IMPLEMENTS FOR CHECKING 167 



shown in the cut. A vertical hole may be made in front of the clevis 

 pin and a small rod driven in to strengthen the hold of the clevis. 



The Jump Scraper or Horse Shovel. This is used for filling gaps 

 in the ridges, and is the work of the blacksmith. The beams are % by 

 \Y inches and 30 inches long from the draft ring to the bend down- 

 ward. The shovel is of No. 16 sheet-iron, 24 inches long by 18 inches 

 deep. The handles are those used on any cultivator. The beams are 

 bent to stand 6 inches forward of a square placed on top of the beams. 

 The braces are of ^-inch round iron. The shovel is slightly cupped to 

 make it hold more earth. 



The Portable Gate or Tappoon. These are for shutting ditches, 

 and are made of No. 16 sheet-iron 2 feet wide and of any desired length, 

 but usually 3 feet, 4 feet or 5 feet long. The corners are cut off to a 

 circle, starting about 1 foot back of the corner. The handles are made 



The "Jumper/' 



Used to complete levees by the "ridger" for the check system. 



of 2 pieces of 1 by 3-inch pine, 12 inches longer than the gate, and are 

 placed one on each side of the sheet iron and secured by Y^ -inch bolts. 



The Combined Check and Furrow Method. An effort to escape 

 in some measure the puddling of the surface which results from allow- 

 ing water to sink away upon finely pulverized soil, lies in the direction 

 of breaking up the soil roughly in the bottoms of the checks, which 

 facilitates the quick passage of the water into the subsoil. This is done 

 by running a small plow or three large cultivator teeth attached to a 

 single frame before the ridger is used to form the levees. Mr. A. D. 

 Bishop of Orange County, California, uses a combined furrow and 

 check system, as shown in the accompanying diagram. He furrows 

 the land first with a three-tooth furrower at right angles to the direc- 

 tion in which the water is to flow, and then uses the ridger to make 

 levees in line with the water, laying out the work so as to get the 

 closest approximation to a level. When the levees are made, the jump 

 scraper is used and the end of each third or fourth furrow bank is con- 

 nected with the levees at alternating sides of the check made by the 



