But if it were necessary, more than 7,000 acres could be ponded, and the water raised from six to sixteen feet; and also other supplies could be obtained, as I have before stated, in alluding to the Sharon Canal route and the East Branch of the Croton River/' He favored the conveying of the water to New York in an open canal, and calculated that the total cost of the work, including the means of distributing the water through the city, would not exceed *2, 500,000. It appears, however, that the employment of Colonel Clinton by the common council to reconnoiter the Croton was only a concession to the advanced element of the population that demanded the most complete investigation of water supply conditions in Westchester County before definite steps should be taken. Simultaneously with his exploration of the Croton route, two other engineers were sent to make a final inquiry as to the Bronx and its related sources of supply; and their report indicates that they were relied on by the city officials to bring forward conclusive demonstration of the sufficiency of these sources. They marked out a route from Macomb's Dam to the Bronx River, which they declared to be the proper one for the long desired supply, and added: "The Croton cannot be brought in by this route, and cannot ever be needed, seeing that the quantity which can be obtained at a moderate cost through the valley of the Bronx will be sufficient for all city purposes." At the same time an analysis of the Bronx water was made by prominent chemists, which showed it to be of remarkable purity, not more than two grains of foreign matter being contained in a gallon. This is a fact of much historic interest in view of the present extreme contamination of the waters of the Bronx most of the way below White Plains.