Dr. McCullough. The river is one mile and three-quarters wide at Brockville.
Mr. Gardner. What is the average depth of the river here from shore to shore?
Mr. Evanson. I can not say as to that. Of course, along our docks at Prescott, the river is 14 or 15 feet, and the two Richelieu boats are in there every morning, the one from the west coming in at 7 o’clock, and it remains there until 10 o’clock or half past 10, and the boat from the west comes in at 10 o’clock and remains there until noon. The sewage would not contaminate our water because the sewage outlets are at least half a mile east of our intake pipe.
Mr. Gardner. Did you notice any disturbance of the river bottom when these steamboats are leaving or arriving at the wharf?
Mr. Evanson. No. Of course the town owns the western wharf where our water system is and no boats tie up there at all; the only boat that comes there is an occasional boat with coal.
Mr. Powell. Have the town authorities at Prescott ever considered the advisability of purifying or sterilizing the sewage?
Mr. Evanson. In 1911 we put in a further sewerage extension in the east end of the town. We had two outlets then. We extended the sewer in the east end of the town, and in order to get an outlet for that extension we had to put the east one farther west, and the question was considered then, but it was decided that it was useless to purify the sewage at one small outlet and let the two larger outlets go without purification. The question received some consideration then. It was suggested that we could put in a plant which would take care of the purification of the sewage.
Mr. Powell. Have you the same rock formation at Prescott as at Brockville?
Mr. Evanson. I do not know of any harder rock than we have at Prescott; you are liable to run into it at any place in the town.
Mr. Magrath. What is the assessed value of the property in your municipality?