RURAL  NEW-YORKER 
1071 
i  03'.' 
Farm  Mechanics 
Siphoning  Water  from  Well 
I  have  a  well  on  my  property,  25  feet 
deep,  which  cannot  he  used  for  drinking 
purposes,  and  for  economy’s  sake,  I  in¬ 
tend  to  siphon  the  water  to  a  barrel  or 
water  box  for  garden  and  washing  pur¬ 
poses.  The  plan  is  for  a  siphon  (lead  or 
iron  pipe)  with  a  faucet  on  the  end,  and 
I  would  like  to  know  if  such  a  thing  can 
be  constructed.  I  plan  to  have  a  pipe 
run  to  within  about  two  feet  of  the  bot¬ 
tom  of  the  well  to  siphon  the  water  into 
the  barrel  or  box.  My  impression  is 
that  water  can  he  siphoned  to  a  height 
of  50  feet,  but  I  am  not  sure  of  the  prac¬ 
ticability  of  the  faucet  on  the  end  of  the 
pipe.  A  friend  tells  me  that  cannot  he 
done  in  siphoning,  as  when  the  faucet  is 
turned  off  the  water  will  empty  back 
into  the  well,  and  thereby  permit  air  to 
enter  and  fill  the  pipe,  rendering  siphon¬ 
ing  impossible.  n.  W.  If, 
Brooklyn,  N.  Y. 
The  siphon  depends  upon  the  same 
principle  for  action  as  the  suction  pump, 
i.  e.,  atmospheric  pressure.  The  water 
flowing  out  of  the  long  leg  of  the  -siphon 
acts  in  the  same  capacity  as  the  upward 
moving  plunger  in  the  pump,  exhaust¬ 
ing  the  air  in  the  short  leg  and  causing 
it  to  be  filled  with  water  because  of  the 
pressure  or  weight  of  the  atmosphei'e  on 
the  surface  of  the  water  in  which  the 
siphon  is  submerged.  This  pressure  will 
support  a  columu  of  water  nearly  34  feet 
high,  but  it  lias  been  found  in  practice 
that  25  feet  is  about  the  limit  for  success¬ 
ful  working.  This  difference  is  due  to 
the  frictiou  of  the  water  in  flowing 
through  the  pipes  and  other  minor  causes 
that  retard  the  flow. 
One  of  the  chief  difficulties  with  the 
siphon  is  the  accumulation  of  air  at  the 
highest  point  of  the  line.  This  eventu¬ 
ally  stops  the  flow  and  the  pipe  must  be 
filled  again  to  start  it.  This  trouble  can 
be  somewhat  lessened  by  having  a  length 
of  horizontal  pipe  at  the  highest  point  of 
the  line  rather  than  an  abrupt  bend.  I 
have  no  means  of  knowing  the  layout  of 
your  proposed  siphon  but  if  the  pipe  line 
is  absolutely  tight  from  the  well  up  Over 
the  highest  point  of  the  line,  and  down 
on  the  discharge  side  to  a  point  below  the 
level  of  the  water  in  the  well,  a  faucet 
will  not  cause  the  water  to  flow  from  thb 
short  leg  of  the  siphon  when  closed-  A 
slight  leak  in  the  line  between  these  two 
points,  however,  might  permit  the  short 
leg  to  empty  enough  at  least  to  interrupt 
the  flow,  when  the  faucet  was  closed.  As 
an  aid  in  keeping  a  siphon  in  operation  a 
tee  is  sometimes  connected  in  just  above 
the  faucet  in  the  discharge  end,  and  a  cis¬ 
tern  pump  attached.  When  the  siphon 
begins  to  fail  a  few  quick  strokes  of  the 
pump  will  usually  put  it  in  operation 
agi  in-  A  valve  is  placed  between  the 
pump  and  siphon,  to  he  kept  closed  when 
the  pump  is  not  in  use.  r.  n.  s. 
Building  a  Foot  Bridge 
I  wish  to  build  a  foot  bridge  across  a 
stream  that  is  GO  feet  wide.  I  would  he 
glad  to  have  advice  from  some  one  who 
lias  had  experience  along  this  line.  A 
support  iu  mid-stream  is  undesirable,  as 
it  interferes  with  the  ice  going  out. 
Could  a  bridge  be  supported  on  wire 
cable  that  would  he  safe?  j.  it.  s. 
Waverly,  N.  Y. 
Clear  spans  of  more  than  50  feet  may¬ 
be  bridged  by-  the  suspension  method, 
provided  careful  supervision  of  material 
is  employed.  Wire  rope  is  the  best  ma¬ 
terial  for  cables.  Towers  should  be 
erected  on  either  hank  over  which  to 
carry  the  cables,  and  anchorages  should 
be  prepared  in  connection  therewith. 
