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Tous las autres exemplaires orlgineux sont filmte en commenpant par la premlAre page qui comporte une empreinte d'impression ou d'iiiustration et en terminant par la dernlAre page qui comporte une telle empreinte. Un des symboles sulvants apparattra sur la dernlAre Image de cheque microfiche, selon Ie cas: Ie symboEe — »- signifie "A SUiVRE", ie symbols V signifie "FIN". Les cartes, planches, tableaux, etc., peuvent Atre film«s A des tsux de rMuction diffArents. Lorsque Ie document est trop grand pour Atre reproduit en un seul ciichA, II est film* A partir de I'engle supArleur gauche, de gauche A drolte, et de haut en bas, en prenant ie nombre d'images nAcesssire. Les disgrammes suivants iliustrant la mAthodo. 1 2 3 1 2 3 4 S 6 l' ■■■ 1^ * fs J^t" REPOET OK SUPPLTlHff THE CITY OF QUEBEC vrtm PURE WATER: BT OBOU OP GEORGE OKILL STUART, ESQ., MAYOR OF aUBBBC. By GEORGE R. BALDWIN, CITIb BNOIMKIFR. BOSTON: CSURIiES C. UTTLB AND JAM£S BROWN. 18^8. I ttlriliiytrti ! ? y REPORT ON SUPPLYING THE CITY OF QUEBEC WITH PURE WATER: MADE FOR THE CITY COUNCIL BY ORDER OF GEORGE OKILL STUART, ESQ., MAYOR OF aUEBEC. By GEORGE R. BALDWIN, CIVIL ENGINEER. BOSTON: CHARLES C. LITTLE AND JAMES BROWN. 1848. .**'^*t bostok: phwtid by vkiehan and bollks, BIVOmaiBE STBEXT. REPORT. 41 i-r-m Charlestowiif April 2, 18^. Dear Sir, In compliance with your communication dated July 1st, 1847, requesting that I should repair to Quebec for the pur- pose of investigating the practicability and cost of supplying that city with pure water, I commenced a reconnoissance of the neighboring streams on the 11th of August following, to ascertain their relative capabilities and facilities for furnishing the rrquisite supply. Owing to the severity of the winters, nearly all the minor streams in the vicinity of the city are arrested in their course by the entire congelation of their waters — and remain in tha^ state during the greater part of that season ; rendering liiem unsuitable for furnishing an uninterrupted supply, unless arti- ficial reservoirs of great capacity were constructed to hold some four months' provision of water. As the coldness of the climate rendered the small streams unsuitable, there remained for examination only the two larger rivers, the St. Chariest and Montmorenci; neither of which presented any apparent objection, either in regard to their elevation, quantity or purity of their waters, or in regard to the distance to which it would be necessary to convey the water by artificial means. Therefore, considering these sources sufficient in every respect, surveys were made to ascertain the practicability and cost of an aqueduct which should terminate in the city on the high ground at the junction of Scott street with St. Lewis road, where a reservoir could be constructed of ample height for forcing the water into every house in Quebec, and probably to supply the lower portions of the citadel enclosure. The bountiful and salubrious waters of these two rivers at once discouraged any thought of abandoning them for a nearer supply by means of steam or water power, which, although it might result in a cheaper method of supplying the city, should not, to follow the recent examples of some of our large citiesj on that account alone to be preferred. CHARACTER OF THE ST. CHARLES AND MONTMORENCI RIVERS. Altliough neither of these rivers were explored by myself much above the points at which the water would be taken, if taken at all, it may be well to allude to them, giving such casual information as was gathered from different individuals, and other sources; in particular that part acquired from a journal kept by William Warvi, Esq. deputy provincial sur- veyor, who made, in the year 1837, an exploration of the sources of the Montmorenci, Saluriski and the Huron branch of the St. Charles, for Peter Patterson, Esq. the present pro- prietor of the Beauport Seigniory. It appears by this journal that the country, after reaching a point twelve or fifteen miles north of Quebec, was then in a state of nature, and that it was with difficulty that he with his Indian assistants could pene- trate that inhospitable region, having to carry provisions for their support during their absence. Mr. Ware ascended the Montmorenci, and at about eleven miles from Quebec (as measured on the sketch of his route accompanying the jour- nal) he passed a mill-stream on the right bank, and at thirteen miles another small stream on the same side of the river, carry- ing a mill, (Priest's) ; at fifteen miles one of the main branches of the river diverges to the left, having a breadth of sixty feet, and a course nearly north, its origin being among the moun- tains, in close proximity to the source of the Huron branch of the St. Charles, the two streams running side by side for about five miles, within one mile of each other. This stream drains a strip of country equal to about sixteen square miles. At twenty-four miles from Quebec, according to the sketch, the Montmorenci has smooth water for about two miles, at a place called the " Great Fishery," where the immediate banks are low ; but the mountains are near, and covered with mixed wood. At twenty-seven miles, near the head of another great fishery, where the water is smooth, the river is divided into two main branches, each draining a country about twenty-eight miles long, by six or seven miles wide. Mr. Ware followed the eastern branch, (Snow River) which is very precipitous in its course, originating at Snow Lake, twenty-one miles from the Forks. It rises in that distance, according to his daily estimate of the inclination of the stream, about sixteen hundred feet. The country on each side of this part of the river, like that for twelve miles below the Forks, was greatly broken into moun- tains, varying from nine hundred to three hundred feet in height, the highest mountains being at the Forks. At the Forks he found the hard wood to terminate. Above, the growth consisted of small spruce, balsam and white birch ; the moss covering everything on the surface of the country, much ol which was entirely divested of the soil. At eleven miles up Snow River he passed a stream coming in from the east, which seemed to have connection with a large lake, discovered from the top of a mountain, about three miles distant from the river. This stream yielded about one-third of the water flow- ing in Snow River, below the junction. While at Snow Lake on the 12th September, he remarks, that it rained and snowed throughout the night, and on the 15th September, the party being still at the lake, ice was formed in their drinking cups. The Lake is about seven and a half miles long, ranging nearly north and south ; the eastern shore is low, while the western is covered with mountains, rising from three hundred to six hundred feet. Two miles north of the north end of Snow Lake, which point he designates as the source of Snow River, the party came to a lake two miles long and three quarters of a mile wide, supposed to have connection with Mai Bay (Malbaie) River. From the soMth end of Snow Lake the party passed across the country in a westerly course six miles to the west and main branch of the Montmorenci, the timber of spruce, balsam, &c., and of the worst description, varying in quality according to the elevation of the country. At about three miles from the lake, a small branch of the Montmorenci was crossed, running north. Some other minor branches were afterwards crossed, two of them running north, another south. Reaching the main branch, they followed down its winding course through a swampy district, covered chiefly Avith larch wood for about two miles, when their route was directed towards the south- west, across the country to the head waters of the eastern branches of the Saluriski River ; thence following near the crest of the eastern watershed of that river for fifteen miles, until, at a distance varying, as estimated on the sketch, from two to four miles from the Montmorenci, the party came to the source of the Huron branch of the River St. Charles, at a point twenty-three or twenty-four miles from Quebec. The lead of the Huron River is among the mountains, and very near the source of the sixty feet branch of the Montmo- renci, already noticed. The Huron here descends according to estimate, one thousand one hundred feet in a distance of two and a half miles, following the bases of steep and lofty mountains, covered with spruce and birch timber. Here occurred another severe frost on the 21st of September. From this river a divergence was made into the parallel valley of the beforementioned branch of the Montmorenci, and following that stream the party soon intersected their upward track. From this condensed account of the river region traversed by Mr. "Ware, we are to infer its character to be such as would be likely to furnish the purest of water ; little liable to be ani- malized with visible or invisible animalculEe, or become very rapidly unwholesome by stagnation. The very great descent of the streams, so httle interrupted by smooth or gentle cur- rents, makes it certain that the water would arrive in the greatest purity at the points where it would be taken and con- ducted by an aqueduct to the city. And the inhospitableness of the region, made so by the extreme barrenness and rough- ness of its surface, would forbid its being used to any extent for agricultural purposes. I was informed, by persons who knew the country about the sources of the River St. Charles, that the small western branch of that stream had its rise like the Huron, and wound "Is way like that river among the mountains. The wesi "\, branch passes through Lake Larron, just before the iunchja at or near the head of Lake Charles. Lake Larron is said to be very deep, and embosomed in the mountains. Lake Si. Charles is a very long lake, divided near Ihe middle by narrows, with high ground on the west ; the eastern shore for an extent of a mile or two is comparatively low and covered with wood. East of this the country becomes