Mr. Bramwell, the well-known civil engineer, put before the British
Association a scheme for supplying London with water, for which his scientific ability and practical shrewdness must get attention. His advice to the ratepayers is to have nothing to do with projects for buying up the concerns of the present Water Companies, or for bringing water from the Lake dis- tricts of Wales or Cumberland. Separate the drinking-water, of which about 16,000,000 gallons a day will be required in London, from the water used for extinguishing fires and other purposes, about 100,000,000 gallons of which are daily needed, Build reservoirs on the high ground north and south of London, and by pumping- engines draw off from the chalk deposits the supply of spring water for eight or 15 miles around. Mr. Bramwell's calculation is that this would cost London about 23-d. in the 11 on its rateable value, whereas the Companies' works could not be bought up without incurring a rate of is. 40. Most of the engineers present at Plymouth seemed to think that we must sooner or later separate the potable-water, as a good quality could never be got from the Thames. Of course, the water drawn from the chalk deposits would be hard, and the London ratepayer would not like to make his tea with that ; but Mr. Bramwell sees his way to removing the bicarbonate of lime in hard water, and giving us pure, soft water. One cannot, however, quite lose sight of the fact that the simplicity of the scheme depends on the robbery of neigh- bouring towns of their natural supplies.
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