The herald., 1893-08-28
USE A CHINESE PUMP.
RETURNING TO AN OLD-BTYLE DE-
VICE FOR LIFTING WATER.
Tho Primitive But Highly Effective
Machine IL to Be Used in Drain
ing Overlooked Je'and
Land

Stockton Mail: A Chinese pump has
been manufactured at the Stockton
Iron works for the Woods brothers, and
ia to be put to work Immediately al
pumping out the Middle division ol
Roberts island.
It's little singular that with all the
Improvements made in machinery by
the moderns, nobody has yet been able
to beat, for small lift, the device in
vented by pig-tailed heathen away
back in the distant past when Asia was
the world and the western nations were
never dreamed of.
The Chinese pump consists OF two
drum-like wheels connected by an end
less draper, to which are fastened
bucket-paddles extending the full width
of the draper. These paddles fit snugly
but easily into an inclined trough, one
Of the wheels being set high enough to
allow the paddles in passing along to
push the water up through the trough
as they 60. The wheels are revolved by
either steam or horse power as desired
uhO toA Aoi OcAhB PkoAoA9UAos
In pumping water from off reclaimed
land the upper end 81 the inclined
trough rests on the top of the levee, and
the lower end into an excavation into
which bitches drain the water when it
has been so much lowered by the pump
that such drainage ia necessary.
"The Chinese pump" said Mr.. Treth-
eway OF the foundry, to Mail reporter
today, sis without doubt the most eco
nomical and the most effective where the
lift fs not more than eight fest. The
saving ID power is estimated to be about
20 per cent, and the pump costs much
less than other plants used for the same
purpose"
'Are there many Of them in use here ?'
was asked.
''No; very few"
"Why is that?"
"Oh, WELL" with a shrug. ''people
have not fallen into the custom of using
them-that's ALL"
SIS this the first one that will be em-
ployed in this region?"
mo, Voorman had a Chinese pump
running in 1881 on Bouldin island, and
he demonstrated its economical proper
ties very thoroughly. He had at the
time. pumping plant which cost him
100000. Being satisfied that $500
Chinese pump could do more work, and
do it cheaper than a $4,000 centrifugal
outfit, he had one made. The buckets
were six feet wide and six inches deep.
and he ran it with q threshing engine
they had on the farm. When the pump
was set to work it was found that it
pumped more water than the SAC, 900
machinery had been doing. 1t cleared
his 1900 acres of the 13 feet of water that
had been left on it by the freshet OF
1880-8l, and he was able to put in q
crop of potatoes that same year by run
ming both the plants. A Chinese pump
was also used at about that time in Sac.
ramento to lift the water over the R.
street levee."
The arrangement which is to be used
in draining Middle Division has bucket
paddles of 10 feet wide and eight inches
deep. The wheels will be 30 feet apart.
and running at ordinary speed the
pump will lift 10000 gallons eight feet
every minute. It will be operated by q
65.horse-power engine. The cost of the
pump itself was $500. The cost of the
engine, which has been ordered in San
Francisco, is not definitely known here,
but the plant all told will not cost much
more than $1,000.