elevated, and forms a portion of that range of primitive hills which Lieut. Baddely, R. E., has descvibed as " commencing at Cape Tourment, thirty miles below Quebec, on the northern shore of the St. Lawrence, where it forms a conspicuous dome-shaped headland, trends away to the westward in a series of consecu- tive mountains and valleys ; the former holds a course nearly parallel to the St. Lawrence, and preserving an average dis- tance from it of ten or twelve miles. Beyond this line of demarkation to the northward for many miles, no * land of promise ' for the settler is met with ; and the semi-civilized Indian traverses this inhospitable region, in the pursuit of the moose and the caribou, consoled by the reflection, that here, at least for many years to come, his wanderings will suft'er little interruption from the white man. " The highest of this range is consiaered not to exceed two thousand feet of altitude above the St. Lawrence, but usually falls much short of it. The country which it traverses has been explored, but by no individual possessed of sufficient geological knowledge to allow him to describe the rocky masses met with, in language sufficiently scientific to be intel- ligible to the initiated. However, an examination of those ofT-spurs and boulders which lie nearest the town, has led those who understand the subject, to infer, that granite, granitic gneiss, mica slate, (rarely) ; syenite, syenitic gneiss, home- blende slate, and primary greenstone, are the species of rocks which most prevail." Picture of Quebec^ p. 444. The upper part of Lake St. Charles is said to have a depth of onj hundred feet j its western shore is rocky, with deep water, while the eastern has shoaler water with a sandy bot- tom. The lower division varies in depth from ten to twenty feet, excluding the shoal parts near the shore. The bottom is composed of sand and mud ; the latter an extremely fine sand, probably the finer part of the debris of the primitive district above, which has been brought through the upper division of the lake daring floods, and before reaching the quick water at the outlet, has been deposited where it is now found. Should the flood water, as it flows through the lake, act upon this sedi- ment, it would be conveyed down the River St. Charles, and be n source of annoyance by being carried through the aqueduct to the city, were there not a subsiding reservoir to arrest it, constructed at Lorette, or some other point, where the supply might be taken. The east side of the lower division of the lake is said to be bounded by a rocky or hard shore, except about half a mile next above the outlet, wliere there is an extensive swamp running back to the foot of the high land, about two miles distant. The west shore of the lake, below the narrows, was represented to be high, Avith the exception of a patch of hard bottom land, about one quarter of a mile wide from the lake, at the Inn, Avhich is annually flooded to the depth of six or seven feet, as is the swamp on the opposite shore of the lake, for a short time during the freshets in the spring of the year. The ice of the feeders of this lake does not float down in floods, but is dissolved in place by the warmth of the water and sun ; neither has the water the power to break up and force down the outlet of the lake the ice formed in the lake itself. We have, therefore, nothing to fear from the action of ice on any artificial works to be erected at the head of the aqueduct. The west shore of this lake has been occupied many years, and there can be enumerated now, within two ranges of lots, thirty-eight families. On my visit to the place our route lay along a road which crossed the outlet where the bottom land was about a mile wide. The river, at that point, had a velocity of about one mile an hour, and a level of about seven feet below the surface of the roiid and bordering forest. Ttiis low ground, which extends, perhaps with some interruptions of high ground, to the head of the rapids at liorette, is periodically flooded, like the swamp on the lake. The course of this part of the river is very serpentine. A distance of seven miles by this course is said to be three miles longer than a straight line. The velocity of the cTirrent here is such tiiat a canoe left to itself would float down the seven miles in about five hours. There are but few shallows where ihe water is reduced in depth to one and n half or two feet ; and the width varies from eighty to one hundred feet. The fall is so little, according to the repre- 9 It sentction of others, that a dam could be made at Lorette, which would flow the lake and turn it into an immense reservoir, from Avhich any deficiency could be supplied in the natural flow of the river during an extreme drought in summer, or, what is more likely to happen, a prolonged frost in the winter. Instead of building a high dam at Lorette, the same effect would be produced by deepening the shoaler parts of the intermediate portions of the river. But this would not be so desirable a course to pursue as the other, on account of the greater liability of having the water made turbid by abra- sions from the banks of the stream between the lake and dam. A high dam would tend to remedy such a result by causing a diminished current ; but, on the other hand, the bor- dering low ground would be flooded oftener, and to a greater depth. Between Lake St. Charles and the above-mentioned road the River Jaune, a large tributary of the River St. Charles, enters from the north, having a developed course, including the two main branches, of about thirteen miles. On this tributary are located three lakes. Lake Beauport, Segamite, and St. Sebas- tian. The first is the largest, and distant four or five miles north-east of Lake St. Charles. There is another stream that rises about two miles west of Lake Larron, from whence it loweeps round towards the west, returning into the St. Charles, after a course of some ten miles, not far above Freeman's dam, at Indian Lorette. On the 12th of August, I examined the lake water taken np in a boat from the middle of the lake ; its color was of the purest white, and perfectly sweet to the taste ; but when the river water was examined at Lorette, after a few rainy days that followed a long season of dry weather, it had a slight tinge of yellow, like bog water, with a taste a little astringent, but such as to be scarcely discernible. It was stated by the inhabitants at the inn, that the lake water has at times a yel- low or reddish color, caused probably by bog water, or the wash of the swamps. A sample of thr Montmorenci water, (No. 1 of the Analysis, given in Appendix A,) taken up on the 11th of August, at Mr. Patterson's dam, top of the Great Falls of Montmorenci, was as white, sparkling, and as free from all bad taste as that i : V . i; 10 of Lake St. Charles, (No. 2 of the Analysis,) but apparently many degrees colder. Another sample of the Montmorenci water was taken up on the 8th of September, at a point about a mile above the Three Falls ; the river having been affected by some six days of rain that intervened between the 11th of Ai:gust and 8th of Septem- ber. This sample (No. 4) had a higher color of the bog, or swamp, than any one of the nine samples left with Professor Siliiman, for analysis. Sample No. 5, taken up September 24th, at Mr. Patterson's Bridge, at the head of the Great Falls, was a large one of about two and a half gallons, it was much less tinged by the bog than No. 4. A large sample. No. 6, two and a half gallons, was obtained at the east end of Freeman's Dam, at the head of the Rapids at Indian Lorette, where it is proposed to tap the river for supply- ing the aqueduct. This sample was very nearly of the same tint of sample No. 5. In taking this up it was observed that there were numerous white particles carried along in the stream, both upon and below its surface ; I took these particles to be sawdust, and as they could be seen before they reached the mouth of the bottle, most of them were avoided in taking up the water. In all these samples, from No. 1 to No. 6, inclusive, with the exception of the sawdust, there was scarcely a particle having the character of sand or mud, to be detected by the naked eye. They were all perfectly translucent, and only tinted yellow, as before mentioned. Frequent analyses of the bog or peat water have of late been made by the most expe- rienced chemists and physicians of the United States, and they all assert the harmlessness of these colorer' waters. As to the sufficiency of the St. Charles and Montmorenci, independently, yielding at all times a full supply of water for any probable increase of the city for fifty years to come, after what I have seen and learnt from reputable persons, concerning the flow of these rivers, I have no doubt. The Montmorenci is the largest of the two rivers. In comparison with the St. Charles it bears more the character of a mountain torrent, suddenly raised to its maximum, and as quickly reduced to its minunum discharge, but probably furnishing 11 more water at all times. The St. Charles, on the contrary, (if we confine the remark to that division of the river below Lake St. Charles,) has considerable constancy, and does not, in the greatest freshets, rise more than about eight feet at the Lake, and probably not more than three or four feet on the dam at Lorette. I was so well satisfied as to the capability of either of the two streams to supply a population of 100,000, or even 200,000, that I took no particular pains to measure their dis- charges. I roughly estimated, however, that of the Mont- morenci, when it was first visited, on the 11th of August ; at which time it was stated to be, by those who well knew the river, very nearly at its lowest stage. The discharge tlien must have been equal to one hundred and fifty cubic feet — perhaps two hundred cubic feet — per second. The discharge of the St. Charles, at Indian Lorette was probably about two- thirds as much at that time. PRESENT AND PROSPECTIVE WANT OF WATER FOR THE CITY. The quantity of water