THE IRRIGATION AGE. 



25 



construction. With a trench like the one 

 described, a skilled mason is not required 

 to build the wall as it is only necessary to 

 fill in the trench \vith stone and thin -grout 

 mortar or to mix the grout and pour it in 

 the ditch until it is full. Where it is 

 necessary to build the. wall higher than the 

 ground, boards or planks are held tem- 

 porarily in position by stakes to carry the 

 wall to the desired height. Of course 

 there. is no objection to building a stone 

 wall in the usual manner if the extra ex- 

 pense is no object, but the construction 

 described is just as good and often better, 

 while the expense is considerably less. 



The wall should extend but an inch or 

 so above the floor, and the top of the wall 

 carefully leveled to form a proper bed for 

 the sill. The reason why the wall should 

 not extend higher will be fully explained 

 in another chapter that explains every de- 

 tail in the construction of the stable above 

 the floor. Inside of the wall the ground 

 must be carefully graded in conformity 

 with the ground plan. Jog 3 , gutters, 

 mangers, inclines and track runs should 

 be laid out with great care to correspond 

 with a carefully drawn plan and profile. 



Earth that has been loosened up by 

 handling should be wet down when neces- 

 sary to make it solid. Small grade stakes 

 should be driven along gutters as well as at 

 regular intervals over the graded bottom, 

 these stakes should be driven just deep 

 enough so that the top of the stake will be 

 level with the top surface of the first layer 

 of cement, they should be removed while 

 the cement is soft and the holes filled, al- 

 though this is not absolutely necessary. 



In order to set these stakes properly, 

 what is called an A level is required; this 

 is made with three strips of board seven- 

 eights by three inches, nailed together in 

 the shape of a lettej; ' : A. " A plumb bob 

 is hung from the top and a mark made on 

 the cross piece where the line crosses 

 when the feet are level. To find this level 

 drive two stakes and set one foot on each 



stake; by reversing, .the feet and repeat- 

 edly driving down the higher stake until 

 the line touches the same point, when the 

 "A" is placed in either position the exact 

 level may be obtained. With one of these 

 simple instruments a few stakes and a 

 maul, two men may walk all over a hillside 

 and mark out a perfectly level course. 



When the ground is finished ready for 

 the cement, mortar boards should be placed 

 conveniently that is plenty large enough to 

 be used without sides. Mix thoroughly by 

 measure dry, one part best Portland ce- 

 ment with six or seven parts of coarse 

 sand; a good liberal sprinkling of broken 

 stone is an improvement. When thor- 

 oughly mixed, wet to mortar consistency 

 which is just wet enough to be pressed 

 into a ball by hand spread directly on the 

 ground in a layer two and one-half inches 

 thick and tramp down solid. Gutter sides 

 and all jogs should be an inch thicker to 

 prevent breaking. Corners at these places 

 should be beveled for the same reason. ' 

 The top or putty coat should be mixed 

 and laid on the stall floor with a rough 

 board trowel; this coat should consist of 

 one part cement to two parts sand that 

 has been sifted. It should not be trow- 

 eled down smooth on the standing floor 

 but it should be left rough in order 

 to furnish a hold for bedding; the 

 mangers and feed ways may he polished to 

 the queen's taste. This coat may be from 

 one inch to one and one-half inches thick 

 and it must be laid when the bottom coat 

 is fresh and damp or the two will not pro- 

 perly unite; for this reason it is better to 

 lay a large floor in sections, though if dry- 

 ness cannot be avoided, sprinkling will 

 .help to restore adhesiveness. In large 

 stables where a driveway is provided it is 

 necessary to make creases in the cement 

 when soft, otherwise the hard smooth 

 floor will furnish no foothold for horses, 

 this may be done by embedding a rake 

 handle at frequent intervals in the ceuien t 

 while it is soft. Stable floors made in 



