158 THE YOUNG FARMER'S MANUAL. 



ing in all the interstices between the large stones, and especially 

 by a careful binding of the sides together, as only in this way 

 can displacement be prevented under the action of our severe 

 winters. In passing across gullies, or over undulating fields, it 

 may be well, in order to give the wall when finished a more uni 

 form top-line, to lay a lower wall of the rougher stone of a height 

 to correspond with that of the ridge on which they are placed. 

 The width and height of a wall will necessarily vary with the 

 quality, size and character of the stone. If large bowlders exist 

 in abundance, they must be blasted when they are larger in diam 

 eter than the base of the wall. It will be sufficient to build the 

 wall four feet wide at the bottom, four feet eight inches high, and 

 twenty inches wide at the top. If the stone are of a smaller size, 

 and cobbles mostly, or of slate, the width at the bottom may be 

 two and a half feet only. 



"It is understood that a wall is considered of a lawful height if 

 it is four feet six inches high. But I have thought best to con 

 struct my walls four feet eight inches high, so as to allow for 

 settling." 



Some farmers cut an open ditch on both sides of the wall, and 

 throw up the dirt on the top of the ridge against each side of the 

 wall, so that animals cannot approach the wall. But such ditches 

 take up too much land, and increase the expense of a fence to an 

 unnecessary amount. (See par. 196 and 197.) 



QUARRYING STONE. 



204. The first step in taking stone of any kind from a quarry 

 is, to remove the dirt from a large surface. Sometimes this may 

 be done with a team and scraper ; and sometimes, when a stream 

 of water is near, it may be turned out of its natural course and 

 made to wash the dirt away ; and sometimes it must be removed 

 with shovels. "When the surface of the stone is all laid bare, if 

 the stone is found with regular, vertical, and horizontal seams, at 

 the distance of a foot or so, it will be very easy to get them out. 

 It requires the exercise of a little judgment and skill to quarry 