The  height  of  the  towers  depends  entirely 
upon  the  height  of  the  hanks,  and  the 
stage  of  water  at  high  flood.  The  towers 
may  be  constructed  of  heavy  timbers  set 
iu  concrete  or  more  ornate  structures 
may  be  made  by  covering  structural  iron 
beams  with  re-enforced  concrete*  The 
anchorages  may  he  made  of  old  rails  im¬ 
bedded  in  concrete.  A  foot  bridge  GO  feet 
long  with  stringers  2x4  and  1%-inch 
planking  for  the  deck,  will  make  a  dead 
load  that  will  require,  counting  allow¬ 
ances  for  wind  stress  and  live  loads,  1 
inch  wire  rope,  seven  wires  to  strand. 
The  cable  may  be  measured  and  anchored 
permanently  at  one  end,  then  dragged 
across  the  tower  and  adjusted. 
The  sag  on  the  cables  will  ho  consider¬ 
able,  depending  on  the  height  of  the 
tower  and  the  clearance  under  the  bridge. 
This  sag  lessens  the  strain  on  the  cables, 
but  makes  the  bridge  very  undulating. 
Suspension  rods  or  slings  may  be  made 
of  %-inch  cable  or  round  iron.  From 
each  pair  of  these  rods  hangs  the  road¬ 
way  bearer  on  which  the  stringers  and 
deck  are  built.  Oscillations  may  be  con¬ 
trolled  by  lateral  trussing  or  by  guys, 
using  turn-buckles  alternately  in  oppo¬ 
sition,  to  prevent  skewing.  The  material 
for  such  a  bridge  in  Southern  New  Fug- 
land  points,  if  providing  for  a  4-foot 
width,  will  cost  approximately-  ,$112. 
This  does  not  include  the  towers  or  labor. 
Hay-loading  Device  Wanted 
Is  there  any  kind  of  a  machine  or  de¬ 
vice  that  will  lift  a  lmyeock  from  the 
ground  up  on  the  wagon  in  the  field,  thus 
saving  valuable  time  and  labor?  a.  p. 
Massachusetts. 
We  do  not  have  any  device  for  hand¬ 
ling  hay  as  suggested  nor  do  we  know  of 
anyone  making  such  a  device.  The  proper 
method  for  handling  hay  along  the  plans 
as  suggested  would  be  to  use  a  buck  rake 
for  pushing  the  haycock  to  the  haystack, 
where  it  would  be  elevated  by  a  stacker. 
There  is  no  device  that  we  know  anything 
about  designed  for  lifting  the  haycocks 
from  the  ground  to  the  wagon,  except  the 
good  ohl-fashioued  hand-pitching  way. 
There  are  of  course  hay-loaders  for  pick¬ 
ing  up  loose  hay  or  hay  in  windrow,  but 
nothing  for  elevating  the  haycocks. 
TIIE  I.OUDEN  MACHINERY  CO. 
It.  N.-Y. — The  Department  of  Agricul¬ 
ture  has  issued  a  bulletin  showing  a  home¬ 
made  device  for  lifting  shocks  of  corn. 
A  strong  stake  or  post  is  set  upright  at 
the  back  of  the  wagon,  At  the  top  of 
this  is  a  stout  pole  or  lever  swing  about 
like  an  old-fashioriKl  well  sweep.  A 
hook  at  the  cud  of  this  lever  is  fastened 
to  the  shock  and  then  one  man  swings  it 
up  and  around  upon  the  load. 
Farm  Shop  and  Garage 
I  am  going  to  put  up  a  building  24xlG 
feet  to  be  used  as  a  farm  shop  and  garage. 
I  intend  to  make  a  cement  foundation  and 
cement  floor  KxlG  for  the  garage.  Mow 
thick  would  the  foundation  walls  need  to 
he?  Mow  much  cement  would  it  take 
for  foundation  and  floor,  and  how  rich  a 
mixture  would  it  need?  G.  a. 
Broughton,  Kan. 
This  wall  can  be  constructed  by  digging 
a  trench  of  a  size  required  to  fit  the  build¬ 
ing,  a  foot  wide  and  deep  enough — usually 
about  two  feet — to  get  below  frost.  This 
trench  should  also  he  well  drained.  These 
two  precautions,  getting  below  frost  and 
Securing  a  well-drained  foundation,  will 
prevent  freezing  and  heaving  and  the  con¬ 
sequent  cracking  of  the  wall.  This  por¬ 
tion  of  the  wall  can  be  made  from  a  1 :3  :G 
mixture,  i.  e.,  one  part  of  cement,  three 
parts  of  sand  and  six  parts  of  clean 
gravel,  from  which  the  sand  has  been,  re¬ 
moved  by  running  it  over  a  *4 -inch  mesh 
screen.  To  this  mixture,  as  it  is  placed 
in  the  trc-.ch,  can  be  added  about  oue- 
third  of  large  stones. 
