RECLAMATION OF LOUISIANA WET PRAIRIE LANDS. 439 



peller wheel on a vertical shaft driven by belt or rope from the 

 engine. The water rises through the large wooden body of the 

 pump, flowing away through a wide discharge trough. Except the 

 impeller, shaft, bearings, and pulley, the entire machine is of wood. 

 This pump is of large capacity and is perhaps especially adapted to 

 lifts up to 10 feet, although it is claimed that by the use of two or 

 more wheels, set one above the other, water can be pumped against 

 a head of 40 feet. The discharge trough or platform can be placed 

 at any height required. If it is set at high-water mark, however, 

 there would always be some waste of power when the water in the 

 bayou or out-fall canal is less than this height. 



As the necessary water lift in the plantations of this section varies 

 from 3 to 10 feet, it is a matter of economy that the pump be chosen 

 which will only raise the water the height that may be necessary at 

 any particular time. Tliis will avoid the necessity of purchasing an 

 engine and boiler of too great capacity. In some plantations that 

 have been visited it has been found that the effective hft was only 

 one-half of the actual hft, which, it will be readily seen, is a great waste 

 of fuel and plant capacity. When open flumes are used, which are 

 placed at the ordinary water level, the water in flood times can be 

 prevented from flowing back by means of flood gates placed in the 

 flume. 



As may be noted above in the description of the pumping equip- 

 ments of the various plantations, the engines and boilers selected vary 

 greatly. They should, however, be chosen with due regard to first 

 cost, capacity, reliability, and economy of operation. On some of 

 the old sugar plantations the condemned boilers from the sugar houses 

 are used, and run at a low pressure. In cases where the plant is only 

 operated a few days in each year the cost of operation is not such a 

 determining feature as when the plants are called on for regular work 

 during each month of the year. In this latter case it will probably 

 pay to put more money into a better plant, including automatic, 

 high-speed engines, feed-water heaters, and other fuel-saving devices. 

 In the former case simple slide-valve engines with any suitable boiler 

 are about all that will be required. A point to be kept in mind is 

 that these plants are usually run by more or less inexperienced labor, 

 and therefore complicated machinery should be avoided. Economy 

 in i)lant capacity should not, however, prevent the selection of 

 maciiinery of sufficient size to take care in as short a time as possible 

 of the probable run-off from excessive storms, as upon such drainage 

 depends the success of the plantation. 



o 