the aqueduct is to furnish is a point to be settled before going far into the details of the work, as the size of the conduit conveying the water from the source in the cormtry or other point of supply, is dependent upon it. In the present case I have fixed the supply at 480,000 cubic feet per day of twenty-four hours, equal to 5.55 cubic feet per second, assuming for the purpose the number of inhabitants eventually to be supplied, at 100,000 — and that each individual, man, woman and child should require thirty imperial gallons, or 4.8 cubic feet a day. But it is not to be understood that this is the exact quantity each individual would receive in practice. This is only an average of what would be used by the different tenants. Some families would not receive more than two- thirds, others not more than one-third of thin average rate; while manufactories, and other establishments of the kind, would take more or less, according to the nature of their busi- ness ; as will appear by examining the table given in Ap- pendix B, which with the other tables, C, D, E, of the statistics of the Fairmount and other Water Works, have been compiled from annual reports, parliamentary docu- 12 ments, and other authentic sources. The table alluded to, shows the range of supply to a tenant at Philadelphia to be great, the rates there, varying from $100 to $150, and in one instance reaching $750 per annum ; the quantity of water varying probably in the same ratio. In that city, where the water is profusely used for cleansing the sidewalks and streets, the average daily consumption for ten years from 1834 to 1844, was 178 imperial gallons per tenant. (See Appendix E). In London, the five water companies on the north side of the Thames (see Appendix D) delivered 173.4 gallons to each tenant in 1820, and in 1827 supplied 172.3 gallons ; and the whole eight companies (on both sides the river) delivered in 1827, 163.2 gallons per twenty-four hours to each tenant. We may therefore, conclude, that 150 gallons to a tenant, or to each five individuals of the population, would be a proper supply, if we make all suitable allowance for the difference in climate between the places cited and Quebec ; and also the difference there probably would be in the use of the water for manufacturing purposes. Having settled the unit of s'upply for an inhabitant, we have still to consider the aggregate quantity the works should be capable of supplying, without exceeding the present or pros- pective wants of the city. This question would be settled at once, were it proper to base it on the present population ; but common prudence demands that we should look beyond the immediate Avants of the city, on a subject which requires at any rate a very large expenditure, and to see, if a very small addition to the capital to be invested in the works, will not provide for a very material increase of the city r and perhaps be a primary cause in such increase, by the facilities and com- fort its results would offer to settlers. All estimates show that a very considerable addition to the supply of water by an aqueduct, may be obtained by a very small addition to the money expended ; for many of the details of that part of the water work connected with the introduction of the water into the city for distribution, would be common to a small or large supply. The item which would be the most affected, belong- ing to this part of the work, supposing the water to be brought from a distance, is the conduit that is to convey it, and the cost of this is but slowly augmented as the quantity of water is 13 increased. The other expenses of this part of the work (such as the dam, reservoirs and their appendages, bridges, culverts, and damages) are raised little if at all, by increasing the size of the conduit. It is usual, on these accounts, to provide for years to come. And I have, therefore, assumed the population eventually to be supplied, to be one hundred thousand. According to the Statistics of Quebec, furnished by Mr. Joseph Hamel, City Surveyor, the population of the several wards was, in 1842 and 1847, as stated in the following table. The entries under the head 1842 were taken from the census ; those under 1847 were taken from the assessment books. Wards. 184' Population. 2. Families. 1 1847. Population. IF.mileis. St. Lewis .... Palace Ctiamplain .... St. Peter's .... St. Roch's .... St. John's .... Total 2,797 2,282 3,733 3,624 10,850 8.715 328 248 531 705 2,081 1,639 ' 2,634 ; 3,071 1 4,330 4,916 12,665 I 3,539 310 3G0 610 803 2,510 1,510 32,001 5,532 36,155 6,103 Besides this table, the Quebec Guide for 1844, states the population of the several wards, seminary, convents, &c. (ap- parently obtained from a census taken that year,) to be, exclu- sive of Banlieus, .... 32,876 Banlieus being ..... 2,797 And the whole county of Quebec, per same census, 45,676 Using the numbers given here for the population of the city wards, we find the increase and the compound ratio of increase to be as follows : Increase in 5 years, from 1842 to 1847 = 4,154, and the com- pound ratio of increase = 2.47 per ct. per annum. Increase in 2 years from 1844 to 1847 = 3,279, and the com- pound ratio of increase = 4.87 per cent, per annum. Now computing on the present population, by the first ratio of increase, we find there would be at the end o^ 41.7 years a population of 100,000 souls. But using the second ratio of increase, viz. 4.87 per cent, per annum, there would be 100,000 inhabitants at the expiration of 21.4 years from the year 1847. Should we go back to the year of capitulation, 1759, eighty- eight years ago, when the population was 6,700, we should 14 find the increase by the same rule to have been about 2 per cent, per annum ; and if the city should not increase in a more rapid rate, we should have to anticipate 51^ years before the entire capacity of the conduit v\?ould be put in requisition. But there is little to apprehend, that the rate of increase will be so low as that suggested in the last case, for many years to come. T!ie prospect is the reverse, a much higher rale than either the first or last case exhibits may be fairly inferred, im- der the influence of the modern mode of communication by railroads. The railroads to New Brunswick and the United States, if completed will much augment the ratio of increase ; the probability is, that the anticipation of the completion of the railroads alone has had a very material effect already on the population of the city, accounting, in part, for the excess in the ratio of increase for the last two yearso I think these facts warrant the assumption that there would be a population of 100,000 at the expiration of thirty years from this time. Allowing the result to be as stated, the question may be asked, will the whole population take the water at the expira- tion of that time ? It is found that the city proper of Philadel- phia, (excluding the Districts) furnish a tenant to the water- works for each 7* of its population.* A '* tenant," therefore, in that city, is synonymous to 7J indiv: aals — which is 46§ per cent, more than we have allowed, in considering a tenant at Quebec equal to 5 individuals. But we suppose there would be a greater portion of the population in Quebec — indeed, very nearly all — who would pay for pure water, because it is impossible to procure it by wells, or other sources, at a cheaper rate. Nevertheless, should this not be the case, there is a reason for providing a full supply in the necessity for the extra quantity of water, which the pipe should be capable of delivering during a hot season. This is plainly p^ucidated by the Fairmount Water Statistics, given in the Appendix ; and also in a letter from Frederick Graff", Esq. the Superintendent of the Fairmount Water Works, to a member of the Boston Water Commission, for 1845. In this letter he states : " In one week of hot, dry weather, from August 6th to 13th, this year,'' (1845) " we pumped 5,116,674 gallons, supplied to 20,399 * J. B. Jarvis aiul W. 11. Johnson's Ikpurt on Supply of Pure Water for Uie City of iJiwlon. p 112. 15 tenants, which is for each nearly 251 gallons." (ale.) " This quantity should be calculated for at Boston, to cover with cer- tainty all incidents that may occur, either by means of dry weather, great consumptions for fires, or carelessness in the distribution ; 28,082 tenants, the first six months in 1844, used, per average, 162 gallons," (ale) " each tenant ; 20,399 * tenants, the first six months in 1845, used 187 gallons each — which makes an excess of water used this year by each tenant, per day, over the consumption of last year, of 25 gallons. The excess, I think, has been produced by the dry weather and excessive heat, together with more frequent bathing, and v.rashing the streets." — Here we have, from undeniable author- ity, both the amount of water used in hot weather, and the advice to provide for such excess in the erection of water works. Taking the quantity he gives, turned into imperial measure, (^55 gallons) and comparing it with the average quantity we have already given as used in that city, for ten years following 1834, viz., 178 gallons, we find there must be provided for, an excess of supply, 43.26 per cent, more than the average demand, which nearly compensates for the difference between taking 5 instead of 7J individuals of the gross popula- tion, as constituting a tenant. These considerations, we think, justify us in fixing 480,000 cubic feet, or 3,000,000 imperial gallons of water a day, as the proper quantity to be contem- plated, in giving dimensions to the derails of the work. The amount is probably as large as the circimstances of the case warrant. The quantity of water taken from the St. Charles and St. Lawrence Rivers, both in winter and summer for the supply of families, and its quality, may now be stated : St. Lewis Ward 3,061,600 gallons per annum. Palace Champlain St. Peter's Si. Roch's St. John's (( « (( (( (( 2,579,200 1,268,800 3,340,480 9,689,600 683,120 (( u (( (( (( (( (( (( (( (( (( (( (( (( Total annual consumption 20,622,800 (( (( (( * This number was partly assumed by Mr. Grafl", as ho slates in his letter. The aumber for the whole year app«jar8 in the annual report to be 20,165. See Table E, in Appendix. 