Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1911-03-29
WATERS Of PLAINS
Underground Rivers Are Source
of Supply in Texas.
Interesting Fact Developed by Dyna-
mite Blast While Driving Well
Near PIainVieW-First Anthem
tic Revelation.

Plainview, TeX.-By accident mat
ter of great interest and concern in
connection with the water situation on
the plains has just been cleared up
near here. While drilling a well on
E. Dowden's place, five miles west Of
Plainview, the driller struck a big
boulder in the 14-inch hole few feet
below the bottom of the dug pit. To
get this boulder out of the way it be-
came necessary to put in heavy dyn,
am1te blast. AS a result of this blast
large cavity was made in the drilled
hole, and as the water cleared within
a remarkably short time after the
blast, Mr.. Dowden decided to make
an investigation. With mirrors prop
erly arranged he managed to get an
excellent focus on the cavity made by
the blast, and to his amazement saw
that the water was rushing like rivu-
let around the shattered boulder,
which had been encountered in the
second vein Of water. For some time
there has been much argument and
speculation as to whether the great
underground water supply here was
a flow or an underground lake. The
Dowden discovery certainly tends to
substantiate the flow theory. This is
the first authentic revelation along the
line, and will be followed by more
thorough investigation. The water
conditions on the plains, and particu-
larly in this immediate section, GER
q affords
tific investigation, practical study and
general interest.
The first vein of water here is
found at a depth varying from rs to
40 feet depth, to a great extent, de-
pending upon topography. The first
vein of water doesn't receive much
consideration here, but in most coun-
ties it would be considered bonan-
"a. 1t is the vein, however, from
which most of the windmill supply wa
ter has SO far been obtained, but few
of the old-time wells going below it.
and it has never yet been exhausted.
The second vein is found at uni
form depth of 25 feet below the first,
and no kind Of pump has 50 far ex-
Adu0C0u ICo supply, OuL IAS JuLnUO FOAA
is found at depth ranging from 100
to $50 feet And by reason of COM
mon but erroneous phraseOlogy many
people draw wrong conclusions as to
the depth of wells now being put down
for irrigation purposes. A man speak,
ing of a well here, perhaps his owns
will say that it is 100 or $50 feet to
water, as the case may be when he
really means it is that deep to the
third, or jumbo vein, and as result Of
this error the impression is going
about the country that it is that depth
to the water. If that were true it
would make irrigation here imprac-
teal, but it is seriously erroneous.
The first vein of water rises about
feet, which in we'll 25 feet would
bring the water to within % feet of
the surface. When the second vein
is struck the water generally rises an
other foot or two, and this is main
tanned when the third vein is struck.
Take a WE'LL for instance that is 100
feet deep, which is little above the
general average, it would be % feet
or Whereabouts, to the first vein and
95 to the second, and there would
be 1O4 feet of water in the well, stand
ing within FL feet of the surface, and
this is a reasonably fair average upon
which the water situation here may be-
based and calculated.