SOILS AND CROPS. 



43 



construction and maintenance in pro- 

 portion to the benefit he may be ad- 

 judged by the engineer to derive from 

 the drain. The man who requires the 



outlet must not forget, however, that 

 he, too, is liable for outlet expense in 

 proportion to his interest in said out- 

 let. 



Table of Size of Tile Pipe of Main Drain (McConnell). 



Fall. 



Acres Drained. 



Suppose a man has 12 acres to drain and the slope of his main is 1 foot in 

 600, then we look down the list of falls till we find 1 foot in 600 and follow 

 this line to the right. A 3-inch tile would not do; it drains only 3.3 acres. A 

 4-inch tile drains only 4.7 acres. A 5-inch tile, not given, but probably drains 

 about 7 to 9 acres. A 6-inch tile fills the bill, as it is capable of draining 13.3 

 acres. The size to use for any other slope is determined in the same way. 

 This rule applies to the submains and laterals as well as to mains. Owing to 

 the great amount of friction in small tile compared with the volume of water 

 they can carrj^ they are much more likely to clog with sediment than are the 

 larger ones, so much so indeed that a 2-inch tile should never be used except 

 on a steep grade. They are almost sure to clog in time on a slow grade. 



Machine Ditching. 



Machine ditching in farm under- 

 drainage work has come to stay, but 

 unfortunately not enough attention has 

 been paid to the possibilities of in- 

 creased agricultural profits in these 

 valuable assistants and labor-savers in 

 reclaiming and improving farm prop- 

 erty. There are several good reason.^ 

 why more machines are not in opera- 

 tion, and to mention a few of these 

 will not be out of place. First, a trac- 

 tion ditcher is a very expensive ma- 

 chine; second, it is a very complicated 

 piece of machinery; and third, to op- 

 erate one successfully a good mechanic 

 is required; one who is gifted with a 



saving sense of humor, much patience, 

 and who is constantly on the alert to 

 avoid trouble. Experience is practi- 

 cally the only teacher in this business. 

 The modern gasoline traction 

 ditcher of reliable make is a wonder 

 of efficiency, power and mechanism, 

 built to stand almost anything, yet re- 

 quiring delicate handling to avoid 

 trouble. Owing to the number of op- 

 erations performed at one time a large 

 number of bearings, pulleys and 

 sprocket wheels are necessary, and 

 these require constant attention to 

 keep bolts tight and bearings and 

 chains well oiled. A book would be 