16 This supply in 1847 was equal to a daily consumption by each family of 92.58 gallons. The water is nearly all taken up in the course of a few hours while the tide is out, and the St. Charles has discharged most of its tide water, and the later it is taken up (before the return of the tide) the purer and better is the water esteemed ; and it is at such times that the drinking water is secured for families who are particular to have the best. The places usually resorted to by the water-carriers to pro- cure their supply, are as follows : At the site of the old Dorchester Bridge, north of the Marine Hospital, which is the highest place on ihe St. Charles, except St. Ours street, at the General Hospital, where the water-car- riers, in any considerable number, go for their water. This locality is considered the best for table use. The second place next below is the landing at the foot of Crown street. The third place in order, following down the city side of the St. Charles, is at the foot of Ann street, just above the present Dorchester Bridge ; here a very large portion of the water is taken up, most of it ior St. Roch's Ward, but much also is conveyed to the higher parts of the city. The fourth place in order is near St. Paul's Market, at the landing place on Light-house Wharf, where the Gas Company are now establishing their Avorks. The fifth principal place is at the Market Landing in St. Peter's ward, in the Lower Town. The sixth point is on the beach, called Cul de Sac, at the north end of Champlain Ward. Both this and the fifth locality furnish water, which may be considered as properly belonging to the River St. Lawrence. The water at all the other points, if taken up at extreme low water, or just before the return of the tide, may with propriety be called St. Charles water ; but it still may contain a small portion of water that originally descended the St. Lawrence, and consequently may contain a portion of the impurities which the .flood tide carried up the river, from the outlet of the sewers and other sources of filth. The interesting and valuable analysis of the Quebec waters by Professor Silliman, with the curious if not useful report of Professor Baily, of West Point Military Academy, on the 17 microscopic contents of the same waters, (see Appendix A) show them to be very pure. The samples for analysis were taken up with every precaution to obtain them free from acci- dental impurities. They are, in my opinion, greatly liable to such impurities, and particularly so at the time when it is usual for the carters, with their horses and water barrels, to resort to the several watering places, entering pellmell into the shallow water, lading and filling their barrels with all possible despatch, regardless perhaps of what tiieir buckets may contain. To show that on such occasions, noxious, offensive, and even poisonous impurities may be inoffensively taken up, and con- veyed for domestic uses, we have only to allude to the fact, that the common sewers charged with the debris of houses and cesspools, or private vaults, and the poisonous waste of manu- factories, do discharge into the St. Charles or the St. Lawrence Rivers ; three or four of the principal ones having their debouche at the very points where the water is procured by the carriers. Three of the Quebec waters, analyzed by Professor Silliman, were taken up at the above specified watering places, (see Appendix A) viz. : Sample No. 7. Water taken up at the site of the Old Dor- chester Bridge, at 2\ P. M., Sept. 25, 1847, just before the return of the tide to that place, the water still running out. Bottles filled from the stream at a distance from the shore. Sample No. 8. Taken up at low tide, Sept. 27, at 3^ P. M., at the foot of Ann street, St. Roch's Ward, at a place away from the shore where the carriers take their supply — the water at the point being from 12 to 14 inches deep — wind fresh up the St. Charles, which made the water quite turbid. Sample No. 9. Taken at the Cul de Sac, Champlain Ward, within one hour after Sample No. 8 was taken up. The wind still blowing quite a breeze up the St. Lawrence, and into the Sac, rendering the water turbid for some considerable distance from the shore. Not being able to procure a sample sufii- ciently pure from the beach, took one from a carrier's barrel, who had, at our request, taken up his supply as far out as pos- sible into the river, still the sample was quite turbid. It may be well to observe here, that the sediment deposited in the bottles containing the different specimens of water, waa 3 . II ,1 Hi 18 excluded from the analysis, as Professor Silliman has informed me since the receipt of the report, because in fact they formed " n.> part of the proper contents of the waters." It was observed when the specimens were taken from the bottles for Professor Bailey, that the original turbidness of the water could not be reproduced by any ordinary agitation of the bot- tles ; the sediment having agglutinated itself into little clots that would not redissolve. All the bottles, thirty-three in number, containing the nine samples of Quebec waters, were new, and were all furnished with well ground glass stoppers ; and on taking up the samples the bottles were always thoroughly rinsed in the water of the locality. They were afterwards kept secure with leather tied over the stoppers, and with one or two exceptions, were kept stopped until their delivery into the possession of Professor Silliman, excepting, however, the opening of nine bottles for the small specimens left with Professor Bailey, who had the kindness to consent to examine them for animalculae, &c., under his powerful microscope. The quality of the water of the city wells is very inferior, and therefore many of the families buy their supply of the water-carriers, paying various prices, according to the quantity and distance it has to be conveyed ; ordinarily at the rate of about ^7.50 a year per one hundred imperial gallons, for a family of five individuals. It is estimated that five-eighths of the population use snow water in the winter, and river water in the summer season. Some of the more opulent families in St. Lewis and Palace Wards, pay from thirty to forty dollars per annum for river water, notwithstanding they have wells on their estates, the water of which is used for washing dishes, and other culinary purposes. The stables in the same wards use large quantities of river water. One of them I understood kept a man and team employed almost all the time bringing water for the establishment. I was informed by a gentleman residing in St. Roch's Ward, not fi.r from the watering place at the foot of Ann street, that he purchased for his family of nine persons, three barrels a week from the carriers, and paid them at the rate of $15.60 a year. There are about 112 water-carriers, each owning a team valued at fifty dollars. 19 The quantity of water consumed by the military depends upon the strength of the garrison ; they now use the river water only for washing clothes ; they have a large cistern and some wells within their inclosures, and these furnish the remainder of water which they require for culinary and other purposes. But should the Water Works go into operation, the different military establishments would become, no doubt, large consumers. The wells of the higher portions of the city are sunk in the clay slate rock, which is thinly covered with earth, and conse- quently the water is very impure, having much the character of surface water, there being no depth of soil to purify it by ^ filtration before it enters the wells. ^(, LORETTE LINE OF AQUEDUCT. It is proposed to take the water for this line from the River St. Charles at Freeman's Tannery Dam, at the head of the rapids, thirty chains above the church at the Indian village of Lorette ; assuming the level of still water above the dam as it was found at the time the survey was made, to be that, to be maintained as the fountain head of the Aqueduct. The works which are proposed here are a Dam, Receiving Well, Conduits in masonry, a Reservoir of Subsidence and its appendages, consisting of a Wasteway, Culverts and Well, for regulating, straining and directing the water to the cast iron pipe leading to the distributing reservoir in the city. The dam would be placed at right angles with the general course of the river at this place, and located just below the present dam. The body of the work to be constructed of stone, with a water stop of brick placed as a facing against the up river side of the stone work, the top or exposed part of the stone and all the brick work to be laid with hydrauUc cement, sinking the foundation six feet below the bottom of the river. A strong abutment wall on the left bank will extend up and down the river a suitable distance, to guard against abrasions by the water, and at the same time to form a head to a cylindrical conduit of hydraulic brick work, designed for conveying the water to a Receiving Well, placed about fifty feet in the rear, 20 r measuring at right angles with the face of the wall or general course of the river. The dam would have a sluice near the right bank, where the water for the tannery could be dis- charged. From the Receiving Well it is proposed to convey the water to the Subsiding Reservoir, by a covered Conduit in masonry about four hundred feet long, laid parallel to the river. The Receiving Well would be furnished with strainer and regulating gate, and enclosed by a circular building in brick work, to protect it from intrusion and frosts. The Subsiding Reservoir, represented on the profile of the line (No. 2), would extend about six hundred feet along the line of survey, being divided by it very nearly into two equal 'parts. The high embankment forming its southeastern, or lower boundary, would intersect the surveyed line in the meadow at Station 118, and occupy the space between the Indian Chiefs lane and the river. The east embankment would follow the lane, and the west the river, both extending to the high ground at the north side of the Reservoir. About three quarters of the area enclosed by the embankments would be cutting, calling the bottom of this part of the Reservoir eight feet under the level of high water, or eight feet below Station 120 or still water of the river above the dam. It is estimated that the earth to be removed would be sufficient to form the surrounding embankment. At the north-wt^t corner of the Reservoir would be the most suitable place for an uncovered or open Waste weir, unless one could be formed, in combination with the Pipe or Regulating Well and Culverts, to be inserted in the high embankment at Station 118, or at the south-eastern angle of the Reservoir. The dimensions and capacity of this Reservoir would be as follows : Superficial area at high water level, 240,486 square feet, or 5.52 statute acres. Superficial area at low water level, 210,390 square feet, or 4.83 statute acres. Cubic contents between high and low water levels, .... 