ARTIFICIAL DRYING OF WHEAT. 



161 



air ascends. When this latter method is adopted it is of 

 course necessary to supply the conduit in which the pipes 

 are placed with fresh air. The pipes should be inclined to 

 the boiler, so that the water of condensation may easily be 

 taken back to it. Where the return pipe is taken back to 

 the boiler, returning the steam and condensed water to the 

 boiler after the circuit is completed, a somewhat compli- 

 cated arrangement of "trap" or valve is required. To ob- 

 viate the use of this, it will be the simplest way, if not the 

 best, to allow the steam to pass from the pipe into the open 

 air after it has made its circuit, and to have a pipe with 

 stop-cock attached at the same place for leading the water 

 of condensation to a small tank, or to the ordinary drain 

 attached to the building. The diagram below illustrates 

 one mode of arranging the steam pipes in a drying cham- 

 ber; a a the flooring beams on which the material to be 

 dried is placed ; b b the steam pipes. It is obvious that in 

 all cases where a steam (fixed) engine is employed on the 

 farm steading, the waste steam may 

 be employed in the above fashion. 

 Nor would it be useless to have a ho- 

 rizontal rack, as a a on the above figure, 

 above the boiler on which to dry corn 

 in the sheaf. In place of using pipes as now described, a 

 very much larger extent of heating is obtained by using 



Fig. 20. 



I I I I 



I 



O O 



b 



