The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1896-07-21
ARTESIAN WELLS IN EASTERN
CAROLINA.

RALEIGH. N. c..
During the past few months 1 have
had a large number of inquiries from
various persons in Eastern North and
South Carolina asking concerning the
success in boring artesian wells in that
region, and l have answered them in
a general way, giving as far as possible
specific Information concerning the ex-
act locality where it was desired to
make a boring and giving such general
information concerning the entire re.
glon as was available. l have been
aole to tell them that in all the South
Eastern counties Of North Carolina
and in most of the Eastern counties of
South Carolina the conditions for sue.
cesstul arteslan wells are on the whole
favorable. This means that there are
many places within this area where
the conditions for 81 cess are favor.
able, but it often happens that the per-
son may succeed in getting an artesian
flow Of water at n place, and even a
few hundreds yards away he may fail
completely. Between the Cape Fear
aud the Roanoke rivers, and east of
Raleigh the conditions are not SO favor
able as IN the region south of the Cape
Fear, and yet there are doubtless many
points within the former area where
wells can be successfully bored if the
work is undertaken by persons who
are sufficiently skilled in the business.
Ny object in writing the present note
ls not so much to describe where the
conditions are favorable or unfavorable
as 1t Is to give a word Of caution con-
corning men who should be employed
IN this sort Of business. It highly i'm
portant that they who r employ ed to
bore for deep we'll water supplies
should not only know what they are
about, bu5 should have sufficient
skill and training so that when they
bore a we'll in a given locality and fail
to secure a supply of water that the re-
su t will not be due to their incapacity
or lack OF experience. l have known
several cases within the past few years
in which the experienced workmen
went to certain localities contracted
with the OWner OF the land to bore a deep
we'll at SO much per foot and guaran-
teed a supply Of water. After boring
200 or 300 feet and having been paid
his price per foot as the work progress
ed, ne condemned the region by de-
Gliding that there was no water to be
had, and inasmuch as the fault Law
with the Almighty and not with him
self, he could not be expected to make
good his guarantee, Especially as he
had no money with which to do it and
made the guarantee for the purpose of
securing the job solely. Subsequent
II, other more careful borings were
made by other parties and a water eup-
ply secured. The inc experienced work
man who had made the first ~unsuccees.
full boring had passed through the
water-bearing stream without even
knowing the fact, and this later result
showed that the failure was due to the
incapacity Of the workman and not to
the absence of water.
Those who desire to go into the we'll
boring business in our coastal plain re-
gion should bear in mind the fact that
experience and capital are both re.
CURED in the successful prosecution of
this sort of work, and like the doctors,
lawyers, mechanics and other profess
ional men, before asking public patron
age they should either associate them
selves with persons who have already
gained this experience and skill, or
they should somehow or other gain
these for themselves before starting in
to the business.
There are many places within the
coastal plain region where even the
most experienced and skilled we'll
borer would fail to discover conditions
favorable for the OVERLOOKING well, and
he would have to content himself there
with a supply of water which would
rise near enough to the surface to be
pumped with a deep well pump. But
there are many other regions where
success would attend the efforts Of an
experienced and skilled we'll borer, but
where "a new beginner" would be like
~ to fail completely, and condemn the
region as being unsuited to flowing
wells, where in reality a more skilled
workman would meet with decided
success. So there is always the danger
il the employment of an inexperienced
man under such circumstances, that
he may fail wne he ought to have