1,803,504 cubic feet. Add for the deeper part of the Reservoir, 43,200 " " Total capacity equal to 3.85 days' supply for the city, .... 1,846,704 (( (( 21 1 if M From Station 118, the surveyed line for the iron main passes down the meadow to the left bank of the Ht. Chafes, where it continues along the ban!:, between the Indian village and river, crossing the great road between the Indian church and the ancient Indian grave yard, and then enters the church land, which occupies the space between the road on the north, and the deep ravine the river has cut for itself in the limestone form- ation below the great cascade on the south. The line then passes along the left bank of the river, south of Lepire's and Lafonte's dwelling houses, crossing the (Quebec and Lorette river road in the hollow near Mrs. Pinet's house ; thence fol- lowing the low ground east of the river road, descends into the fields near Peter Falardeau's house, where the line takes a straight course to the isolated barn on the left bank of the St. Charles, west of the Vacherie or Pointe Aux Lievres, at Sta- tion 53. This straight part of the line may be varied consid- erably either to the right or left, without altering materially the cost of the work, provided the large brook at George Bederd's house (Station 93) is crossed near the place it is crossed by this survey. After passing this brook, the hne might perhaps with advantage be deflected more to the south, and pass the steep bluff in the deep ravine cut by the little brook, about four chains west of Station 38, and from thence to the barn abovemen- tioned, keeping south of the surveyed line, and avoiding the little brook at Station 64. From the isolated barn the Aqueduct would go straight to the foot of Dorchester, at St. Peter's street, crossing the River St. Charles at the Po*- nearly at right angles with the course of the river at that place From Station 47 at St. Peter's street the main v/ould follow the line of survey through Dorchester to its jimction with St. Valiere street, cross the latter in a diagonal direction, and ascend the steep rocky bluff to its crest at the foot of St. Claire street. Thence through that latter street, crossing St. John's street and the private lots on its southern side, enter and continue through Scott street to Chemin de la Grand Allee, or St. Lewis road ; thence crossing that road, diagonally terminate at the west corner of the Ursuline Nuns lot, where we have supposed the Distributing Reservoir would be located. The country portion of this line could not be much more favorable than it is for a conduit to convey water. The line is so 'ill! direct and free from undulations, that the effect of curves may be neglected in the computations for fixing the size of the pipe. The surface of the ground is particularly uniform, requiring only in a few instances, embankments or cuttings that would in any essential degree interfere with the farmer in tilling his land. The soil is also favorable for executing the work, and will we i..ink stand with a slope no greater than that assumed in the estimates, and given in the cross section of the trench on Plate No. 2. We think the soil is also favorable in regard to its corroding action upon the cast iron of the pipes. It is quite certain that rock would not be encountered along the country part of this line, if we except that portion between Peter Felardeau's house and the subsiding reservoir. I think the character of the sides of the deep chasm the river has excavated clc^e alongside the line here, shows the chance to be small, that rock in place would be met with below the Indian Church, at the depth it would be necessary to go to secure the pipe against frosts. At the cutting across tho road at the Church, the rock might be found at the bottom of the trench, for it crops out at the bridge near by, whence to the Great Cascade it occupies the whole breadth of the river, and forms the wall over Avhich the river falls. This rock is of a hard quality, I suppose of the primitive formation, gneiss, and differ- ent from the limestone rock below. Should the rock below the church interfere with the position of the pipes we have assumed, they could be ele>ated without much inconvenience, and be protected by an embankment. There are but three or four watsr courses, except the St. Charles and the large brook at Bederd's that would require any expense, except in some instances, where it would be necessary to divert them to a lower point on the line, where they would pass over the pipe without interference. A culvert would be required at Station 64, unless a more southerly course was taken, although I have supposed the water of this bi ook, before it reaches the line near Station 65, to be diverted across into the brook valley below Station 61, making it unnecessary to put in a culvert next to Station 65. Another culvert I believe to be unavoidable at Station 60, and another at Station 54. At Station 52, or near Station 50, should be a well for a waste cock and pipe, these points bemg at the extremities ef the lowest 28 part of the pipe. This work is necessary to furnish the means of drawing off with the water any accumulation of sand or other substance, that may from time to time take place in the pipe. Either of these points would answer, both being near the river, into which the water and sediment could be directed at little cost. The bridge across the St. Charles at the foot of Dorchester street is a large and importa.it item in the estimate. It has been adopted as a necessary part of the work ; but it would also be valuable as a new and important avenue into the city, if connected with a road to traverse the line of aqueduct as far at least, as the St. Claire and Buoaventure Roads, from whence it might be continued and make ttie shortest route to Indian Lorette, so much resorted to now by strangers and parties of pleasure, and likely to become more and more so as the city increases in population. It would, we are satisfied, be good policy for the landholders along the line to aid and encourage such a project ; their lands bordering the road would be greatly enhanced in value, and sought, for country seats, for agricul- tural and other purposes. The part in the vicinity of the River St. Charles, could be laid out into streets and lots, and allow the city to expand in a direction now impracticable for the want of a bridge and road in connection ; and there would exist there also a free communication by water with the lower parts of the city and the shipping in the River St. Lawrence. If there is not a bridge the pipe must be carried under the river, by some means or other. This could be done in the way contemplated by the estimate for the Montmorenci Line of Aqueduct, given hereafter in this Report; but it is our opinion that the facilities for operating at the Old Dorchester Bridge, where the other line crosses, do not exist on this, on account of the greater depth of water, and the absence of a free fall in the bed of the river below the site of operations. Still the plan alluded to or the flexible main,* adopted at Glasgow, in * Mr. Philip Prcble.s, Engineer of the Quebec Gas 'Works, in a letter to the writer of this Report, from Scollund, dttted Mnrrii 22, IS'IS, states tiiat, this flexible main, us it i8 called, has never been renewed since it was tirst drawn across on the Inittoni of Clyde ; that the exterior surface of the pijjcs was as perfect as when cast ; bnt the interior had some little knots (tubercles) of rust, which could be removed by the t'lUfitir; lio ulst) states that at Kdinbur^h they were mokinj^ some radical changes in tlu^ Water Works ; and ut Glasgow new Water Workjs were Iximg cunstruetud to supply u dis- trict of 97,000 inhabitants, by gmvilation. «!' lij i^l I 24 lir Scotland, would answer here, and cost considerably less than a bridge ; but both plans would be attended with great incon- venience, in case repairs become necessary on that part of the pipe in the river, where they are more likel) to occur than any where else ; the pressure being equal to about 463 feet. So far as we are informed, the history of water works do not fur- nish any account of a head of water so great as this. The tunnel furnishes a superior method for getting across the river with the pipe ; it should be so large that one, perhaps two large pipes could be laid through it, leaving space enough besides for inserting a new joint, should an accident require it. Two wells would be necessary appendages, ont '»t each end of the tunnel, for the descent and ascent of the conduit, with provision for a waste cock and pumps, and houses to cover the wells. The expense of a tunnel has not been ascertained, but probably would amount to 25,000, or 30,000 dollars ; sup- posing the river would have to be turned into a new channel across the point of land, in executing the work. The bridge contemplated would be of cut stone masonry, with three