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Artesian Well. — Improvement in JVail Mahing. Vol. XI 



Artesian AVell. 



_ An attempt is making at East Boston, to 

 sink an Artesian well. The process was by 

 boring a sufficient depth to obtain a supply 

 of water for the accommodation of the citi- 

 zens upon the island — the population of 

 which is so rapidly increasing in numbers. 

 The operator has abandoned the common 

 earth auger, and has invented a cast iron 

 tube, about eight inches in diameter, and 

 about ten feet long. It is armed at the end 

 with two prodigiously strong chisels, and 

 just above them is an ingeniously devised 

 valve. At the other extremity is a wrought 

 iron handle, fastened to which is a stout, 

 Bhort-linked iron chain to raise it up and 

 down. When in action, it operates upon 

 the principle of a common chopping knife 

 so familiar in mince pie manipulations. The 

 engine raises it and then lets it fall, like the 

 perpendicular movement of the dasher in 

 the obsolete method of churning butter. As 

 the bits of stone or other materials accumu- 

 late every time the massive tube drops, they 

 are forced up into the tube and retained. 

 Finally, when enough has been chopped to 

 fill the cylinder of the drill, — the name 

 given it, — the engine draws it to the sur- 

 face to be emptied. The cost of the one 

 Mr. Higgins is labouring with was $600. 

 The Boston Transcript gives the following 

 account in relation to this invention : 



Before resorting to this unique contriv- 

 ance at all, an ordinary well was dug 140 

 feet, to a stratum of hard, compact gravel, 

 interspersed with water worn stones of va- 

 rious sizes. On this Mr. Higgins set a cast 

 iron tube of 10 inches diameter; and an- 

 other on the top of that, secured by water 

 tight joints, and so on, to the very outlet 

 above ground. This long, ponderous cylin- 

 der is carefully braced on the outside all the 

 way, to keep it exactly perpendicular, and 

 within it the mighty battering ram is let 

 down and set in motion against the realm of 

 Pluto. As fast as the hole was deepened, 

 the weight of the superincumbent pipe 

 pressed down farther, paring the sides as it 

 ground along. All accumulations from that 

 source, with its own chips, were secured by 

 the valve. After passing through 10 feet of 

 the mixture described, the instrument struck 

 a hard, blue slate stone, through which Mr. 

 Higgins urged his way at the average rate 

 of six feet a day for 145 feet. Next he 

 came upon a bed of talc, of a greenish grey 

 colour, greasy to the touch, one variety 

 being recognized among tailors under the 

 name of French chalk, and used for marking 

 on cloth the course of the shears. Finally, 

 on Saturday evening last, the cutter had 



penetrated eight feet into that stratum, 

 making the entire depth at this date 303 

 feet. The tube rests on the slate by which 

 it is sustained ; and water, soft and agree- 

 able in flavor, rises in it to the height of 

 200 feet; probably it comes from between 

 the seams and fractures of the rock, since 

 none can possibly be forced in laterally. — 

 American Rail Road Journal. 



Improvement in Nail Making. 



We have recently examined the drawings 

 of a machine for manufacturing horse shoe, 

 and other nails, on a new and ingenious 

 plan, patented by Mr. Jedediah Holcomb, of 

 Brandon, Rutland county, Vermont; and 

 also have seen some specimens of nails 

 manufactured by this method. They are 

 made from hammered plates, with the grain 

 of the iron lengthened, and the nails and 

 proportions appear as perfect as those made 

 by the usual hand process. By Mr. Hol- 

 comb's method a good mechanic can make 

 400 lbs. of horse shoe nails per day. The 

 machinery is simple in its construction, and 

 promises to work an entire revolution in the 

 nail manufacture. He has taken measures 

 to secure patents in England and France for 

 his invention. 



In addition to the above, which we copy 

 from the Eureka, we can speak in the most 

 favourable terms of the invention, and from 

 a personal interview with Mr. H., of the 

 above machine, we are convinced that the 

 utility of the invention is very great. From 

 data in our possession we estimate the quan- 

 tity of horse shoe nails used annually in the 

 United States at 2000 tons, and if by this 

 invention three cents per pound can be saved 

 in their manufacture, the gain would be 

 quite a desideratum for those interested. — 

 Farmer and Mechanic. 



Advice to Young Men. — "Let the busi- 

 ness of every one alone, and attend to your 

 own. Don't buy what you don't want; use 

 every hour to advantage, and study even 

 to make leisure hours useful ; think twice 

 before you spend a shilling, remember you 

 will have another to make for it: find re- 

 creation looking after your business, and so 

 your business will not be neglected in looking 

 after recreation : buy low, sell fair, and take 

 care of the profits ; look over your books re- 

 gularly, and if you find an error, trace it 

 out: should a stroke of misfortune come 

 upon you in trade, retrench — work harder, 

 but never fly the track; confront difficulties 

 with unflinching perseverance, and they will 

 disappear at last; though you should even 

 fall in the struggle, you will be honoured: 

 never shrink from the task," 



