Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1889-06-13
LAYING TILE DRAINS

LAYING TILE DRAINS
NE Advice Of Farnse WE Has MsA
Considerable Expsrssaee.
In laying out the drains Of = piece
OF ground, begin As you would in
building . barn; that is. 1t the foundar
ton, and be sure you get. It big
enough and strong enough to hold al
you may ever put on It Decide ON
the size of tiles you think win take the
water as fast as 1t will ever como from
the branches, and then be sure to buy
one size larger than that By 80
doing you will do away with the ponds
on your fields in the spring. which in
one year win damage your crops
moro than the extra cost Of the tiles.
Don't try to do moro in one year than
you can do we'll Tin after years you
find you have spread . few tiles over
too much land. you will not like the
job Of taking up the lines and moving
them closer together. and putting
lines between what you have already
, laid will perhaps make tiles much
thicker than necessary.
Provide q box made OF two-inch
planks with woven wire over one end
to lay the tile into the outlet This
keeps small animals from entering
the drain and also keeps stock from
stamping out and breaking the tiles.
With the tiles on the ground and your
lines mapped out. the first thing is the
grading. If the ground slopes all the
way it is easy enough. If there is a
rise of ground with a depression be-
yond. better get a spirit level and de-
termine the exact depth of cut. as it
will probably save going to an unnec-
essary depth. You will be safe if you
allow one inch fall to the rod. In pre-
pairing the bottom for the tiles be sure
there are no low places or says in the
ditch, as every such place will surely
fill up with sand level with the grade.
and if the tiles are not stopped up en-
tirely, their carrying capacity will be
much reduced.
The next thing to consider is the
kind of soil at the bottom. If it is
clay it can be worked, no matter how
wet, but if it is sand it will cave. and
if you would get the tiles in right you
must wait until it is dry enough SO
that it will not cave. Many drains
were crippled or entirely spoiled by
trying to lay them when there was too
much water in the sand and in the
sand is where the line is most needed.
It makes no difference whether the
bottom is fat or rounding to fit the
tiles. and few cracks between the
tiles will do no harm, but the grade
level must be maintained. No matter
how much sand you may get into the
tiles in laying them. if there is an
even fall of an inch or more to the rod
it will all be washed clear through the
outlet. once had more than a wagon
load of sand come from a neighbours
field just on the other side of the line
fence. 60 fifty rods across my land to
the open ditch we were both using for
an outlet and 1 had it to shovel out
and the most of that sand had come
eighty rods or more. Still l would
not like to be bothered in the way he
was. It is better to wait until it is
dry. and then use a line. Boards.
brush. stones and filling the trench
with gravel have all been tried over
and over again, but they never work
for more than a few years.
Get tiles at no matter what cost and
lay them properly and you will have
something that will work for you win
ter and summer, night and day. with
out feed, without rest and for all time.
AS to depth of laying, suit yourself;
the deeper they are the wider the strip
they will drain. If you can not get
them deep. don't be afraid of frost.
have many times examined drains that
were only just below the pillow. and I
have yet to see the first tile that was
faxed with frost when buried in the
ground. 1t is better to tile land this
year for next years crops. than it is to
wait till next spring, because the
ground without drains is packed and
air-tight, and it will take the frosts of
at least one winter to heave it up and
let in the air and give the water a
chance to get to the tiles freely. Tiles
never do their best until after one or
more winters on that account.-COr.
Ohio Farmer.
Marriage by Surprise.
An extraordinary occurrence has
taken place in one of the principal
churches of Madrid, in the parish of