1876.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST, 
bumper for the wheels to strike instead of hit¬ 
ting’ the plank, as is usually the case. 
Flood Gates. 
At the point where fences span streams or tcm- 
Fig. 6.— HORIZONTAL FLOOD-GATE. 
porary water courses ; it is desirable to have some 
form of flood gate The simplest form is shown in 
figure 5, and is most valuable for streams 15 or 
more feet in width. A crotched stick or post is set 
at each edge of the stream. Into the sides of these 
are driven spikes or wooden pins, at an angle of 
about 40°, upon which rest one end of the rails, the 
other end of each rail being secured by rope or chain 
to the post; when the stream rises, and the rails 
are lifted from the pins, one end floats down the 
stream, the other being secured to the post, giving 
a clear passage for float-wood, ice, etc. 
A very simple form of self adjusting or horizon¬ 
tal flood gate, is shown in figure 6 ; this is intended 
more especially for small streams, spanned by 
board fences. Both ends of a scantling are rounded 
and fit into holes bored into posts ; a slot made 
in one post will admit of ready removal; arms 
or floats are nailed or mortised into the top piece. 
It may be allowed to swing both ways, or only in 
the direction of the current. 
The gate in figure 7 combines all the good points 
Fig. 7.— SECTIONAL FLOOD-GATE. 
of the preceding, and has none of their defects ; 
it is also simple and durable. Very near the bed 
of the stream a connecting piece is firmly mortised 
or pinned to the posts; in the upper side of this 
piece, holes are mortised from four to six inches 
long, one inch deep, one inch wide, and four inches 
apart, into these mortises, very loose fitting, short 
strips of boards are placed in an upright position, 
reaching within three inches of the fence board, to 
which each are separately fixed by wire loops. If 
it be desired that the passage shall be clear when 
the water reaches one foot in hight, floats made of 
three-cornered pieces of scantling, or short pieces 
of board, may be fastened to the suspended pieces, 
Fig. 8.— STRUCTURE OF WHEELBARROW. 
by which they are lifted out of the mortises. 
When the water falls, the strips may be replaced. 
How to make a Wheelbarrow. 
For many purposes nothing can fill the nlace of 
the wheelbarrow, and yet few farmers own one, be¬ 
cause of the cost, which is from $3 for the rough 
unpainted railroad bar- 
row, up to $10 for those 
well ironed and highly 
finished. Farmers and 
others may make a sub¬ 
stantial wheelbarrow 
that will be quite as 
neat and good as one 
costing $5, at an outlay 
not exceeding $1.50. 
gjne side or handle piece. Fig. 9. wheel. 
fig. 8, a, is made from well seasoned hardwood, 
2x31 in. square, and 4 ft. 10 in. long. One foot 
from the end, at 6, a mortise is made ? x 2 inches. 
Into this is inserted a standard, to which is nailed 
the end-board, c, 14 in. high, and inclining back¬ 
wards about 2 inches. At 2 ft. 6 in. from this mor¬ 
tise, another of the same size is made for the leg, 
which is 15 in. in length, and is braced as shown. 
The bottom-board is from 20 to 24 in. wide at its 
widest part, and 14 to 18 in. at its narrowest part, 
according to the size desired, and should be firmly 
attached to the frame. The loose side-boards are 
14 in. wide, and about 2 ft. 9 in. long; to these are 
nailed hardwood cleats, one-lialf in. thick, and 2 
in. wide, the one at d being 22, and the one at e 17 
in. long. Both these should fit into staples or iron 
bands attached to the leg J\ and frame a. At the 
upper end, near e, a hook is attached to the side¬ 
board, that hooks into a staple attached to end- 
piece. This will be found a more convenient and 
simpler method of firmly securing the side-boards, 
than by the old plan of long bolts, etc. In absence 
of a spoked wheel, a solid one may be made of 
some hard or tough wood, and should be 2 in. thick, 
and from 14 to 18 in. in diameter. For the axle a 
well seasoned hardwood piece, 2 in. square, and of 
the length desired, may be used; two inches of 
each end is reduced to one inch in diameter, as at 
g, figure 9. Upon each side, connecting the shaft 
to the side of wheel, braces are used and fastened 
with screws; use a light iron band for the tire. 
Such a wheelbarrow will carry 200 lbs. with ease, and 
last a life-time if kept painted and carefully used. 
Self-Dumping One-Horse Cart. 
In figure 10 is given the form of a home-made, 
self-dumping one-horse cart. For wheels those 
with three-inch tire are preferable, as they cut up 
the fields less than narrower ones. The axle should 
be of well-seasoned oak, maple, or hickory timber, 
of a sufficient thickness to round up six inches in 
diameter. In this are mortised two 2x21 inch holes 
for the thills, into which are bolted or pinned the 
large ends of the thills. A strong box is made, 
about 4 ft. wide, from 6 to 8 ft. long, and 1 ft. high; 
one end is made fast, the other, as it is commonly 
called, the tail-board, is removable, and may be 
hinged at the top at each end, and allowed to 
swing out at the bottom by unhooking it. Upon 
the under side of the 
box, midway between 
the ends, and near 
each side, is bolted or 
fastened with screws, 
the clasp, shown 
in figure 10. These 
irons should be 
strong, such as two 
inch wagon tire, The 
axle passes through 
these clasps, and 
they form the tilting LiDges of the cart. The box 
is retained in a level position by a hook or catch 
upon the end of the box which engages with the 
177 
cross piece, h. An equally simple management for 
tilting is shown in figure 11. The thills are con¬ 
nected with the axle by two common iron hinges, 
The box is then firmly bolted to the axle, one 
side of which should be flattened for the pur¬ 
pose, and is connected with the cross bar, h, as in 
the plan first described. 
Combined Halter and llrhllc. 
Figure 12 shows a cheap and desirable manner of 
converting a common halter into a bridle, which 
will be found equally 
useful with a more cost¬ 
ly one to guide a team 
with safety about the 
farm, or on the road. 
Either straight or joint¬ 
ed bits may be attached 
by each side to a com¬ 
mon harness snap, i?, 
which is inserted into 
the side ring, A, of the 
halter. When the bit 
is not used, one side is 
loosened from the snap, 
and the loosened end 
snapped into the ring, B , which places it entirely 
out of the way, allowing the horse to eat, drink, or 
sleep, with freedom. A common leather or web¬ 
bing halter, without the ring at B, can be used. 
The form is quite immaterial, if it only has the side 
ring, A. Small straps about 7 in. long can be sub¬ 
stituted for snaps and need not be strong, as their 
office is to prevent the hits from falling out of the 
mouth. A couple of halters made in this way for 
field use, will be found far more convenient than 
the usual plan of changing halters for bridles and 
bridles for halters several times a day. 
The Transportation of Cattle by Sea. 
The importation of horses and cattle for breeding 
Fig. 1.— VIEW OF STALLS. 
purposes, as it is now conducted, is necessasily 
somewhat risky, and the animals, even under the 
most favorable circumstances, often suffer greatly 
during the voyage. This business has now reached 
considerable proportions, and some means for se¬ 
curing the comfort and safety of the valuable ani¬ 
mals brought hither, is very desirable. An effort 
to secure this has been made in the construction of 
stalls for use on ship-board, so arranged that in the 
roughest weather the animals may not be injured by 
being thrown violently about. The construction is 
sho wn in figure 1; the ground plan is given in figure 2; 
the section or front in figure 3 ; the inside divisions 
in figure 4 ; and the outside of the pen at figure 5. 
The reference letters are the same for all the en¬ 
gravings. It will be seen that there are four stalls 
