380 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[October, 
The manner of constructing the cistern is as fol¬ 
lows : The excavation having been made large 
Fig.l.— WHEELER & MELICK CO.’S PORTABLE ENGINE. 
enough to allow for the thickness of the wall, the 
bottom is first covered with brick, or with a layer of 
cement; a flat stone is placed in the center to stand 
upon. If the cistern is of brick, nothing further 
need be done than to place a layer of cement 
smoothly and bed the bricks closely upon it, begin¬ 
ning in the center and laying them in circles with 
the outer ends further apart than the inner ones, 
and keeping the spaces equal and even. When the 
bottom is covered, cement is very thoroughly work¬ 
ed into the spaces with the trowel. The cement 
should be mixed so thin as to spread very easily. 
The wall is laid up in the same manner until the 
top is reached. The last few rows are laid so that 
the bricks incline, as shown in figure 2. If the wall 
is of cement, the bottom is first laid, and then as 
much of the wall as will 6tand firmly until it is set. 
When this is done, a thin layer of cement is laid 
upon the earth up to the top, just as a mason would 
piaster a wall. This will hold to the earth and soon 
set, and prevent loose sand from falling down. The 
portion of cement left to set, should be made rough 
and uneven at the top, so that a good joint may be 
made when the next is laid on. As soon as the first 
part is set, more wall may be built up, and so on 
until the top is reached. As this is reached, the 
wall should be made thicker, and the top should be 
beveled off, as shown in figure 1, so as to give sup¬ 
port for the arch. In case of loose earth, which ren¬ 
ders the excavation difficult to be made, the plaster¬ 
ing may be begun at the top, and as one foot in depth 
is dug out, the side may be covered an inch thick 
with a coarse cement, made by mixing one part of 
hydraulic lime with four parts of coarse, sharp sand. 
This will confine the loose earth and prevent caving. 
A second coat of richer cement, and a finishing coat 
may be laid on, when the whole is dug and covered 
with mortar. After the rough wall is laid up, I 
a finishing coat of clear cement, made very thin, is 
laid on, and when this is perfectly dry, a final finish 
is made, by washing the surface over with a thin 
Fig. 2.— SKINNER & WOOD’S ENGINE. 
wash of cement and water, laid on with a brush. 
This closes up all the cracks. If desired to have 
an insoluble surface, the wall may be, lastly, brush¬ 
ed over with a solution of water-glass (silicate of 
soda and potash); this combines with the lime of 
the cement, and makes a coating of silicate of lime, 
which does not flavor tbe water. This will form 
naturally, in course of time, from the cement itself, 
but it may be made at once by using the water-glass. 
One barrel of cement, mixed with two barrels of 
sand, will make 9 cubic feet of mortar, and this will 
make one foot in hight of wall 4 inches thick 
around an 8 foot cistern. Thus 12 barrels of cement 
and 24 barrels of sand, will be required to make the 
.bottom and the wall of a cistern 8 feet wide and 10 
feet deep, or holding 125 barrels of water. One extra 
barrel of cement will be needed for the finishing coat, 
and another with 5 barrels of sand, or half sand and 
half gravel, for the floor for the timber covering. 
Some Useful Farm Engines. 
The increasing demand for steam engines that 
may serve the various purposes of the farmer, 
stock-feeder, and the mechanic, is gradually adding 
to the number of excellent machines brought to the 
notice of the public. There is much rivalry amongst 
manufacturers, to excel in all the most important 
points that may make their engines desirable to 
those who need them; consequently, while there 
is a great diversity in form and style, competition 
has tended to effect considerable closeness in re- 
Fig. 3.— BLYMYER CO.’S VERTICAL ENGINE. 
gard to price, strength of construction, and ecoao- 
my in use, of all the best class of machines. Thus, 
in bringing to the notice of our readers, from time 
to time, whatever may be novel or of interest to 
them in other ways, we cannot say that this or that 
machine is the best; we notice the striking features 
of each, leaving the decision as to which may be 
most suitable for any particular work, to those 
most immediately interested. It may be useful to 
suggest, that as one buys a steam-engine to keep, 
and not change for a whim, he should select with 
the greatest care and deliberation, procuring cata¬ 
logues and descriptions from each manufacturer, 
and deciding carefully as to that which will suit 
him best. There are some that excel for particular 
uses, or for their portability, others for their stabil¬ 
ity, some for economy of space, others for their 
low altitude, and all these and other necessary or 
desirable qualifications ought to be well considered. 
