ORNAMENTING NEW HOMES. 9 



conditions that may lead to the contamination of the drink- 

 ing-water, they should have the most rigid investigation. 

 With the modern methods of analysis it is possible to know 

 positively the condition of the water, but analyses should be 

 made at two or three different times to determine if the sup- 

 ply is affected at one season of the year and not at another. 



In villages and near old buildings most dangerous sources 

 of contamination may be found in sink-drains, cesspools, 

 stable-yards, etc., and if any of the above are found within 

 from 200 to 300 feet, according to the soil, of a well the 

 water should be regarded with suspicion. 



These sources of contamination may not affect the water 

 in a new well for many years, but sooner or later the sur- 

 face-drainage will find its way down to the deep basins 

 formed by our wells. The safest water-supply is that from 

 a well-constructed and cared for reservoir, brought in suit- 

 able pipes to the house. In these open reservoirs the water 

 becomes purified by long exposure to the air, but does not 

 possess the sparkle nor the coolness of water from a deep 

 well. 



Kind of Soil. 



While the location as to surroundings, elevation, water- 

 supply, etc., are matters of first importance, the success and 

 more or less the cost of the ornamental planting depends 

 largely upon the nature of the soil. It will hardly be 

 possible to find a soil perfectly adapted to the best growth 

 of all kinds of trees, shrubs, and plants, yet any ordinarily 

 good soil may be made to grow most of them without very 

 great expense. The best soil for general purposes is a deep 

 sandy loam, though a strong loam with a clay subsoil if 

 thoroughly underdrained will often be satisfactory and, a 

 thin soil, too, may be very much improved by deep working 



