BORING FOR WATER 35 
I chrried this closed drain to the creek, at an ad- 
ditional expense of $67. The connecting of the 
water pipes and the laying of the sewer was done 
by a local plumber for $50; the drain-pipe and 
sewer-pipe cost $112; and the three catch-basins, 
bricked up and covered with two-inch plank, 
cost $68. The filling in of all these trenches was 
done by my own men with teams and scrapers, 
and should not be figured into this expense ac- 
count. It must be borne in mind that while this 
elaborate water system was being installed, no 
buildings were completed and but few were 
even begun; the big house was not finished for 
more than a year. The sites of all the buildings 
had been decided on, and the farm-house and the 
cottage had been moved and remodelled, by the 
middle of October, at which date the water plant 
was completed. An abundant supply of good 
water is essential to the comfort of man and 
beast, and the money invested in securing it will 
pay a good interest in the long run. My water 
plant cost me a lot of money, $2758; but it hasn’t 
cost me $10 a year since it was finished. 
