September 24, 1886. 



SCIEJSCJ^. 



277 



flowing wells could be obtained by deeply boring 

 into the drift. Six wells were put dowm, varying 

 from 210 feet to 301 feet in depth, wholly in drift, 

 and without reaching its bottom. Five of these 

 flowed, while the water in the sixth, which 

 was on higher ground, came within three 

 feet of the surface. These wells gave clear evi- 

 dence of a common source which had an effective 

 head of from 70 to 80 feet above the now famous 

 well. This latter was the seventh attempt, and 

 was located on ground from 15 to 80 feet below 

 the five then flowing. A three-inch well was 

 contracted for, but only a two-inch well sunk ; 

 the driller intending to take advantage of the 

 wash of the current, and force in a three-inch 

 pipe. Out of this rose the trouble. As in the 

 preceding wells, only drift was penetrated. The 

 record is defective in detail, and perhaps in pre- 

 cision, but doubtless represents the general truth : 

 soil, 4 feet ; yellow clay, 10 feet ; fine sand, 16 

 feet ; gravel, 18 feet ; blue stony clay, 145 feet ; 

 sand and gravel in which flow was struck, depth 

 unkno'-vn; total, 193 feet. 



In tlie other wells, beds or pockets of sand were 

 struck in the blue clay ; and the subsequent his- 

 tory of this well makes it probable that they were 

 present here also. A flow of water was obtained 

 at the base of the blue clay in sand and gravel. 

 Pieces of wood and other vegetal remains were 

 brought up by the current. This also occurred in 

 the other wells, indicating the presence of one of 

 the ' Old Forest beds.' 



The flow was struck Thursday evening, Aug. 

 26, and, though strong, was in due proportion to 

 the preceding ones. On Friday, in attempting to 

 force in the three-inch pipe, the water broke a 

 passage outside of it, which it rapidly enlarged 

 until a vast volume of water poured forth, inun- 

 dating the street and adjoining lots, bearing with 

 it much sand and some pebbles, among which a 

 great variety of northern rocks were represented. 



The eruption of water was impressive because 

 of its volume, but not because of the height of 

 its ejection. Instead of ' several hundred feet,' or 

 any thing excusing such an absurd exaggeration, 

 photograj)hs show it to have been about waist- 

 high when unconflned, and about shoulder-high 

 when a sixteen-inch pipe was inserted in the 

 endeavor to control it. At present writing (Sept. 

 9) it wells up vigorously, but does not form a jet. 

 The minimum diameter is now not less than 3 feet ; 

 a cone of that dimension, inserted in the effoi't to 

 govern the flow, having been pushed through to 

 the bottom without entirely cutting oflf the cur- 

 rent outside of it. The more trustworthy esti- 

 mates of the volume during the higher stages 

 range from 9,000,000 to 5,000,000 gallons per 



diem. My own data for Sept. 9 indicate a flow of 

 about 3,000,000 gallons. 



The other flowdng wells promptly felt the effects 

 of this lower and more capacious outlet, and de- 

 clined steadily. The record of one is given as 

 follows : on Monday morning, Aug. 30, three days 

 and a half after the great well started, it ceased 

 to flow ; on Wednesday at 6 p.m. it had fallen 7 

 feet ; Thursday evening it had fallen 23^ inches 

 in 24 hours ; and measurement Friday morning 

 showed a fall still at the rate of about 1 inch per 

 hour. All wells but one had ceased flowing prior 

 to Sept. 8, and this I found then sinking at about 5 

 inches per diem. It is evident that the great well 

 obtains its supply from the same subterranean 

 body as these, — the lower water-filled stratum of 

 sand and gravel, — and that it is rapidly drawing 

 this off. It has already lowered its head at least 

 two-thirds of the whole. It must continue to de- 

 cline in the force of its flow until the discharge is 

 reduced to equality with the supply, when it will 

 settle into equilibrium. It will then indicate the 

 maximum amount of permanent flow, a knowl- 

 edge of which will be of service in its future 

 utihzation. This particular method of arriving at 

 that fact is not, however, to be recommended for 

 general use. 



I infer that tlie elevated portion of the saturated 

 stratum, forming the reservoir, is not very large, 

 else even the great flow would not draw the 

 head down so rapidly. Assuming a discharge of 

 5,000,000 gallons and a lowering of the head 5 

 inches per day, and taking no account of inflow, 

 the reservoir indicated has a clear surface of less 

 than 40 acres. A mixture of sand and gravel 

 may easily contain one-fourth its volume of water, 

 as may be shown by experiment ; but, assuming 

 one-tenth, the upper edge of the water-bearing 

 stratum need not exceed 400 acres in extent. It 

 is not therefore necessary to suppose any unusual 

 subterranean source, either in area or kind. Nor 

 is it necessary to suppose a distant origin. The 

 head is not greater than could be supplied by the 

 country adjacent on the north, which is the proba- 

 ble supply-gi-ound. 



It is simply a flowing drift well, run rampant 

 for want of control. It has its phenomenal 

 feature in its magnitude, and its lesson in its 

 expensive and destructive career through in- 

 judicious handling. When it has drawn off its 

 head, it can probably be put under control — 

 which it has thus far defied — without serious 

 difficulty, and the drained wells restored. 



That it has no causal connection with the earth- 

 quake is evident from its character and the fact 

 that it broke forth three days earlier. 



T. C. Chamberlin. 



