The Jeffersonian Democrat. [volume] (Chardon, Ohio) 1854-1865, 1861-05-31
Ancient Modes of Drawing W ater. No /

small vessels, was the simplest Of all the
means employed by The anceuts, in
drawing water, and received its name
from lis frequent use in the public and
private cis;erGs, with which oriental coun-
tries were well supplied, One OF these
relics Of the past, was taken from els.
tern in the exhumed city Of Pompei, and
is preserved in one ol tue museums Of
Europe.
In country places, this was generally
attached to one end Of a lever OF the frs!
kind and Familiarity known to US, under
the name Of "weli sweep" and TO The
other, a weight, by which the labor Of
drawing water, was materially diminished.
/ In this torn, it was common in Europe
in early times also along the river Nile,
and in various parts Of Asia The
Egyptian sweep, called SAadoof, elevated
water only or 8 feet al Il time. When
they wished to carry il 10 a greater hight,
several were placed in succession, one
above another, and the water passed from
one 10 the other, nix the desired elevation
was attained, which, according to Eubank.
! was sometimes 80 or 60 feet.
The mode OF working the sweep, varied
in different countries. la Europe and
along the Nile, it was moved by the rod
from which The bucket was suspended.
and, in few places, by a rope attached
at the opposite end. The latter mode
was always employed, when many weights
we've 10 be raised such as oar from ruins,
blocks of stone from the quarry, OF
soldiers 10 the top of the walls of be.
seiged city. In this case, it had rotary,
as well rs osclllating motion. ln Hin.
doostan, there is mode OF moving il.
peculiar to that country, which consists
in the walking of man backward and
JorWard upon the sweep itself. He is
projected in his perilous situation from
falling, by light bamboo railing attached
10 each side of the "waiking. BEAM" and
$50 rapidly does he move it," says Son.
n"rst - no saw these machines 10 opers-
ton, "that continuous sueam runs from
the we'll" This is called the "PicoIah,"
aud has been in use in that country, from
the earliest time. Water is elevated
with this devise, from 5 10 30 feet.
1t 10 not now known whether the sweep
in early times was ever moved by the
strength of animals or not yel it is pre-.
} sumed it WAS sometimes so moved for
Brsson, a French writer Of 275 years ago,
figures and describes one with bucket
suspended At each end, which. by the
help of few wheels, and a half circular
rotary inclined plane. was moved by the
cuIrcnt OF the stream, from which the
buckets successfully dipped the water
! h.A Of ha Ian
motion Of the sweep into rrUOtvia9 one,
was solved at an early day, in the follow
ing way; 6 or long levers with a
bucket secured at each end, were fastened
together upon an axis, like the arms Of a
wind mill. Then, rs they revolved,
caused each bucket in succession TO dip
water at the bottom, and carrying it round
to empty it AT the top into trough.
This is the simplest form of that devise
to which the name of "Noria" is given,
and is one of the kind still in use in China
where it originated. In general, how
ever. the arms were secured 10 rim on
one or both sides of which a strin! Of
buckets was suspended.
This devise was variously modified by
different nations. The "Spanish Noria"
which has been in use in that country
from the earliest times (hsving been in.
troduced there it is supposed, by The an
cicnt Phmnicians,) had ear,born vessels
secured TO the rim in place of the wooden
on metallic ones, used in Asia. This, in
tho writings of Agrleda, is called "the
Noria with Pots"
The Persian Noria," which was used
in West ern Asia, had square metallic
buckets suspended from separate axes,
secured at ,igh. angles to the rim. "rhe
Egyptian Noria," used along the river
Nile, had the outer part Of the wheel
rnade hollow, and divided into small com.
partmcnts with m opening into each,
through the periphery and side Of the
wheel so arranged that the water was
received through the periphery at the
bottom, and discharged at the top,
through the side. The Egyptian govern.
ment places a tax of $50, upon each
Noria, and receives lhererom consider.
able revenue.
One of the Norias used in Chira, has
tubes about or feet long, placed al
such an angle on its beveled periphery,
that they successfully discharge their con.
tents into nouyf, as they pass the high.
est point of their revolution.
The diameter Of the Noria varied from
25 10 rs feet. The smaller class were
usually turned either by men or animals
with The help of the tread wheel the
larger by the current Of the stream from
which the water was elevated. From
this latter class the buckets for elevaling
the water, were sometimes removed and
the whole power OF the wheel applied to
turn machinery, they were then called
eide Mills" The Nora, which is con-
s,dered the parent of the modern water
wheel, was peculiarly well adapted for
the purposes of irrigation, and is found
scattered over The eastern continent from
Spain to China, wherever that mode Of
farming was practiced. Sonnerat saw
some in operation that elevated 800 tons
daily, and Burkhardt says that The l2
he saw at the city OF Klamath, on the
river Orohtes, which were moved by the
current Of that stream and were rs feet
in diameter, not only supplied the in.