Read Ebook: Farm drainage The Principles Processes and Effects of Draining Land with Stones Wood Plows and Open Ditches and Especially with Tiles by French Henry F Henry Flagg

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Ebook has 1487 lines and 152905 words, and 30 pages

INTRODUCTORY.

Why this Treatise does not contain all Knowledge.--Attention of Scientific Men attracted to Drainage.--Lieutenant Maury's Suggestions.--Ralph Waldo Emerson's Views.--Opinions of J. H. Klippart, Esq.; of Professor Mapes; B. P. Johnson, Esq.; Governor Wright, Mr. Custis, &c.--Prejudice against what is English.--Acknowledgements to our Friends at Home and Abroad.--The Wants of our Farmers.

HISTORY OF THE ART OF DRAINING.

Draining as old as the Deluge.--Roman Authors.--Walter Bligh in 1650.--No thorough drainage till Smith, of Deanston.--No mention of Tiles in the "Compleat Body of Husbandry," 1758.--Tiles found 100 years old.--Elkington's System.--Johnstone's Puns and Peripatetics.--Draining Springs.--Bletonism, or the Faculty of Perceiving Subterranean Water.--Deanston System.--Views of Mr. Parkes.--Keythorpe System.--Wharncliffe System.--Introduction of Tiles into America.--John Johnston, and Mr. Delafield, of New York.

RAIN, EVAPORATION AND FILTRATION.

Fertilizing Substances in Rain Water.--Amount of Rain Fall in United States; in England.--Tables of Rain Fall.--Number of Rainy Days, and Quantity of Rain each Month.--Snow, how Computed as Water.--Proportion of Rain Evaporated.--What Quantity of Water Dry Soil will Hold.--Dew Point.--How Evaporation Cools Bodies.--Artificial Heat Underground.--Tables of Filtration and Evaporation.

DRAINAGE OF HIGH LANDS--WHAT LANDS REQUIRE DRAINAGE.

VARIOUS METHODS OF DRAINAGE.

DRAINAGE WITH TILES.

What are Drain-Tiles?--Forms of Tiles.--Pipes.--Horse-shoe Tiles.--Sole-Tiles.--Form of Water-Passage.--Collars and their Use.--Size of Pipes.--Velocity.--Friction.--Discharge of Water through Pipes.--Tables of Capacity.--How Water enters Tiles.--Deep Drains run soonest and longest.--Pressure of Water on Pipes.--Durability of Tile Drains.--Drain-Bricks 100 years old.

DIRECTION, DISTANCE AND DEPTH OF DRAINS.

DIRECTION OF DRAINS.--Whence comes the Water?--Inclination of Strata.--Drains across the Slope let Water out as well as Receive it.--Defence against Water from Higher Land.--Open Ditches.--Headers.--Silt-basins.

DISTANCE OF DRAINS.--Depends on Soil, Depth, Climate, Prices, System.--Conclusions as to Distance.

DEPTH OF DRAINS.--Greatly Increases Cost.--Shallow Drains first tried in England.--10,000 Miles of Shallow Drains laid in Scotland by way of Education.--Drains must be below Subsoil plow, and Frost.--Effect of Frost on Tiles and Aqueducts.

ARRANGEMENT OF DRAINS.

Necessity of System.--What Fall is Necessary.--American Examples.--Outlets.--Wells and Relief-Pipes.--Peep-holes.--How to secure Outlets.--Gate to Exclude Back-Water.--Gratings and Screens to keep out Frogs, Snakes, Moles, &c.--Mains, Submains, and Minors, how placed.--Capacity of Pipes.--Mains of Two Tiles.--Junction of Drains.--Effect of Curves and Angles on Currents.--Branch Pipes.--Draining into Wells or Swallow Holes.--Letter from Mr. Denton.

THE COST OF TILES--TILE MACHINES.

Prices far too high; Albany prices.--Length of Tiles.--Cost in Suffolk Co., England.--Waller's Machine.--Williams' Machine.--Cost of Tiles compared with Bricks.--Mr. Denton's Estimate of Cost.--Other Estimates.--Two-inch Tiles can be Made as Cheaply as Bricks.--Process of Rolling Tiles.--Tile Machines.--Descriptions of Daines'.--Pratt & Bro.'s.

