54 
BULLETIN 304, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
pumping plant more money was spent in commissioners' expenses 
than in the construction of the storage house. An examination of 
Table 13, showing the costs of the various items for pumping per 
acre per year, will show that the lowest cost of operation and also of 
administration is found on the Des Moines County No. 1 District. 
This district employed engineering supervision and the business of 
the district was all in the hands of such supervision. 
While the need is great for such supervision over all of the drainage 
improvements it is especially great for the pumping plant. A good 
pumping plant will often be wasteful, because it is improperly oper- 
ated. After installation it should be thoroughly tested at various 
stages of the river, so that the proper operating conditions can be 
definitely determined. A competent engineer should be placed in 
charge of the plant, and he should report daily to expert supervi- 
sion by a complete system of records. From such records it may 
be possible to devise improved methods of operation or ways of 
securing greater economy. Without such records it is impossible for 
anyone to tell in what particulars the operation of the plant is waste- 
ful or is susceptible of improvement. Such a record should show the 
time of starting and stopping the pumps each day, the heights of the 
water levels within and without the district, the speeds of the pumps 
or engines, and the amounts of the boiler feed water and fuel con- 
sumed. It should set forth all incidents of importance in the opera- 
tion of the plant, and may be kept in a form similar to that shown 
in Table 19. One page should be used for each day. The gauges 
should be read before the pumps are started, again as soon as the ditch 
level has reached a fairly steady state, and at every hour during 
operation. If more than one pump is in operation the speed of each 
should be recorded. All additional matters should be recorded in 
the remarks column. An accurate rainfall record should be kept at 
every plant. The expenses of operating the plant should be carefully 
kept under the following headings: Fuel; labor; supplies, such as 
lubricating oil, waste, etc.; repairs; and superintendence. These 
expenses should be totaled for each month and for the whole season. 
Table 19. — Formjor daily pumping records. 
Date, 
*>*■ \%2L 
River 
gauge. 
Lift. 
Speed of 1 Steam 
pump. ■ pressure. 
Rainfall. Remarks. 
Feet. 
Feet. 
Feet. 
R.P.M. 
Pounds. 
Inches. 
