaer Republican, Volume 16, Number 45, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 July 1884 — USE ONLY PURE WATER. [ARTICLE]

USE ONLY PURE WATER.

Simple Te»t« by Which Impurities May Keadlly Be Detected. In suspected potable water for perspns who can not command chemical analysis the following tests are recommended as being, generally available and reliable: Color —Fill a bottle made of colorless glass with the water; look through the water at some black object; the water should appear perfectly colorless and free from suspended matter. A muddy or turbid appearance indicates the presence of soluble organic matter, or of soluble matter in suspension. It should be “clear as a crystal.” Odor—Empty out some of the water, leaving the bottle half full; cork up the bottle and place it for a few hours in a warm place; shake up the water, remove the cork, and critically smell the air contained in the bottle. If it has any smell, and especially if . tha odor is in the least repulsive, the water should be rejected for domestic use. By heating the water to boiling an odor is evolved sometimes that otherwise does not appear. Taste—Water fresh from the well is usully tasteless, even though it may contain a large amount of putrescible organic matter. Water for domestic use should be perfectly tasteless and remain so, even after it has been warmed, since warming often develops a taste in water which is tasteless when cold. If the water, at any time, has a repulsive or even disagreeable taste, it should be rejected.

Heiseh’s Taste for Sewage Contamin-ation—-The delicacy of the sense of smell or taste varies greatly in different individuals ; one person may fail to detect the foul contamination of a given water, which would be very evident tA a person of finer organization. But if the cause of bad smell or taste exists in water, the injurious effect on health will remain the same, whether recognized or not. Moreover, of some water of very dangerous quality will fail to give any indication by smell or taste. For these reasons I attach special importance to Heiseh’s test for sewage contamination or the presence of putrescible organic matter. The test is so simple that anyone can use it. Fill a clean pint bottle three-fourths full of the water to be tested, and dissolve in the water a teaspoonful of the purest sugar—loaf or granulated sugar will answer—cork the bottle and place it in a warm place for two days. If in the twenty-four or forty-eight hours the water becomes cloudy or muddy, it is unfit for domestic use. If it remains perfectly clear it is safe to use.— Sanitar an.