Report and papers of suggestions on the proposed gathering grounds for the supply of the metropolis from the soft-water springs of the Surrey sands; addressed to the general board of health

by William Napier

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1851 Excerpt: ...My experience of the action of the hard water on lead is, that it is always most serious. The two worst cases I remember were the cisterns at the 'Lion and the Lamb,' and at Mr. Andrews'. (See 30 and 38 of the Table.) At the ' Lion and Lamb' the water was always eating holes in the lead-pipe, so that the air got in and the pump was useless. The proprietor was going to give up the well, when I put in copper pipes tinned. A very bad case was at Mr. Lambert's. This was a cistern in a stable-yard for watering the waggon-horses. The water was pumped in from a well. Thirty years ago I was called to put a new bottom in the cistern; when taken out, a rap from a hammer made holes through it like as many pea-holes. I put in a new bottom, 7 lbs. to the foot, and in 10 years it was eaten up again. I renewed the cistern with a copper bottom. The case at Mr. Coutan's was also bad, the water was pumped in from a well, this cistern was always being repaired, three years ago I was called in to see it, when I repaired it and Mr. Coutan had in the soft water, it never wants repair now. The action of the hard waters upon the lead has always been remarkable. It has been the custom to make the bottoms of the cisterns to hold hard water half an inch thick, on purpose to withstand the action of the water, and then they are always wanting repair. The lead for cisterns to hold hard well-waters is always 7 lbs. to the foot, if to contain sort water 4 lbs. to the foot. I don't remember seeing a single bad case of soft water acting upon a lead pipe." "In 1821 I was working at Squire Halsey's, Henley Park; in the garden there was a lead cistern to catch rain-water, date 1500 and odd years; it was said to be 300 years old. Not being wanted any more I took it away to melt up; it...

38 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2012

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

A pseudonym of Christopher Hart

Christopher Hart (born 1965) is an English novelist and journalist.

He was educated at Cheltenham College (expelled), Leicester University (dropped out), Oxford Polytechnic and Birkbeck College, London, where he completed a PhD on W.B.Yeats.

Under his original name he has written two contemporary novels, The Harvest and Rescue Me. Since 2001, he has written four historical novels under the pseudonym of William Napier, the last three a best-selling trilogy about Attila the Hun and the Fall of the Roman Empire.

As a journalist he has worked as Literary Editor of the Erotic Review (magazine folded) and Agony Aunt for Time Out (sacked.) He currently writes regularly for the Sunday Times, where he is lead theatre critic, and the Daily Mail.