If the consumption of water-bearing pathogenic germs is a necessity, that is, if no other source of water can be had, such water should always be boiled a sufficient length of time to kill every germ which it contains before being used. The boiling of water is a precaution which should be practised whenever there is any danger of infection, whether the pathogenic germ has really been discovered in water or not. It is related of the Japanese medical corps that during the war with Russia every advance of the Japanese army was preceded by a corps of physiologists and bacteriologists. Every source of water which the Japanese soldiers might be called upon to drink in their advance was carefully examined and placards posted so that the soldiers might know whether it was safe to drink this water raw or only after boiling. As a result of these precautions it is well known that typhoid fever was infrequent among the Japanese soldiers during the whole two years of the war. For domestic use the water used for drinking purposes should always be boiled in case of doubt or during the prevalence of typhoid fever in the neighborhood. The boiled water is conveniently kept in a sterilized glass-stoppered bottle placed in the refrigerator.

What is Bad Water? - This is a question which comes naturally after a study of pure water and may be answered in many ways, and from many points of view. The most recent contribution on this subject, by Gehrmann1 gives a review of the general methods of judging of water as to its character, and especially as to what constitutes water unfit for human consumption, or bad water.