arches of forty-five feet span each. The width over the arches, exclusive of the projecting mouldings, would be twenty-six feet, and the wings or return wa"i would expand to thirty feet. The whole length of the bridge, including the wings, two hundred and forty-nine feet. The pipe would pass the bridge on a level eleven feet above the base line of the survey, or high water of spring tides, and would be en- closed in a covered way in masonry, for the purpose of equal- izing the temperature about the pipe, and giving access for repairs, and for further protecting it from frosts, should it be required. On a portion of the line within the city limits, rock at a greater ov less depth, would be found from the bluff at the foot of St. Claire street to the distributing reservoir ; in some places it could be avoided in part by grading the streets anew, filling in and equalizing their inclinations, thereby saving much ex- pense in quarrying for the water and gas mains, the service pipes, the common sewers and the private drains. In the estimates a liberal allowance, it is thought, has been made for the rock, but there was no data by \\hich its amount could be fixed with much certainty. Where the rock was visible in the 25 streets, and bottom of open cellars, its presence was noted ; much of the distance, however, there was no indication that it was so near the surface of the streets as to interfere with the emplacement of the pipe. DISTRIBUTING RESERVOIR AND DISTRIBUTION. The lot of ground selected for the site of the distributing reservoir, for the purpose of the estimate, is that belonging, as we were informed, to the Ursuline Nuns ; now under a lease to the British government. It is situated on the south side of St. Lewis road ; iind bounded on the other three sides by the government property. The lot next west is better adapted for a reservoir, on account of its greater breadth and altitude ; but as such a work constructed there might be considered to mili- tate with the plans of the citadel defences, it was thought best to place it where it would probably interfere the least with the citadel, and be better commanded in case of invasion. The surface of the lot selected is somewhat uneven, requir- ing at places high embankments. The embankment exceeds the amount of thr' excavation some six or seven thousand cubic yards. The quantity of rock is uncertain. This, like many of the levels used as data in computing the work, has been assumed from cursory observations made while running levels in the vicinity ; and is to be taken in the estimate as only an approximation. At the west corner of the reservoir, the supplying conduit will be admitted by a covered gallery, accessible for examina- tion and repairs as far as the middle of the embankment, where there would be a water stop in hydraulic masonry, through which the conduit would pass, and open into another circular gallery or culvert, having a free outlet into the interior of the reservoir. At the north corner, it is designed to place the wells, culvert and gallery for supplying the city mains — here the water will be strained before its admission into the pipes, with copper or canvas strainers —and a waste- weir provided for conveying off to the common sewer the waste water of the reservoir. I i ! I ! I I ( IL 26 The dimensions given to the reservoir are as follovi^s : (( 440 feet 220 434 214 374 154 Length, inside, from top bank to top bank Breadth " " " " " " Length at surface of high water Breadth" " " " " Length on bottom of the reservoir Breadth " " " " . Cubic contents of the water prism, when the reservoir is full, or within two feet of top bank, making allowance for the cul- vert and wells, and masses of earth and masonry at the inlet and exit pipes, equal to 3j days supply for the city 1,500,000 cubic feet. Surface, or high water level of the reservoir, is assumed, at 330 feet above Base line of the survey, or above high water spring tides at Quebec, and 114.60 below the fountain head at Lorette — the depth of water to be 20 feet. The top of the embankment will have a breadth of 15 feet, the inside and outside slopes 1^ to 1 ; the latter, on the west, north, and partly on the east side, will be supported by a revet- ment, of a height varying according to the inequalities of the ground. The estimate embraces the cost of paving the bottom and inside slopes of the reservoir with concrete, a necessary measure, should there be any considerable deposit from the water, requiring the deposit to be removed at intervals. It is my opinion, that in thib case, we might omit part of the item, as the water to be introduced appears so naturally pure, or would be made so by the subsiding reservoir in the country. The sides of the reservoir not rock, should be lined to prevent the soil of the banks being washed into the reservoir, causing turbidness in the water by every little shower or breeze of wind. In most oases the subject of distribution may be generalized in considering the cost of water works ; but the geological and topographical character of this city demands more than ordi- nary attention in the preUminary examination for introducing water. One of the points alluded to, is the unusual existence of rock throughout a large portion of the city, very near the surface of the streets. The other is the very great difference iu the levels of the different districts to be supplied. The first 27 M affects materially the cost of laying down water mains and their correlative works, gas mains and common sewers ; and the question, how the three shall be laid at Quebec, has already claimed considerable attention. It is our opiniott that the works should be combined and executed "mder some well digested plan ; especially where rock occur o interfere with the excavations to any considerable extent in the narrow streets. In very wide streets there would be more reason for separating them, placing the common sewer in the middle of the street, and the gas and water mains on eacii side, either in contiguity or detached, as rock or earth might occur in such streets. I see no practical objection to the plan of laying a common sewer in or near the middle of a street which shall carry on its top the water and gas mains, — placed below the action of the frost. The sewer in such a position would be well adapted to receive the house drains, and other minor drains, and the pipes on top would receive such a support from the masonry of the sewer, that we might reasonably expect the repairs to be of little consequence forever after. The position of the mains on the side walls of the sewer would not interfere with the house and other drains any more than they would if placed independently, at or near the sides of the streets, and probably less ; for in their proposed position the drains, in descending from the houses, would pass through the sides of the sewer below the mains. The same combination, of water, gas and sewerage, could be extended, under such a general system, to the service pipes ; using the same exca- vation, whether of rock or earth, for them all. The water service pipes could, in such a combination, be laid in or upon the house drains, and receive a support therefrom, which would tend to protect them from derangement. In Paris on the Canal De L'Ourcq Water Works, t was designed, and I believe carried into effect, to lay c: kiid of drain, expressly for the purpose of enclosing the service pipe.* There, however, the main or submain, supplying the service pipe, was to be i^ 'U| 'If * Ce tuynu do bninekenient sortiia dcs ^gouts et guleries oii les conduitcs principoles scront renfcriDpfs <;u truvpn'itnt lu voiite pur les puit^ de (service dont il n ete jnirle. Pour fuciliter la posie des tuyiiux do brimclieinent et leiir iailoxioii en divers sens, s'il est nieetwuiiv, le long ties purois et do lu voCito des guieriee, ils Hcroul liibriiiucs en plonib, h, purtir de lour origino nut lu conduito principule, juMpi' h lour entree dann les rigoleei de iDUf onnerie qui les rccevront sous le puv6 des rues, Qirard. 28 |i only tapped at intervals of 150 metres, (492 feet) the service pipe rising through a well or man hole in the top of the sewer ; and then laid in a covered conductor along the top of the sewer, and resting upon it, to the point opposite the place to be served. In that city the mains supplied wi'i h water from the Canal De L'Ourcq, were laid in galleries. Some of these gal- leries were built expressly for the mains, and had no other use than that of enclosing the pipes securely from accident, and allowing them to be examined and repaired at all times, with- out disturbing the surface of the streets. In other cases, there, the object was compound, the gallery serving, besides enclosing the main, the purpose of a common sewer. The smallest sewer designed, that was to contain a pipe, had a clear width inside of onj metre, (3.28 feet) and a clear height of two metres (6.56 feet.) A pipe was laid in a sewer of this size, which constituted a portion of the train of galleries which con- ducted the waters of the Basin of Villette to the Fountaine des Innocens and other fountains. The advantages of the Paris plan of laying water mains in galleries, over the English method of laying them in common earth, has been alluded to in a French work (Girard,) in the following terms : " That unquestionably the cost of distributing water in galleries, would be very considerable, particularly in Paris, if there did not already exist many sewers, in which we could, without additional expense, add to their first destination that of containing the water mains. The mains which convey the waters of the Basin de la Villette to the Fountaine des Innocens, to the Boulevard Bondy, to the Place des Vosges, and to Palais-Royal, are placed in galleries constructed within a few years, and in some old sewers of sufficient capacity. These we can visit at any time ; and for twenty years it has cost less for keeping ihem in repair, for an extent of more than 10,000 metres, (32,809 feet) than it cost in six months, (before making a general