The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1916-09-29
STORING WATER BY
DRY FARMERS
and the Dry Slopes of the
Foot Hills
SAVE LABOR AND
PREVENT DISEASE

| One of the live questions among
dry farmers is how to provide water
for man and beast at reasonable
cost and yet have it pure and good,
The men ON the big desert haul water
from rivers and bitches and dump 1t
into cisterns without filtering, and
the sediment made up of animal and
vegetable matter accun1dlates and de-
Gays, giving the water a bad taste
and disagreeable smell. This is ma
lures way of warning the consumer
that it is unfit for use in the body.
In the heat of summer these particles
are apt to become putrid and deadly,
and yet it is often difficult to avoid
~lsing some of it. 1t introduces dis
ease in animals as we'll as in the
human body, the main difference be-
ing that animals are not SO sensitive
as the human kind.
CiSterns Necessity
Many settlers in the desert haul
water to their claims at a cost of
two to four dollars ton, and at
times when their labor is worth a
great deal in the fields. If some
means can be found for making ma
ture bring the water and place it in
the cistern, it will be rated as carry
ing considerable value. Many dry
farmers on the foot hills devote one
fourth of their time to hauling water
to their claims, and any means that
can be devised for making nature
store water for them and keeping
it pure will enable them to add to
their acreage or save time at busy
seasons. In view of these conditions
the following suggestions are offered:
Make large Cistern
Make a cistern of any size or shape
desired by the farmer and line it with
coat of cement to make it hold
water Have the cement thick enough
to be substantial, both as to holding
itself in place on the particular soil
or surface in which the cistern is
constructed and pure enough to hold
water. Have it substantial and not
liable to break it in. Have it covered
over tight to keep out vermin, and
a trap or opening thru which water
can be drawn. If any effort is to
be made to freeze the water to keep
it fresh for a longer period in the
warm weather, allowance must be
made for uncovering it to expose it
to the cold of winter if the cistern is
filled in the fall.
Getting Pure Water
On most of the dry farms there is |
some season of the year when there
is rain or snow. If it is not possible
to turn surface water into the cistern
during rains or at the time snow is |
melting, then the snow itself can be |
shoveled in and hot water poured on
it at intervals to keep it melting till |
the cistern is finally filled. An OBJ
lection to this plan is that it is hard |!
to get snow about the place that has
no sticks or straws or other particles
in it. If these things go in with the
snow they will, of course, remain in
the water and to some extent render
it impure. If the snow is melted
over fire, to get hot water to melt
The main body of snow in the cistern,
The particles in the snow when it is
scooped up will be cooked when the
water heats and soup will result. A
very little Of sage leaves and twigs
cooked will spoil barrel of water.
Swimming the water carefully before
It gets warm will relieve this situa-
ion very much.
If snow is relied upon for filling
he cistern it would be desirable to
ocate it after careful study of the
direction of the prevailing winds and
he condition of the ground where
he snow can best be lodged and
'cooped up.
Corraling the Snow
If the ground is cleared of trash
before snow comes, and the surface
wept or wet down so it gives favor
bile surface for shoveling, a snow
ence can be constructed to make the
now lodge almost anywhere it is
lesired. A mere windbreak to make
ddies in the wind is all that is need
ID, and the snow piles up in drifts
ack of the fence or to leeward. By
UGH arrangement the snow can be
allied. but If it has drifted across
lowed ground that is dry or across !:
stubble field or by a straw pile,
may carry enough dust or trash
D spoil the water. The farmer should |:
tudy all these conditions before To-
ating the cistern, and by careful pre-
aration he may be able to fill his |;
istern with water that is absolutely
ure.
Filtering Water
If there Is a chance to fill the cis-
ern with drainage water at some
art of the year, study should be
lade of the slopes from which it is
} be gathered, and burrows run to
uide it to the intake of the cistern. II
he intake can be arranged by plac- ]:
lg pipe thru the wall from the .
tile basin or pond into which the
alter runs as it comes from the dam
ge slope. The outer end of the
lpe can be screened with something
, ward off sticks and litter, and it
light also be screened with some
ling finer like cheesecloth, to keep
ut fine particles that pass thrue the
utter screen. A bulb made of wire
1ch as is used to keep out mos
litoes will do for the outer screen,
I'D for the inner one, the same ma
rial with cheesecloth stretched over
When the water passes thru the
pc and falls into the cistern it can
, filtered thru a mass of coarse sand -
'ntained in box. Make box two IN
; three feet square and foot deep,