86 



FORESTRY AND IRRIGATION. 



February 



The huge, clumsj^ windmills of Eu- 

 ropean make, such as that erected at 

 Lawrence, Kansas, shown in the accom- 

 pan^'ing plate, have within a few decades 

 given place in this country to the light, 

 rapidly running forms. Thousands of 

 these have been made by various firms 

 throughout the country. At first wood 

 was used almost exclusively, but this is 

 being rapidly displaced by metal, espe- 

 cially by thin steel plates and forgings. 

 Although millions of dollars have been 

 invested in the manufacture and pur- 

 chase of mills, and much attention has 

 been given to the mechanical details and 

 the saving in weight and cost, yet com- 

 parativel}^ little study has been bestowed 

 upon the actual efficiency of the various 

 forms and upon their development to- 

 ward theoretical ideals. 



A view of gardens cultivated by water 

 pumped by windmills is shown in the 

 accompanying plate. This picture has 

 been taken from a windmill platform. 

 In the foreground is a small reservoir, 

 divided by a bank in the middle, so that 

 one part ma}^ be used independently" of 

 the other. The part nearer the observer 

 is the older; the second part is a recent 

 addition, rendered necessary by the in- 

 crease of the area cultivated. Without 

 windmills the cultivation of the tract of 

 country shown in this picture would be 



impossible. It is doubtful if a single 

 cow could find subsistence on the area 

 which now supports a family. 



In Fig. I is given a section through 

 one of these small reservoirs, showing 

 at the bottom the puddled earth or clay 

 that prevents the water from seeping 

 into the adjacent ground. On this pud- 

 dled earth the banks are built at a height 

 of from 4 to lo feet. These are usually 

 built by plowing and scraping up the 

 earth from the outside, the tramping of 

 the horses and the men serving to con- 

 solidate it. When the bank has been 

 built to the proper height it is smoothed 

 and sodded. On the right-hand side of 

 the figure is the pipe or wooden flume 

 from the windmill, and on the left-hand 

 side is shown the outlet box, which is 

 usually built of 2-inch plank. This is 

 closed by some simple form of wooden 

 gate or valve, either lifted b}^ means of 

 a screw or hinged so as to open outward, 

 and is held in place by the pressure of 

 the water against it. 



The square reservoir is the form usu- 

 ally adopted. The mills, as in the other 

 cases, are placed on each side, pumping 

 through short wooden flumes over the 

 bank. These reservoirs are not onh^ 

 used for holding water for irrigation, 

 but with a little care serve as ponds for 

 raising fish. 



SUPPLY P'P 



FIG. I. VERTICAI, SECTION THROUGH RESERVOIR AND OUTI^KT. 



