In order to supplement the work in the case of the villages not answering, reference was then had to Mr. M. N. Baker's "Manual of American Waterworks, 1897," and 84 incorporated villages stated in that work to have a public water supply system are so credited in this report; no details except the mere statement of the existence of some works, either privately or munícipally operated, are, however, shown.

There remain only 91 villages of which there is no definite knowledge concerning their water supplies, and until accurate information is received, these 91 municipalities are assumed to be without such supply.

All of the 45 cities of the State and 275 of the 438 incorporated villages are to-day provided with public water supplies; the following table classifies by their population all the cities and villages of the State, whether with or without water supply, according to the State census of June, 1905.

This table has been prepared so that it may be compared with the ones furnished annually by the Massachusetts State Board of Health. Cf. for example, page 209, Massachu setts Report for year 1903.

In this table a municipality, served by both a private and a municipal corporation, has been placed in the column of municipal ownership.

In addition to the data shown in Table I. 97 private water companies supplying villages not yet incorporated and three unincorporated villages responded stating that they provided pub

lic water supplies; the information concerning these smaller constructions will be found separate from the incorporated municipalities in Appendix y.

On account of the imperfect knowledge concerning the popula tion served by these smaller companies, it is impossible to state what percentage of the population of the State is to-day provided with public water. If these smaller companies be omitted, and if it be assumed that all the inhabitants of a municipality are served, which may not be the case, 79 per cent. of the population of the State is served.

There are 215 private water companies in the State, but they supply 228 separate municipalities, a company in several instances supplying more than one municipality.

No incorporated village larger than 2,245 persons is without a public water supply; only three villages with more than 2,000 inhabitants and only 12 with a population between 1,500 and 2,000, are without a supply. All other municipalities without supplies have less than 1,500 inhabitants.

PURITY OF SUPPLIES.

The information received in response to questions concerning the quality of water supplies shows that proper provisions are not being made in the great majority of municipalities to determine or protect the purity of those supplies. The present conditions of each water supply of the State should be known, but since it has been found that local officials are unable to furnish that information, it is strongly urged that a water survey of the State be made.

VITAL STATISTICS.

Mortality statistics, asked for in questions 58 and 59 of the information blank, are omitted in the results shown in the appendix; these statistics were furnished in such few instances that it was thought proper to omit them for the present and to obtain for the next report the official figures from the State Department of Health, so that reliable deductions might be made therefrom.

FINANCIAL STATISTICS.

In compiling the data, it was thought proper to include many facts reporting the cost of construction and operation of both

waterworks and sewage systems, because a financial statement of the cost of any work furnishes perhaps as clear an idea as any of its character and size.

The water rates of the more important localities throughout the State have also been inserted, and when all the water rates of the State shall have been collected, they will be prepared in tabular form. A strong sentiment in favor of municipal ownership of public utilities exists throughout the State and the publication of water rates may show if extortionate charges accompany private ownership; at the same time, in considering municipal ownership, too much stress should not be laid on rates since quality of the service is fully as important.

Inspection of the satistics furnished to the Commission shows that a great many of the private water companies are extremely poor in land holdings. In many cases the companies own no land whatsoever, and it would not seem to be a difficult problem in such cases to replace the private company with a municipal plant obtaining water from the same source.

CONSUMPTION OF WATER.

It will be found that very few records of consumption of water are maintained in the State, and where they are maintained, they are obtained from house-meters or from pump-counters, but not from meters on the main delivery pipe. The installation of meters on the delivery mains can not be too strongly recommended to any waterworks corporation, whether private or municipal.

SEWAGE DISPOSAL.

Section 6 of chapter 723 of the Laws of 1905 requires that the Commission report "the present disposition of sewerage of each municipal corporation and other civil division of the State * * with special reference to said disposition affecting the various municipalities in relation to the water supply of this State." Inquiries concerning their sewage disposal were sent to all municipalities at the same time with the questions concerning their water supplies, but the answers received show a lack of appreciation of the importance of the problem; whatever of information was received will be found tabulated in Appendix V.

In order to complete in the most thorough way the statisical information desired by the Commission, a staff of technically trained assistants should be employed to collect the necessary information. These assistants would visit every water plant of the State, investigate all pollutions of the streams, determine all discharges of factory wastes and report all information to the office where it would be filed for reference for recommendations and in preparation for that time when it may be necessary to divide the State into water or sewerage districts. Your engineer makes, however, no definite recommendation for this work, believing that his recommendations in relation to the State system of the water supplies will also cover that work.

STATE SYSTEM of Water SUPPLY.

The Commission is required by section 6 of chapter 723 of the Laws of 1905 to report upon " the advisability of, the time required for and the expenses incident to the construction of a State system of water supply."

One conception of a State system is a net work of pipes covering the entire State, or perhaps only certain districts of it, and so designed as to distribute water by gravity from some highland source to all municipalities within its territory; in other words, that State system would be simply a copy of the usual municipal waterworks plant, but with all items developed on a larger scale, so that municipalities and not households would be supplied.

The difficulty in the execution of such a scheme is naturally its cost; but if the plan is feasible and offers unexcelled advantages, the cost should not be deterrent. A scheme similar in character has, for instance, met with much success in the neighboring Commonwealth of Massachusetts, where a Commission known as the Metropolitan Water and Sewerage Board has been organized by the State to provide, in the matter of water and sewerage for the needs of Boston and many of the outlying municipalities; the district controlled by this Board includes 972,600 persons in 19 cities and towns; but it may be shown, from the population statistics of New York State, that such a system is at the present time neither advisable nor feasible for this State, since there exist so many large areas or districts which are able to obtain their water supplies

from their immediate localities. Even in the Metropolitan district about Boston, it will be found that within the limits of that area one city and one town are still able to obtain water without seeking the aid of the Board.

Table II for instance illustrates the distribution of the population of New York State in June, 1905, according to the figures of the State census taken at that time. In that table there will be found enumerated:

(a) The 61 counties of the State.

(b) The area in square miles of each county.

(c) The population in each county.

(d) A list of the cities and villages in each county having a population greater than 4,000.

Finally, in the last two columns of the table have been calculated:

(e) The actual average density of the population in each county.

(f) The average density of the population in each county excluding the inhabitants of the cities and villages shown in column (d).

The accompanying plates furnish a graphic illustration of the table.

Plate I, for instance, shows graphically the area of each county in square miles and the population in each county.

Plate II shows the approximate location of each municipality which contains a population greater than 4.000, and Plate III shows the density of the population of each county in persons per square mile.

In considering the figures of Table II, in their effect on a State water supply system, the counties of New York, Kings and Queens must be excluded because these counties form practically the city of New York, the water supply of which requires separate treatment. It will then be found that the greatest density of population in any county exists in Richmond county, viz: 1,230 persons per square mile; Westchester follows with 450 persons per square mile; Erie with 440 persons per square mile; Monroe with 350 persons per square mile; Albany with 334 persons per square mile and Schenectady with 324.