THE COST OF DRAINAGE.

Draining no more expensive than Fencing.--Engineering.--Guessing not accurate enough.--Slight Fall sufficient.--Instances.--Two Inches to One-Thousand Feet.--Cost of Excavation and Filling.--Narrow Tools required.--Tables of Cubic contents of Drains.--Cost of Drains on our own Farm.--Cost of Tiles.--Weight and Freight of Tiles.--Cost of Outlets.--Cost of Collars.--Smaller Tiles used with Collars.--Number of Tiles to the Acre, with Tables.--Length of Tiles varies.--Number of Rods to the Acre at different Distances.--Final Estimate of Cost.--Comparative Cost of Tile-Drains and Stone-Drains.

DRAINING IMPLEMENTS.

Unreasonable Expectations about Draining Tools.--Levelling Instruments.--Guessing not Accurate.--Level by a Square.--Spirit Level.--Span, or A Level.--Grading by Lines.--Boning-rod.--Challoner's Drain Level.--Spades and Shovels.--Long-handled Shovel.--Irish Spade, description and cut.--Bottoming Tools.--Narrow Spades.--English Bottoming Tools.--Pipe-layer.--Pipe-laying Illustrated.--Pick-axes.--Drain Gauge.--Drain Plows, and Ditch-Diggers.--Fowler's Drain Plow.--Pratt's Ditch-Digger.--McEwan's Drain Plow.--Routt's Drain Plow.

PRACTICAL DIRECTIONS FOR OPENING DRAINS AND LAYING TILES.

Begin at the Outlet.--Use of Plows.--Leveling the Bottom.--Where to begin to lay Pipes.--Mode of Procedure.--Covering Pipes.--Securing Joints.--Filling.--Securing Outlets.--Plans.

EFFECTS OF DRAINAGE UPON THE CONDITION OF THE SOIL.

Drainage deepens the Soil, and gives the roots a larger pasture.--Cobbett's Lucerne 30 feet deep.--Mechi's Parsnips 13 feet long!--Drainage promotes Pulverization.--Prevents Surface-Washing.--Lengthens the Season.--Prevents Freezing out.--Dispenses with Open Ditches.--Saves 25 per cent. of Labor.--Promotes absorption of Fertilizing Substances from the Air.--Supplies Air to the Roots.--Drains run before Rain; so do some Springs.--Drainage warms the Soil.--Corn sprouts at 55?; Rye on Ice.--Cold from Evaporation.--Heat will not pass downward in Water.--Count Rumford's Experiments with Hot Water on Ice.--Aeration of Soil by Drains.

DRAINAGE ADAPTS THE SOIL TO GERMINATION AND VEGETATION.

Process of Germination.--Two Classes of Pores in Soils, illustrated by cuts.--Too much Water excludes Air, reduces Temperature.--How much Air the Soil Contains.--Drainage Improves the Quality of Crops.--Drainage prevents Drought.--Drained Soils hold most Water.--Allow Roots to go Deep.--Various Facts.

TEMPERATURE AS AFFECTED BY DRAINAGE.

Drainage Warms the Soil in Spring.--Heat cannot go down in Wet Land.--Drainage causes greater Deposit of Dew in Summer.--Dew warms Plants in Night, Cools them in the Morning Sun.--Drainage varies Temperature by Lessening Evaporation.--What is Evaporation.--How it produces Cold.--Drained Land Freezes Deepest, but Thaws Soonest, and the Reasons.

POWER OF SOILS TO ABSORB AND RETAIN MOISTURE.

Why does not Drainage make the Land too Dry?--Adhesive Attraction.--The Finest Soils exert most Attraction.--How much Water different Soils hold by Attraction.--Capillary Attraction, illustrated.--Power to Imbibe Moisture from the Air.--Weight Absorbed by 1,000 lbs. in 12 Hours.--Dew, Cause of.--Dew Point.--Cause of Frost.--Why Covering Plants Protects from Frost.--Dew Imparts Warmth.--Idea that the Moon Promotes Putrefaction.--Quantity of Dew.