repair,) for repairing and maintaining the new conduit of the Faubourg Poissonniere, only 1200 metres, (3937 feet) long." And the author draws the following con- clusions upon this subject : " That conduits buried in the earth, ought to have solid bearings on masonry at certain inter- vals, which should prevent as much as possible any unequal settling, which might cause a fracture. That in large towns 29 M where the pavement of the streets is generally laid on filling, it is extremely advantageous to place the water mains in arched galleries, constructed under the streets, either for that special object, or what would oftener occur, and be more economical, that these galleries should also be used for sewers for the dis- charge of rain water and drainage of houses, and administer besides to the public health. Finally, that the advantage of arched galleries for receiving the principal conduits of distribu- tion, having been proved for twenty years, it is suitable to profit by that experience, and not be exposed to the frequent disturbance of the pavement to seek for leaks, often without success, where the conduits are laid in a soil liable to settle, like that of the Boulevards, and most of the streets in the capital." As the question in regard to the policy of uniting the sewer- age, gas, and water works, is a matter that may properly be left for the future consideration of the city, the estimate has been made on the supposition that the pipes of distribution are to be laid down in the streets, by bedding them in common earth, in the usual way ; estimating the cost of trenching, whether rock or earth, from the best information at command, making no allowance for any advantage that might be derived by using the channels already cut in the rock for the sewers, a course which might affect the result very considerably by reducing the cost of laying the mains. According to a plan of the city, exhibiting the sewerage as it existed in 1841, procured from Mr. Hamel, the city surveyor, on which the sewers (les canaux) were designated ; the aggregate length of the sewer- age transferred and measured on a new plan of the city, ap- pears to have been from 9 to 9j miles ; of which 1\ miles were in the wards St. Champlain and St. Peter's. In St. Roch's 2\ miles ; in St. John's 2\ miles, and in St. Lewis and Palace wards, within the city walls, including a small portion supposed to be on the rock, outside of the three northern gates, on the bluff, 3j miles. Since 1841, the sewerage, no doubt, has been considerably extended, but we have no authentic account of the amount at this time. The question, at what depth will the frost penetrate the earth, or freeze stagnant water, is somewhat important in many of the details of a water work ; for water mains and service ■ h ■ m ^1',i pipes must be placed, if practicable, out of the reach of extreme frosts ; and the usefulness of a Reservoir, if exposed to the open air, is dependent, to a certain extent, on the depth to which still water will freeze at its locality. Repeated inquiries while at Quebec, tended to fix the extreme depth for both earth and water at about four feet. This depth is corroborated by the published account of Captain Melhuish, R. E., on the demolition on the Glaciere Bastion, at Quebec in 1828, where, in describing the effect of the explosion, he says " the only parts which descended in masses were the exterior revetment of the parapet, and the earth between that and the interior revetment, showing the enormous power of the intense cold in Canada, which strikes nearly four feet into the ground." We have, agreeably to this information, fixed the depth below which the pipes should be laid, at four feet, and in de- signing the reservoirs and foundation of the masonry, the extreme coldness of the climate has been taken into considera- tion. In the Appendix (F) will be found some thermometrical tables of the temperature of Quebec and Lower Canada. One from the Seminary at Quebec, another from a register kept by Mr. Watt, who had charge of the citadel telegraph for many years, where the observations were taken, undoubtedly with his usujtl accuracy. The other table was taken from the Reports of the Royal Engineers. The other subject relating to the distribution, has regard to the effect of a great pressure of water on the pipes supplying the lower districts of the city. On this head, our experience in this country does not offer much direct information. From what I gather, however, from published discussions of water works in England and Scotland, I apprehend no difficulty in making the pipes tight, and maintaining them so. But there seems to be some objection to so great a pressure on the ser- vice pipes ; and it has been proposed to relieve them of the superabundant pressure, by means of a regulating valve, in- serted between the mains and submains or service pipes. The particular reasons for such a course are not fully explained. I suppose, however, they relate to the extra waste that takes place at the service and stand cocks, and perhaps to the noise the issuing water makes there, in some cases amounting to a 31 HI < 'I nuisance. Should there be a necessity for relieving the sub- mains from any undue pressure above what would be required for supplying the tenants in a proper manner, the city ought to be divided into districts of equal altitude, each having its proper pressure regulated, either by Subsidiary Equalizing Reservoirs or by Weighted Valves inserted in the submains, at their con- nections with the mains, descending directly from the Distri- buting Reservoir. The latter plan — should recourse to such an arrangement be demanded — would be the best ; and could be applied at any time, after the distribution pipes had all been laid, and the experiment had been fairly tried, of furnishing wpter to the tenants under the full pressure due to the head at the Distributing Reservoir ; if the precaution were taken to arrange the submains of each district of equal altitude, so as to keep the several districts disconnected by a stop-cock at their boundary lines. On the adoption of either plan, provision should be made, in case of fire, for changing by some siijple movement, the low to the high pressure in a few moments. The above objections to a high pressure are, we think, not of serious import, and may be disregarded without running much risk of being put at some future time to an expense not calcu- lated for. The application of a few weighted cocks, if they should be found necessary and efficient, would be trivial. Subsidiary Reservoirs would be more expensive, but they would be small, and the steepness of the streets would be favorable to their construction. The value of water works to a city for the extinguishment of fires, is only secondary to that of supplying its inhabitants with one of the greatest luxuries and necessaries of life ; and in Quebec this branch of their usefulness seems to me to be of equal importance to the other. Recent calamities must have convinced the least reflecting, that water, in some form or other, ought to be introduced into the city. A fire, raging on the higher and rocky parts of the city, is a most appalling spectacle ; and it is, indeed, painful to witness the expenditure of labor by man and horse, in drag- ging up the water for the engines on such occasions. This process of supplying water for fires is now necessary, because the wells are inadequate to a full supply, if the conflagration continues any length of time. I P 32 In contrast to such a mode of supply, it may be stated, that the proposed conduit from the St. Charles at Lorette, would be sufficient to fill the seven hundred and sixty wells mentioned in the next table, to the average depth of 4.75 feet, more than ten times every twenty-four hours ; supposing there was no reservoir in reserve, such as that proposed on the Ursuline Nuns Lot, which of itself would fill the same wells to the same depth more than thirty times, calling their average diameter four feet. By that account (dated Dec. 20th, 1841,) there were in all the Wards 950 wells. In 760 of tliem the depth of water is given. Below in a tabular form is given, the total number, the num- ber measured, and the average depth of water of the wells for each Ward. Total No. of Wells. No.ofWeUs measured. Average Depth of Water. St. Lewis Ward 170 153 4.80 feet. Palace " 103 98 3.83 « St. John's " 448 402 4.93 « St. Roch's « 196 86 4.91 « St. Peter's " 22 12 5.33 " Champlain " 11 9 2.93 " Total, 950 760 fc'jtiui 4.75 (( 'I- ^ Pi The following notes, descriptive of the wells, are given at the close of the list : Note 1. The wells in Champlain and St. Peter's Ward, principally rise and fall with the tide. Note 2. The wells in St. Roch's Ward are mostly made to keep the water out of the cellars, therefore very few people use them ; but there are some good wells in St. Valier street, principally in the tanneries. The following statements concerning the effect of jets issuing from mains, submuins, fire plugs, &c., to be used in cases of fire, show that great advantages would arise from the intro- duction of water under a head so great as that proposed. It was stated by Mr. Anderson, before a Committee of Par- liament, that a three quarter inch jet of water from a six inch 38 main, under a pressure of one hundred and ten feet, rose in the day time fifty-seven feet high, and discharged seventy-eight gallons a minute. In the night it rose sixty-four feet, and dis- charged ninety-nine gallons a minute. With two jets of three quarters inch, playing at once, the water rose by day fifty-six feet, and threw seventy-eight gallons a minute. In the night, the two jets rose sixty-two feet, and threw eighty-seven gallons. At a pressure of forty-six feet, one jet rose by day, twenty-four feet, and discharged thirty gallons. In the night, it rose twen- ty-eight feet, and discharged thirty-five gallons. With the same head, two jets rose by day twenty feet high, and deliv- ered twenty-nine gallons. In the night, they rose twenty-five feet, and delivered thirty