Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-12-23
FARM AND GARDEN.
OF INTEREST TO CULTiVATORS OF
LARGE AND SMALL FARMS.

Practical Points Ia Drsinage-How to Find
and Keep Grade-How to Dig the Ditch
Covering Of the Tiles.
w. j. Chamberlain. of the Iowa Agri-
cultural college, contributes to Country
Gentleman some practical hints on drain
age, which are of general interest. First,
he tells that the mains ought to follow
the natural depressions where the water
runs off upon the surface in wet times,
of course Strengthening the crooks some
what. II there Is a regular slope like the
roof of a house, only not so steep, the
mains should take the of place the caves
troughs, and the laterals, if any, should
run straight down the slope as nearly as
may he, If the fall is very slight, it may
need field leveling instrument to Law
out the system. But usually a very wet
time Is the best to locate drains. A fur.
row plowed then by the eye will work
its own grade or show it.
Ii you have not a ditching machine
use heavy working plow to throw out
the first eight or ten inches, drive
straight. Begin the spade digging at
the outlet and work along up the mains
and laterals. The water will show the
level Permit no dips or depressions.
Dig as narrow and true as possible to the
required depth, and groove the bottom
of the ditch with a bottoming scoop of
size adapted to the tiles used. The grade
may be nearly established with the plow
plowing deeper through knobs and
shallower through depressions, then dig
two or three depths of the spade accord
ing to depth required, keeping the spade
at the same angle all the time, and
thrusting it full depth each time. II
there is no water in the soil to show level,
the surest way is to draw some into the
field, and when your eye or the span
level says your groove is cut straight
and true for a hundred feet or more
turn in just enough water at the upper
end to test it. If it stands anywhere in
long puddles, you must cut down the
high portions until no puddles remain.
Mr.. Chamberlain makes the span Level
thus: Take three pieces of by 2 inch
pine batten 81 feet long, halve them to
gether with screws firmly at the ends in
the form of an equilateral triangle. Ther
half way up from one side, b C, and ex
| actly parallel to it, screw on a fourtl
piece d (see fiSure). To the side of tn,
| cross piece, d screw a common 95 cent
spirit level, e, so that when b stands
on a level floor the air bubble shall show
level, and its middle be the middle of d e
| Change the triangle end for end on thu
floor, to be sure your spirit level is ex
| actly parallel with the bottom of b C
Then if you want to graduate it rails,
b inch at time, leaving C resting OF
| the floor, and mark the brass of the
spirit level for each quarter and hall
inch up to two or three inches. Their
raise C in the same way and gradual,
the other side.
Before the groove Is cut in the bottom
of the ditch this span level NAV be ap
piled all along, and show the exact fal
per rod. Then the groove cutter car
take out humps, and the level test it.
work. b C is half rod long, and so one
| quarter inch fall for its length makes one
half inch fall per rod, and so on. Nevel
be content unless your level shows som,
fall towards your outlet. The more uni
form the fall the better. If you know
for example, that your fall is only one
half inch per rod, you must keep you
grade down to about that rate, not vary
ing, or you will have trouble. Begin
ming at the lower end the tendency of ,
new hand is to ''lose grade" that is, t
work towards the surface. The spaI
level will help prevent this.