Figure 1 represents a portable boiler and engine, 
made by the Wheeler & Melick Company, of Al¬ 
bany, N. T. The boiler of this engine is made of 
the best charcoal iron, and is tested to 200 lbs. 
Fig. 4.—TRUCK FOR BLYMYER ENGINE, 
pressure to the square inch. It is covered with 
wood, by which the heat is prevented from escap¬ 
ing by radiation from the surface. The crank pins, 
connecting rod, and other moving parts, are made 
Fig. 5.— TAYLOR CO.’S CLIPPER ENGINE. 
of steel, and the boxes of composition metal. Art 
8-horse power engine of this make, has thrashed in 
a day of 8 hours, 361 bushels of clover seed ; 250 ! 
bushels of wheat with heavy straw in 3 hours, and 
326 bushels of oats in less time. 600 pounds of soft 
coal, or a cord of 16-inch wood, is required for one 
day’s consumption. It is made of 6,8, and 10 horse¬ 
power. Figure 2 is a horizontal tubular boiler and. 
engine, made by Skinner & Wood, Erie, Pa. All 
the heating surface in this boiler is below the water 
line, and every part of it is easily accessible for ex¬ 
amination, cleaning, or repair. It has many ap¬ 
pliances peculiar to itself, such as a “ stop motion 
governor”; a combined check, stop and relief valve; 
self-oiling connection rod, and is safe, compact and 
carefully built. Figure 3 is the “ Queen City Porta¬ 
ble Vertical Engine,” made by the Blymyer Manu¬ 
facturing Co., of Cincinnati, Ohio. The engraving- 
sufficiently illustrates this machine. Although, 
solidly seated, it is easily moved from place to place 
by means of a truck or a wagon made for the pur¬ 
pose, as shown in figure 4. The engine is easily- 
loaded on the truck, a few minutes work only be¬ 
ing necessary. It is thus adapted to all the uses 
for which both portable and stationary engines are 
required. A gold medal was awarded this engine 
at the Alabama State Fair in 1876, the first and only 
time it has been placed on exhibition. Figure 5 is- 
one of the many engines made by the Taylor Man¬ 
ufacturing Co., Westminster, Md. This, firm man¬ 
ufactures more than seventy (70) different kinds and. 
sizes of steam-engines; this fact is a guarantee that 
all the excellence of workmanship possible in a ma¬ 
chine, can be secured with such extensive facilities 
as exist in this manufactory. This engine is called 
the “Clipper Vertical Engine.” It is made either 
mounted on wheels or stationary, and with either 
wrought or cast dome and fire box. The cast dome 
Fig. 6.—LANDIS’ PEERLESS PORTABLE ENGINE. 
and box, however, are recommended by the manu¬ 
facturers, as out of 200 engines built, only one has 
been found defective on testing. Figure 6 repre¬ 
sents the “ Peerless Portable Farm Engine,” made 
by F. F. & A. B. Landis, Lancaster, Pa. This engine 
is constructed with special care, to make it safe 
and effective in the hands of inexperienced persons, 
to take care of itself, in fact, as far as this can be 
done. The chief feature is the device to maintain 
cold bearings by means of a stream of water pass¬ 
ing continually from and to the tank around the 
bearings, when the boiler is not needing a supply. 
The engine is placed on steel springs, and a brake 
for holding back when upon the road, is provided. 
