236 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[June, 
Building Concrete Houses—Making the 
Molds. 
BY C. W. COREY, HAMILTON CO., OHIO. 
The very broad invitation in the February 
American Agriculturist for every reader to 
“ send something ” useful in the way of helps 
or contrivances, with the representation re¬ 
cently given for constructing molds, etc., 
for Concrete Buildings, leads me to show 
some things in connection with such build¬ 
ings that some may think a “better way.” 
My exnerience in concrete work consists in 
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Figs. 1, 2, 3, and 4 .—concrete molds. 
the erection of six good sized buildings, three 
being dwelling houses—two of 8 rooms each, 
and one of 10 rooms, costing over $4,000. I 
began entirely ignorant, except the little I 
had read, and with no other instruction 
worked my way through as I best could. At 
first I tried erecting standards for guides and 
supports, but found so many difficulties that 
I soon abandoned them, and devised the meth¬ 
od here presented and illustrated by sketches. 
I make my molds of iy 4 -inch stuff, 14 
inches wide and 16 feet long, the heaviest that 
. can be easily handled. Fig. 
J 1 represents a mold-board 
showing 4 cleats 2‘/ 2 inches 
wide, fastened with stout 
screws. The cleats project 1 
inch above the top edge of 
the board, and are V/ t inch 
from the lower edge. The upper end of 
the cleat supports the lower edge of the 
next set of molds, and being raised l'/ 4 
inch, are out of the way of the cleats on 
the molds below. The iron on the end of 
the mold-board is made of old tire-iron, 
l'/t inch wide, 11 inches long, with the 
round part ‘/a inch by 2'/ 2 inches long, ex¬ 
clusive of nut. The holes in the center of 
the board are for the rods to pass through 
Fig. 5. Fig. 6. 
Fig. 7.— THE MOLD-BOARDS IN POSITION 
which hold the molds together. Figure 2 is 
the reverse side of figure 1, and shows the 
cleat in position. Figure 5 shows one of 
the rods which pass through the mold- 
boards and cleats; the dotted lines represent¬ 
ing a piece of lath set edgewise by the side of 
the rod and just the width of the wall in length. 
Figure 6 is the 3 / 8 -inch round iron rod, which 
is 5 inches longer between the nut and handle 
than the thickness of the wall. Figure 3 
shows the method of fastening the two boards 
together with hook and staple, to prevent 
their spreading when one board will not reach 
from corner to comer. Figure 7 shows 
molds set up. The outside molds are put 
up first, commencing at a corner and going 
around. Then beginning at one comer of 
the inside, slip the rods in place ; hold a piece 
of lath by the side of the rod, and screw up 
until it is tight enough to hold it, and so con¬ 
tinue on around. If the molds are in line, 
they are ready to fill. In filling, as the pieces 
of lath are reached, knock them out; they 
are to be used again. The handles of the iron 
rods should always be on the inside of the wall. 
The bay window molds, figure 4, are securely 
nailed at the angles, making them in one 
piece. The ends of the inside one fastening 
to inside straight molds as at b, b ; the cleats 
at c, c, on the outside mold, help to keep that in 
place. Two sets of molds are used. When 
the first is filled, the second is placed on top 
of it, and the next day that is filled. The 
third day the first set is placed on the top of 
the second, and so on, a round being made 
each day. In changing the molds, the nuts 
and cleats are taken off all round, and the 
outside molds lifted up in place on the upper 
molds; then the inside boards are changed, 
pulling out the rods as each mold is changed. 
Two men can easily change the molds, ex¬ 
cept that of the bay window, which is so 
large that it requires three. 
The Mixing-Bed, E, fig. 8, is 12 by 16 feet, 
laid on mellow earth, as level as can be made. 
Two cross pieces are needed under the boards ; 
place close together and keep them in posi¬ 
tion by means of stakes, d, d, at the sides. 
Fig. 8.— THE MORTAR-BED, ETC. 
If possible, locate the mixing-bed so as to 
have the stand for the hod within 20 feet of 
the door-way of the building. The gravel, mor¬ 
tar-shed, and casks for water, may be placed 
around the bed, as indicated in figure 8. For 
mortar I use ‘ ‘ black ” lime. One wheel¬ 
barrow of lime to four of sand. The slaking 
box is large enough to slake four barrows of 
lime ; after slaking, it is run off into the 
mortar-bed, and 16 barrows of sand is thor¬ 
oughly mixed with it. Continue in this way 
until 50 or 80 bushels are worked into mortar. 