The  portion  of  the  wall  above  ground 
will  be  amply  strong  if  made  G  inches  in 
thickness,  but  it  is  usually  made  to  con¬ 
form  to  the  width  of  the  sill  used  upon  it. 
A  1  :5  mixture  is  used  for  this  as 
well  as  for  the  floor.  Floor  forms  can  be 
made  from  2x4  scantling,  a  4-inch  floor 
being  strong  enough  if  the  earth  under  it 
is  well  wet  and  tamped  making  it  com¬ 
pact.  Using  these  measurements  and 
mixtures  as  a  basis  it  is  estimated  that 
about  eight  barrels  of  cement  will  be  re¬ 
quired.  This  is  estimat  'd  on  a  basis  of 
1.24  barrels  of  cement  for  each  cubic  yard 
of  1  :2>4  :5  concrete  and  1.05  barrels  of 
cement  for  each  cubic  yard  of  the  1 :3  :G 
mixture. 
The  laying  of  the  entire  floor  in  concrete 
would  require  ouly  about  four  barrels  of 
cement  more  and  I  would  strongly-  advise 
this  as  well  as  the  construction  of  a  well- 
drained  pit  beneath  the  car.  This  last 
will  be  found  a  great  convenience  when 
making  repairs  beneath  it.  r.  ir.  s. 
Chauffeur:  “I  can’t  get  this  ’ere  tail- 
light  to  burn,  sir.”  Country  Doctor :  “Oh, 
never  mind.  We’re  only  going  home  and 
I’ve  got  the  constable  safe  in  bed  with 
lumbago.” — Punch. 
HERE  has  never  been  a  time  in  all  our 
/i  ■ 
Skids  have  represented  more  tire  value  to 
the  car  owner.  Their  mileage  returns  this  year 
are  truly  remarkable.  Fisk  quality  has  never 
before  been  such  a  good  tire  investment — and 
car  owners  have  never  been  so  quick  to  appreciate 
this,  the  demand  for  Fisks  today  being  even 
greater  than  last  year,  to  that  time  the  biggest 
of  our  seventeen  years  experience. 
But  notwithstanding  this  proof  of  Fisk  Quality, 
and  their  heavy  traction  tread,  Fisk  Non-Skids 
cost  less  than  the  plain  tread  styles  of  several 
other  standard  makes.  You  can  buy  your  Fisks 
now  for  the  Fall  and  Winter  at  these  prices  and 
get  the  best  tire  value  on  the  market. 
More  Than  35,000  Dealers 
125  Direct  Branches 
There  is  Fisk  Free  Tire  Service,  too.  Through  your 
regular  dealer  you  are  sure  of  the  promptest  attention 
from  the  Fisk  Branch  nearest  you.  If  you  are  handy  to 
that  branch,  be  sure  to  call  and  make  use  of  this  unique 
and  unrivalled  FREE  Tire  Service.  Dismounting,  in¬ 
specting,  testing,  inflating,  assembling,  mounting  extras, 
inspecting  wheels  for  alignment,  advice  on  the  care  of 
your  tires,  and  so  on — all  FREE,  whether  you  use  Fisk 
Tires  or  not.  There  is  no  charge  except  for  actual 
repairs  and  supplies.  No  other  Tire  Service  Policy  is 
so  liberal. 
Call  on  Nearest  Branch  for  Price  List.  " 
Partial  List  Below.  Write  for  complete  List. 
The  Fisk  Rubber  Company 
^of  N.Y. 
Chicopee  Falls,  Mass. 
Fisk  Dealers  Everywhere  —  Fisk  Service 
Branches  in  New  York,  Broadway  55t.h  St. — 
Brooklyn,  Bedford  Ave.  &  Hancock  St. —  Yonkers, 
89  Warburton  Ave —Binghamton,  217  Washing¬ 
ton  St.  Elmira,  101  W.  Church  St. — Syracuse , 
U1  S.  Warren  St.— Utica,  510  Charlotte  St.— 
Rochester,  211  East  Ave— Buffalo,  718  MainSt.— 
Scranton,  325  Adams  Ave.— Erie,  9 15  Peach  St.— 
Allentown,  105  N.  Sixth  St.— Cleveland,  2037 
Trade  Mark  Reg.  u.s.  Pat.  OH.  Euclid  A  vc.  More  than  125  Branches  cover  the 
Time  to  Re-tire?  United  States — write  for  complete  list. 
(Buy  Fitk)  „ 