gallons per minute. The above experiments exhibit the effect produced on the pressure by the tenants drawing their water during the day. " At Philadelphia, the water will rise from a hose attached to a fire plug in the street, at the extreme point of delivery during the night, to the height of about forty-five to fifty feet ; during the day, when the consumption of water is very great, twenty to thirty feet." Head of water in this case was proba- bly not far from one hundred feet. Mr. Quick, of the Southwark Water Works, London, stated before the Committee of Parliament, that the time of connect- ing a hose to the pipes " need be nothing like a minute " — that a jet given off from a twenty-inch main, under a head of one hundred and twenty-feet, would be eighty feet — and that a three inch main, would give, under the same head, a jet forty feet, which would be equivalent to keeping a power of one engine and twenty men in readiness at every door, to act at one minute's notice in case of fire. From a series of experiments made at the same works, and given in T. Hawksley's evidence, we learn that a seven-eights inch jet rose fifty feet from the end of a forty-feet hose, attached to a stand pipe of 2| inches, the water passing from a large main, with a pressure of one hundred and twenty feet on it, through 1750 feet of 15 inch pipe, 600 feet of 12 inch, 1500 feet of 9 inch, and 2400 feet of 7 inch, in all 16,500 feet of pipe. The same size jet at the end of a hose 160 feet long, attached to the same stand pipe, train of pipes and head of /■'. I i :„ ^ n it !t 1 ■ -f- water, rose to a height of forty feet, or one third of the head due to the pressure of water at the origin of the train of pipes. Another experiment on the same series of pipes, in which five seven-eights inch jets issuing from as mnny forty-feet hoses and sfmid pipes, iind under the same pressure, rose 30 feet high. Mr. Hawksley, in his evidence, gave his opinion, that, as a gen- eral rule, a jet issuing from the mains, as usually laid in the streets of cities, would rise to half the height dMe to the pressure. The above statements seem to be corroborated by the account we have of one of the highest jets d'eau in the world, at Cassal, in Germany, where a jei of 12 inches diameter, rises 250 feet, under a head of 500 feet. The highest jet d'eau in the world is that at ChatsAvorth, which Mr. Paxton had erected, or was erecting in 1844, for the duke of Devonshire. The jet was calculated to rise 280 feet, under a pressure due to a fountain head of 381 feet, the water passing through a pipe 2621 feet long. A jet d'eau, nearly, if not quite as high as this, may be expected at Quebec, should the work now proposed be adopted. The experiments also show that the fire plugs should be near each other. It is usual in some towns to place them about 300 feet apart, but they should be nearer, and at about half that distance. In considering the details of the distribution, an important question arises in regard to the material to be used for the ser- vice pipes. A propor and convenient material, which at the same time will not be of high cost, is still a desideratum. Lead has hitherto been much used, on account of its plastic nature, which is well calculated for the purpose, but its poison- ous quality, so thoroughly proved by the investigation of Pro- fessor Silliman, (given in the Appendix,) wholly unfits it, in its unprotected form, for such an application ; and should never be hereafter applied to such a use. It is doubtful whether the process of tinning the inside will make it safe. I have the opinion of Professor Silliman to that effect ; he recommends either drawn iron, block tin, or tinned copper. The drawn wrought tubes appear to be at the present time in general use in England. Glass has been proposed, but the difficulty of making the joints elastic, and securing it from accident when laid, are great objections to its use. I 35 M Besides the usual application, for domestic purposes, for extinguishing fires, and cleansing of side walks and streets, the inirodnction of water into large towns is, in modern times, much valued for its beneficial effect in scouring the private and public drains ; carrying off the debris of houses, and other filth, so often the cause of nuisances, and maladies in families and neighborhoods. To the uses enumerated, may be added that for manufac- turing purposes, which is not to be overlooked as a source of profit. The use of water, however, in this form, depends much upon the cheapness of the supply. I would suggest, for future consideration, the application of the surplus water for mill uses, at a comparative low rate, so long as it should not interfere with the domestic tenant. u ESTIMATE OF COST OF THE LORETTE LINE OF AQUEDUCT. Length of surveyed line, fioiu Freeman's Dam to the Ursuline Nun's Lot, at Station 12|, 41,784 feet, or 7.91 miles. Length of cast iron conduit, from Station 118 to Station 121, 40,705 feet, or 7.7 1 miles. Fall from the surface of the River St. Charles, above Free- man's Dam, or from the level of the proposed Reservoir, at Station 118, to the level of the proposed Distributing Reser- voir, on the Ursuline Nun's Lot, is 114.60 feet. Diameter of proposed cast iron conduit, 18 inches. The cast iron conduit has been computed from Prony's Formula, using the distance and fall from Station 118 to the Ursuline Nun's Lot, supposing the inside diameter of the pipe to be uniform throughout its length. But in practice, both the internal area and thickness of the pipe should be varied, the area to be increased, and the thickness of metal diminished along the upper or higher parts of the line, especially above the level of the Distributing Reservoir, at the Lorette end of the pipe. The pipe, when enlarged, would, in theory, dis- charge more water than if kept of uniform section ; but there may be accumulations of rust, &c. in the pipe, that would, on the other hand, reduce the discharge to what we have sup- posed, viz. 480,000 cubic feet in twenty-four hours. The !il li' 36 r t thickness of the metal allowed in the estimate is 1| inch, which is the s& ne as the maximum thickness of Vae country main which conveys the water to the city of Edinburgh. And it is from this example of one of the most original and celebrated works of ihe kind in Europe, and where the head above the lowest place in the conduit is 350 feet,* that we have proposed this thickness ; which i* must be allowed, seems a large allowance for slrtijgth, or for any decomposition of the outward or inward surface it may be subjected to. For the thickness ;.f pipe required to sustain simply the pressure arising in this LMe from the quiescent head of water, is comparatively of little consequence in a pipe of this thickness. A is customary * In a published account of these Witer Works, dated Edinburgh, October 19, 1825, a^ given in a Report made by a Committee of the Board of Aldermen of the city of New York, dated December 28, 1831, we find the following accoi'iit, under the general head of " Aqueduct pipe : " "The aqueduct w^ich conveys the water from the Fountain-head to Edinburgh is about nine milta lonsr, reckoning to Queen street. The elevation of the stone cistern, in the Fountain-head, where the aqueduct pipe begins, is as follows : "Above the sea at Leith, .... 864 A^iove Prince's street, at the Mound, .... 360 Above Reservoir at Heriot's Hospital, . . 270 Above do. Castlehill, . . . . 230 Above the lowest point to which the pipe descends in its course, namely, at Libber- ton Dums, ..... 3SC " The distance from the Fountain-head to the Castlehill Reservoir, in a direct line, is six and a quarter miles ; by the Une of development, or that which the pipe f jUows, it is nearly eight and a half miles. " 7rom Heriot's ground*, a branch pipe passes oiTeastward to supply the southern districts of the town, and another comes up to the Reservoir on the w>.;St side of tlte hospital. A third ascends from the mouth of the tunnel along the side of the Castlehill to the Reser- voir there ; and various branches pass off to other parts of the town. " It is to be observed, that a pipe coming fror the Reservoirs at Heriot's Ireen, or the Castlehill, will carry the water no higher than the level of these Reser/oirs, but a branch from tlie main pipe ban tho pressure of the Founmin-head behind it, ai.d easily makes the v/ater ascend, not only to the top cf the highest tr nements in the town, br.t even to the upper flat!^ of the barracks in tho castle, which are biill nearly one hundred feet below Crawley Spring. " Tho pipjs which compose tb^ Aqueduct, vary from twenty Ic £Aeen inches diameter, are in lengths ot nine feet, and are joined by spigot and faucet. " The pipes were all proved "^fore they were '.aid, by being made to bear a pressure equal to that of a column of from three hundn^d to eight hundred feet of water. " It begins with pipes of twenty inches intsrior diaraet , and gradually diminishes to a size of iifteen inches. "It mny be proper to mention, tliat the aqueduct pipe is always covered with three feet of soil, or more, to koep it out of the reach of frosts and agricultural operations. That where it is laid at a depth not exceeding twelve or fifteen feet, it is simply covered with eartli, but where the depth much exceeds this, a tunnel of six feet in height, with shafts for descending, has generally been built over it, that ucce w might be had to the pipe aftorwan'x, for repairs, without much dialing. Thera is a toimel of this sort, about a mile Ions', across the ridge at Milton Mill." m in fixing the thickness of the pipe, to nsglect the consideration of pressure, and only provide for other strains it may be liable to, anc. for the corrosion of the metal. In the following estimate the measures of quantities have been kept purposely of the same denomination ; for instance, cubic feet for cubic yards ; lineal feet for lineal yards, &c., m that they may more readily be converted into other local measures. •1! i§ m M 38 a Of S
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