which a fall of ten per cent, from the previous average price occurred after 1874." Of cotton, he says: "In 1860 and 1861 the average consumption of cotton in Great Britain was 1,040 million pounds, against 1,229 million pounds in 1878. The price is slightly lower now than it was even in 1860-'61. When we consider the enormous competition for cotton, and the British plant provided for working up nearly 200 million pounds per annum, nothing but the want of the American market for finished goods can have kept the price of cotton down to such a very low figure as that prevailing, almost lower than it ever touched before. . . . One consequence" of this is that "the American cotton-grower has latterly got the minimum instead of the maximum price for his article." Mr. Tylor finds that this fall in price also applies to petroleum, and he humorously observes that the British Government "ought to make a strong remonstrance on this subject. We are at the same time indebted to the United States for their cheap grain, cotton, and petroleum, sold at the cost of production to us, in consequence of this unjust tariff." The view of the subject advanced by Mr. Tylor is well worth the attention of our legislators and economists, and, if borne out by fuller inquiry, will constitute another of those facts which increasing experience is adding to our knowledge, showing the folly of tariff restrictions.
Report of the Department of Public Works of the City of New York. For the Quarter ending June 30, 1879. With a Special Report on the Subject of Water Supply.
The feature of this report that gives it an interest to the general public of New York is the very full and elaborate statement of the condition of the water-supply of the city. The Commissioner, Mr. Campbell, points out in it that the present means of furnishing water are and have been for some years inadequate, and that there is danger, in case of any unusual demand, or a continued drought such as occurred in 1877, of the city suffering from an insufficient supply. The present supply is obtained, as is well known, from the Croton River, through the aqueduct of that name. This was constructed to deliver sixty million gallons daily, but for the past eight or nine years it has been called upon to do a much larger service. The present demand for water is between ninety and one hundred million gallons per day, with an increasing demand of two millions per day for each year. The present system is able to supply this demand only by working much closer to the limit than is advisable. When the new reservoir at the middle branch of the Croton and the dams and flumes to draw upon all the available lakes and ponds in the Croton basin are completed, there will be a storage capacity of nine billion gallons, which will be sufficient to fill the present aqueduct to the extent of its capacity; and, to increase the supply, other conduits, either from the Croton basin or elsewhere, will have to be constructed. With a view of determining what sources of supply were available, surveys have been made of the watershed of the Bronx and Byram Rivers, and of that of the Housatonic River, the results of which are given in the present report. The surveys of the Bronx and Byram Rivers district show that tapping the Bronx a few miles above White Plains, the area drained, including the Rye ponds, is 13·33 square miles, and that the like area for the Byram is 8·66 square miles, giving a total of twenty-two square miles. The waters of the Byram can be diverted into the Bronx by means of a tunnel about twenty-six hundred feet in length, and some open cutting. By constructing proper reservoirs and dams, Mr. G. W. Birdsall, the engineer reporting on the proposed work, estimated that thirty-five hundred million gallons can be stored, and that an average daily supply of twenty million gallons can be obtained from this source. The estimated cost of the work is something over twenty-six hundred thousand dollars. This source of supply will only suffice for a few years, after which a further supply will become necessary. With a view of determining its value as a source for such further supply, the survey of the Housatonic district was made. The work was in charge of Mr. Horace Loomis, who has submitted an excellent report upon the results of his investigations. He found that the waters of this river could be brought to the head of