By thus mixing a considerable quantity, much 
time is saved, and age improves the mortar. 
When ready for work, wheel on 16 barrows 
of gravel, and place it in piles as at g; put¬ 
ting them in that way, no mistake is made in 
counting, and it is convenient to spread,which 
we do, so as to form a square heap about six 
inches deep, and throw over it about six 
bucketfuls of water. Then wheel on and 
place at h eight barrow-loads of mortar (it 
is more convenient to put only two at a time). 
Mix it up rather soft, and spread evenly over 
the gravel; then men with shovels commence 
at e, e, and turn it over into a pile at /. 
When all is turned, commence and turn back 
again; this throws the pile handy to the 
hod-stand. When through with this second 
turning, if it has been just wet enough to mix 
well, it will be ready for use. If cement is 
to be used with mortar, put on a less number 
of barrows of gravel. Spread whatever quan¬ 
tity of mortar is wanted, as before, and then- 
mix cement and spread over the mortar 
then commence turning the heap ; two turn¬ 
ings will mix it nicely. I used no cement in 
the walls of my buildings. The walls of the 
dwelling houses are 10 inches thick for the 
first story, and 8 inches for the second story. 
My ice-house and work-shop, 27 by 16‘/ 2 feet, 
and poultry-house, 30 by 18 feet 8 inches, one 
and one-half story high, have only 8-inch 
walls. The stable and carriage-house has 12- 
inch walls on the sides, and 10-inch on the ends.. 
The Americans Hope Abroad. 
We have gained a market for our meats 
and grains, not to mention fruits (apples, 
etc.), on the other side of the Atlantic, and 
we are sanguine of being able to keep it. The 
prosperity and peace of foreign powers will 
have its influence, and the crops which the 
Irishman and Englishman can grow in the 
years to come, will increase or diminish the 
demand for outside supply, but however 
prosperous they may hope to be, our meat 
and grain will find a more or less ready 
market in London, and the Continental 
Cities. With a market that may be con¬ 
sidered as tolerably secure, the American 
cattle growers should do all they can to de¬ 
velop it by devoting their attention to the 
improvement of the quality of their meat, 
at the same time practising the greatest 
economy in feeding. We need to increase 
the number of our first-class animals. There 
are thousands of herds that require the in¬ 
troduction of pure-blood bulls to greatly in¬ 
crease their value. Some one has very truly 
said “ A bull is half a herd.” Another point 
that should not be overlooked in improving 
the quality of American meat, is the early 
maturity of animals, and this can be attained 
by using breeds in which this is a prominent 
characteristic. Much can also be done by 
breeding to this same end. With sufficient 
care in the management of our vast herds, 
and the facilities for growing beef cheaply, 
we need not fear the sharpest competition in 
the foreign market. 
Our Lumber Interest in the Northwest. 
The amount of logs secured for the season 
of 1880-1881 in the principal logging districts 
of the North-west is as follows : 
District. 
New Logs. 
Old Logs. 
Total. 
Mississippi Valley 
Lake Superior... 
Lake Michigan ... 
Eastern Michigan. 
Wolf River. 
1,673,000.000 
147,500.000 
1,664.000,000 
1,582,200.000 
115.000,000 
56S.500.000 
5.000.000 
287,500.000 
217.250,000 
20 ,000.000 
2,241,500,000 
152,500,000 
1,951.500,000 
1,799.450 000 
135,000,000= 
Total. 
5.181,700,000 
1,OSS,250,000 
6,279,950.000 
If we add to this the amount of summer 
logging, the total cannot fall much short of 
7,450,000,000 feet. According to the census 
report, there is only 81,650,000,000 feet of 
standing pine in three States ; Michigan, Wis¬ 
consin, and Minnesota, therefore the amount 
of logs cut annually becomes a matter that 
is both interesting and serious. At the 
present rate, admitting the correctness of all 
the figures, and making no allowance for 
continual growth, the lumber industiy can 
extend over only twelve more years. It is a 
fact well known to all interested in the pres- • 
ervation of our forests, that new belts should 
be planted to pine, or else we shall shortly 
suffer greatly for one of the necessities of life.. 
