Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1881-09-01
AR1EsiAS WELLS.

ARTEsiAN WELLS.
some Information Which Is Just row OF
Value to the People Of Yankton.
Council Bluffs Nonpareil.
MIR. Everett furnishes us with the sub
stance of several letters written to him
in relation to artesian wells in different
parts Of the country. They are quite
refreshing in these dry days.
The mayor of Racine, Wis, writes that
there are three arteslan wells in our
city. OF an average depth of 1850 feet;
inside diameter OF tubing inches, flow
OF water 600 gallons per minute, and
good for drinking purposes but not for
boilers.
A well has just been bored at Keno
sha, Wis, 1858 feet deep, with pressure
OF llOpounds to the square inch, and a
flow of loco gallons per minute.
The clerk Of the city of De Kalb
writes that "the public we'll was bored
2467 feet deep, at q cost of $4,000. The
water is good for all purposes, rises
only to within ia feet of the surface.
and ia raised by a twenty-five foot Halli
day windmill into q reservoir from
which the town is supplied"
Another letter from Pennsylvania:
wells are drilled in the Bradford oil
fields l.2OO to 1900 feet deep for sixty to
eighty cents per foot. This is the con.
tract price, however, where skilled
workmen abound and there are the best
facilities to remedy accident.
The mayor of Sycamore, Illinois,
writes: sour city seems to be under.
laid at the depth of one hundred feet
with subterranean lake furnishing an
inexhaustible supply Of cold water, free
from impurities. Our city well is dug
sixty feet to the rock, then bored, and
inserted connecting the we'll with the
water strata. The water rises to within
thirty feet of the surface. Then we nave
steam pumps to raise and force the
water through mains, etc. We have the
Holly system"
MIR. d. E. Spicer, of New York, a pro-
fessional well borer, says the expense OF
boring six inch well 1000 feet deep in
limestone, after all the tools and appli-
ances are ready, is about S4O0, and that
to furnish the working material all new.
boiler, ETC., will take about $1,000, but
that men engaged in the business carry
all their tools with them.
The mayor Of Hennepin, ILL.,, writes:
"Our city well is 800 feet deep. At q
depth of go feet the overflow was five
gallons per minute, at 555 feet the over
flow was fifteen gallons per minute; at
765 feet the flow was thirty gallons and
at SOO feet the flow increased to eighty
gallons per minute. We drove six inch
pipe ITO feet to the soapstone rock and
thought it would not have to be piped
lower, but the soapstone caved in, and
we then inserted four and half a inch
pipe and drove it to the lime rock, 800
feet from the surface. The water rises
sixty-fve feet above the surface of the
ground. The total cost of the we'll, in
cluding pipes to the streets, was S2,5OO
! Mr.. Congdon. of the Union Pacific
railroad, writes: "The well near the
bridge was put down 7l2 feet, and cost
about $1,000. The quality of the watel
is good for domestic purposes, but is
not good for locomotives.E It provides
about $4,000 gallons per day, and rise
about ten feet above the river at Low
water. The water flows from the wei
into reservoir from which it is pumped
into tank near the bridge at a hlghe
elevation and used for station and fir,
purposes"
Below is letter from the mayor O.
Ottawa, Ill, to Mr.. Everett in relation tt
this subject:
Ottawa, 1ll.-Dear Sir: Your favor O
the 18TH, inquiring concerning artesiar
wells, have just received, aud in repl,
take pleasure in saying tina
, the expense of sinking an artesial
well is about $500 including tubing
The work, including tubing is always lie
! by contract here and no difference j
J made in regard to few feet more O
e less. The depth varies from $50 to AZ
: feet, regulated usually by the amount c
9 water flow. Men are often enticed to q
unnecessary depth by a desire to increas
l. the flow. The average flow from well
: four inches in diameter is about sixty
q five gallons per minute. We hav
wells that produce about ninety gallon
per minute, but that is rare. The caus
n of the increased flow is the perfect cor
dition of the stone through which th
+ we'll is sunk and its hardness-softnes
! of rock or seams in the rock will vast
:. the water and decrease the flow. Th
4 time usually taken to sink well is abou
). four weeks. The character of the wate
q is, first immaculate purity, so far as o.
!. ganic or vegetable matter is concerned
q second, most delicious in Temperature
being refreshingly cool in summer an
moderately 80 in winter. 1t never raise
in temperature, and at certain depth
: is free from taste, but sometimes whe
: the we'll is sunk to greater depth col
!, tains very mild flavor of sulphu
The taste of sulphur, however, is not ol
', jectionable to us at least not especial
y SO have noticed that wherever the a
u tesian water is drank exclusively, sue
= diseases as typhoid fever, scarlet feve
diphtheria, &c, do exist. I have the u
most faith in pure water as preventati,
e of diseases. The water will rise abo,
d fifteen ieet above the surface, perhal
e more. 1 have not given that subje'
5. much attention. From nozzle it ca
$. be thrown quite high, perhaps thirt
's feet or more, owing to the pressur
" These wells are sunk by few neighbo
ot joining together for that purpose, an
g often by individuals. We have over fo
lr ty in this city. We have no printed r
ports. We do not think sinking We
= here greater sob" than farmer thinl