Fig. 45. An improperly located well; notice lines of seepage.
Why sewage should not be put into streams
Water does not get disease germs from the ground, but from man. Almost every town has a sewer system that empties into some stream. This practice was started a long time ago when men thought that running water would purify itself in the course of a few miles. We have learned, however, that this is not true. Germs will continue to live in running water just as they do in any other water, and disease germs will live in a stream from twenty-five to thirty-five days. Estimate how far a stream will flow in that length of time, and you will know how far disease germs will travel in that way. No sewage should ever be allowed to get into a stream until the germs in the sewage have been killed.
Other sources of germs in streams
Sewage is not the only means by which disease germs are carried into streams. Often we find people building barns, slaughterhouses, and mills on the banks of a stream. The filth from barns and slaughterhouses always contains disease germs, and often the filth of mills contains poisons that are just as harmful as germs when taken into our bodies. None of these things should ever be allowed to get into a stream. Water is a very important article of food, and we should take every care to keep it pure.
Fig. 46. A properly located well.
How germs get into wells
The water from most wells is clear and cool, but nevertheless may contain many disease germs. "How does this happen?" you ask. Because the well is too close to an out-house or some other source of filth. When a man in the country or in a small town builds a house, he immediately thinks of digging a well just as close to the house as he can, so that he need not carry the water far. Next he thinks of locating the closet, and this, too, he wants near the house. The well and the closet are often near each other, and often the closet is on higher ground than the well. The vault under the closet is seldom water-tight. In fact, the intention of the owner is that a great part of the vault contents shall soak away.