Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1914-11-22
MUST DIG WELLS DEEPER;
WATER FAMINE MAY Be ON
Virginia's Far-Fameti Waters Getting
Nearer and Nearer to Chi
nesc Empire.
soUTHslDE WELLS GOING DRY
Stitch In Time May Save Nine-If
Water Does Not Come to Us, We
Must Go to Water-ColoDel Tai
!. colt Tells Us How.

Must Go To Water-Coionel Tai
colt Tells Us How.
II is getting to be something of a
serious matter In some parts OF Viz
g!nia as to the sweet drinking water
supply. There come reports from many
parts OF Southside Virginia that the
oldtime wells that have been depend
ed upon for 10, these many years. arc
failing-Soing dry, and do not hold out
all the year round Tho writer Oh
served this condition on his own llttlc
country homo place two years ago. and
state, ana this fall worse than ever.
Colonel T. NJ. Il. Talcott, who Is Il
civil engineer OF the old type, and who
is country nciShbor of the writer,
was appealed to for an opinion. Col
oncl Talcott was for many years the
civil engineer and general supcrin-
tendent Of the Richmond end Danvllic
Railway. now known rs tho Richmond
DaDville branch of the Southern Rail
way. and pretty much all of his lsfc
excepting that which lie spent in the
Confederate army. has been spen. in
studying conditions along this line.
Talking TO the writer not long ago,
Colonel Talcott said he had been watch-
inE this water supply with interest
ard had reached the conclusion that
Inc pctp-' III ScuIuSlu'' ' llt-lillu III usl
go to digging their wells deeper. he
figured out that the water supply ia
now nj least ten feet lower in South
side Virginia, say from the james
River 10 the Dan than II was ten
years ago. Colcnnl Talcott did not say
il just that way, but the natural in
ference is that the peopl. in th:s ter
ri,ory must dig their wells ten feet
deeper.
TiDEWATER SECTION BEGINS
TO FEEL THE TROUBLE
Up in some parts of Chesterfield
County. notably in the region known
rs the Bon Air settlement, and in
the Midlothian village, the people are
already dong some digging. and they
are making their wells much deeper.
Others VIII have to so and do likewise.
In this connection, and with the view
OF helping on this good work, a story
by a. letters, OF Occana, Va, a good
young man who sometimes writes for
The Times Dispatch but mostly for the
Manufacturers Record. may prove in
teresting. NJ. LETTERS III discussing
the water supply. says:
In Virginia the rainfall seems To
have been decreasing in the past few
years. and the water in the wells 10
sinking slowly farthcr from the sur
face. Thousands Of farmers have been
compelled to sink their wells de. per IN
order To secure a sufficient supply for
domestic purposes. This is especially
true OF Piedmont Virginia, and East
ern Virginia is now feeling the effects
OF the dry season In the same way.
The soil water IL lower than before
for many years 1t is not necessary to
go into details and publish long col
umns Of figures To show that tho rain
fall is decreasing, and has been doing
so for several years, for every farmer
in the State knows 1t. and nearly every
crop in the State shows IT, In such
case the wells must be sui.le deeper"
THE WAY THE NATIVES
MANAGED TO DO IT
Following the subject, MIR Jcffers
says.
The writer inspected the irriGating
system OF one Of the active truckers
in the Norfolk section. He Was draw
ing his water supply from water
bearing gravel hfty-onc feet below the
surface, and stated that the water In
his fifty-onc-foot wells. of which he
had three, came up 10 Within elk feet
Of the surfaCe--same within six feet
of being flowing or artrSian well
He found water nj thirteen feet, and
again at twenty-siX feet, and then an
insXhaustibie supply OF excellent water
~ hfty-onc feet. Recently photo
was made OF II well at Lambert's
Point, near Norfolk. THIS well is GIG
feet deep, and has been flowing for
twenty-three years at the rate OF fifty
ope gallons a minute. IT Is cascd with
siX-inch pipe, and the water will Rise
seven feet above the surface. and the
temperature of the water is - degrees
Throughout the entire ycar-no varta-
tion summer or winter. The greater
part OF the flow Is p.pcd away 10 the
difIe plants az Lambert's Point and
used for various purposes, but, on ac-
count of mineral substances in the
water, 1t cannot be used in the boilers
- To-. IL.
poses the water is considered Iseairhful.
THE PRESENT CONDITIONS AS
TO THE TiDEWATEV SECTION
Eastern or Underwater Virginia al.
ready has thousands OF flowing wells
from nifty 20 800 feet In depth II
il probable that The number will stead
lily and rapidly increase until the un-
foreground portion OF the section Will
be more thoroughly understood and the
digging or boring of wells be reduced
mole TO a system.
The early Inhabitants depended
largely upon springs FOR their water
supply But gradually the springs
nave dried up. Then shallow dug
wells with a hollow gum tree or a sec
zion Of such g tree was used for Il well
curb Occasionally deeper. well was
dug and bricIScd mp. For, be IL known.
there is no stone in Eastern Virginia
with which 10 case = well as Is done
in millions OF wells at the East. North
and West. Then the drive" well came
into general use. such generally find
Ing water about sixteen feet below tho
surface. IN such case, the farmer or
owner o? the land bought IA pitcher
pump three or four joints OF pipe.
nre-foot long, and a perforated joint.
for "a complete we'll Outfit" costint,
less than 81 all told y few hours
work put down the well. and il went
into commission al once with a good
supply Of soft water such wells are
frequently PAT down Tor temporary
purposes or use. and pulled up and car
ricd away to be used ut some other
point--actually moving the well. Then
the drilled" well was introduced. and
single counties in Eastern Virginia can