T11K FAliM HOI.IHNC. 



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Filling. 



To get the water into the tank, pipes are laid under one bank and the silt 

 t ink placed just outside it. On small holdings, where the tanks can he kept 

 under observation, some means should he devised to divert the water as soon 

 as the tank is full. If the water is allowed to continue to tlow into the tank 

 it gradually silts up, and the water which overflows is clearer than the water 

 which is tlow ing in. 



A chute should be provided wheie the pipe enters the tank, and a drain 

 made right round the edge, Leading to the chute, for t he purpose of preventing 

 water from running down the banks and causing scouring. 



Silt Tanks. 



Usually one silt tank is provided, but it is a decided advantage to have two 

 or more, as then more silt is deposited and the water reaches the tank in a 

 cleaner condition. Every possible opportunity should be seized upon 10 keep 

 the tanks clean. They should be kept under constant observation, and when- 

 ever the water gets low as much silt as possible should be removed. Many 

 landholders have discovered at the commencement of a drought that tanks 

 which they had thought contained several feet of water actually contained 

 several feet of silt and only a few inches of water. 



Drains. 



Wide shallow drains, in which the flow of water is slower and there is little 

 scouring, are preferable to narrow deep ones. A drain 4 feet wide and 9 

 inches deep is much better than one 2 feet wide and 18 inches or 2 feet deep. 

 When scouring is likely to take place the following 

 method is very successful in preventing it : —A trench 

 about 1 foot wide and 18 inches deep, and extending 

 a couple of feet each side of the drain, is dug across it 

 and filled with stones of 2 or 3 inch gauge. The 

 efficacy of aprons such as this can be seen along roads 

 and railways where they are used for the prevention 

 of washaways. Where drains curve they should be 

 widened ; the sharper the curve the greater should the 

 width be, and as a double safeguard an embankment can be placed on the 

 outer side. Should drains meet before reaching the tank the main drain 

 should be widened at the confluence, and the junction made at an acute angle. 

 Otherwise considerable quantities of silt will settle. 



Drains should always be kept in first-class order. When surface tanks 

 are depended upon every shower is of importance, and unless the drains are 

 clean, water from light showers does not reach the tank. Light road delvers 

 are very useful for this purpose, but if the size of the holding does not warrant 

 the purchase of such a delver, a crowder or delver should he made from a log 

 or plank by the fitting of a steel point. A plough or shovel can also be used 

 for this purpose. 



Measuring Drains. 



When the total length of drainage required runs to several miles it is a very 

 tedious proceeding to measure for contractors' payment. The chain tape is in 

 common use, but involves considerable risk of error. The following method 

 used in measuring up road work is very simnle, yet accurate, and could be 

 applied to measuring drains, as well as fencing, &c : — A piece of white cloth 

 is tied round the spoke of the wheel of a buggy, and the vehicle then advanced 

 until the wheel has made a complete revolution. A mark having been made 