INJURY OF LAND BY DRAINAGE.

Most Land cannot be Over-drained.--Nature a Deep drainer.--Over-draining of Peaty Soils.--Lincolnshire Fens. Visit to them in 1857.--56 Bushels of Wheat to the Acre.--Wet Meadows Subside by Drainage.--Conclusions.

OBSTRUCTION OF DRAINS.

Tiles will fill up, unless well laid.--Obstruction by Sand or Silt.--Obstructions at the Outlet from Frogs, Moles, Action of Frost, and Cattle.--Obstruction by Roots.--Willow, Ash, &c., Trees capricious.--Roots enter Perennial Streams.--Obstruction by Mangold Wurtzel.--Obstruction by Per-Oxide of Iron.--How Prevented.--Obstructions by the Joints Filling.--No Danger with Two-Inch Pipes.--Water through the Pores.--Collars.--How to Detect Obstructions.

DRAINAGE OF STIFF CLAYS.

Clay not impervious, or it could not be wet and dried.--Puddling, what is.--Water will stand over Drains on Puddled Soil.--Cracking of Clays by Drying.--Drained Clays improve by time.--Passage of Water through Clay makes it permeable.--Experiment by Mr. Pettibone, of Vermont.--Pressure of Water in Saturated Soil.

EFFECTS OF DRAINAGE ON STREAMS AND RIVERS.

Drainage Hastens the Supply to the Streams, and thus creates Freshets.--Effect of Drainage on Meadows below; on Water Privileges.--Conflict of Manufacturing and Agricultural Interests.--English Opinions and Facts.--Uses of Drainage Water.--Irrigation.--Drainage Water for Stock.--How used by Mr. Mechi.

LEGISLATION--DRAINAGE COMPANIES.

England protects her Farmers.--Meadows ruined by Corporation dams.--Old Mills often Nuisances.--Factory Reservoirs.--Flowage extends above level of Dam.--Rye and Derwent Drainage.--Give Steam for Water-Power.--Right to Drain through land of others.--Right to natural flow of Water.--Laws of Mass.--Right to Flow; why not to Drain?--Land-drainage Companies in England.--Lincolnshire Fens.--Government Loans for Drainage.

DRAINAGE OF CELLARS.

Wet Cellars Unhealthful.--Importance of Cellars in New England.--A Glance at the Garret, by way of Contrast.--Necessity of Drains.--Sketch of an Inundated Cellar.--Tiles best for Drains.--Best Plan of Cellar Drain; Illustration.--Cementing will not do.--Drainage of Barn Cellars.--Uses of them.--Actual Drainage of a very Bad Cellar described.--Drains Outside and Inside; Illustration.

DRAINAGE OF SWAMPS.

Vast Extent of Swamp Lands in the United States.--Their Soil.--Sources of their Moisture.--How to Drain them.--The Soil Subsides by Draining.--Catch-water Drains.--Springs.--Mr. Ruffin's Drainage in Virginia.--Is there Danger of Over-draining?

AMERICAN EXPERIMENTS IN DRAINAGE--DRAINAGE IN IRELAND.

Statement of B. F. Nourse, of Maine.--Statement of Shedd and Edson, of Mass.--Statement of H. F. French, of New Hampshire.--Letter of Wm. Boyle, Albert Model Farm, Glasnevin, Ireland.

FARM DRAINAGE.

INTRODUCTORY.

Why this Treatise does not contain all Knowledge.--Attention of Scientific Men attracted to Drainage.--Lieutenant Maury's Suggestions.--Ralph Waldo Emerson's Views.--Opinions of J. H. Klippart, Esq.; of Professor Mapes; B. P. Johnston, Esq.; Governor Wright, Mr. Custis, &c.--Prejudice against what is English.--Acknowledgements to our Friends at Home and Abroad.--The Wants of our Farmers.

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