THE FARM HOME 393 



twenty to one hundred feet from the house, and should 

 be made of four-inch sewer pipe with all joints closed by 

 cement. This pipe may discharge into a cesspool that is 

 merely a hole in the ground and that is walled with stone 

 laid without mortar. Such an arrangement is satisfactory if 

 the ground is very porous, and if no wells are within any 

 possible range of contamination. The sewage should not be 

 emptied directly into streams or ponds. 



If the land is not porous, or if there is any danger of 

 contamination of wells, a cement collecting tank, or septic 

 tank, should be provided. A tank 3x6 feet and 3 feet 

 deep is large enough for a family of six persons. While 



FIG. 198. A dilapidated farmhouse made attractive by vines and flowers 



the sewage remains in this tank, the bacteria decompose 

 the solids contained in it, so that it may be distributed by 

 underground irrigation in a lawn or field. The inlet pipe 

 should have a bend at the end so as to direct the water 

 downward. The outlet pipe should slope upward so as not 

 to allow the scum to run off, as this scum is filled with 



