1905. 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
i 
199 
HARNESSING THE WIND. 
Farm Power in Connecticut. 
You ask on page 122 for facts and experience in rela¬ 
tion to power windmills, and as I have obtained much 
valuable information from other replies to your paper, 
I rather feel it a duty as well as a pleasure to give you 
my experience along this line. I built house shown 
at Fig. 88 in 1890, and supplied water to a tank in 
attic from a brook 1,100 feet away, across which I built 
a dam, and with several makes of hydraulic rams forced 
water with a head of 354 feet through 1,100 feet of half¬ 
inch galvanized pipe, lifting it 49 feet to attic tank. It 
was a success when the ram worked. I had four differ¬ 
ent rams during the three years I used this system, but 
the path across my lots to the ram to start it was worn 
smoother than the path to the church; they finally ceased 
to do duty altogether, and I bought a 16-foot windmill 
with a 60-foot tower. As I make a living by “farming 
and fishing” I built a workshop at foot of tower to keep 
up the repairs on land and water, with a cellar under 
same in which is located a pump connected to both 
soft and hard water, and with a capacity of 600 gallons 
per ho.ur. My shop is 16 feet wide and 40 feet long, 
with 12-foot posts, all in one room, with tin roof, and 
line shaft in basement 32 feet long. Beside the pump 
I have connected with the windmill by shafting pulleys 
and belts one emery wheel, one large grindstone, one 
wood-turning lathe, eight-foot bench; one jig saw, one 
16-inch splitting saw on adjustable table, one sticking 
machine, one iron drilling machine, one wood planer 
that planes four inches thick and 24 inches wide, one 
air pump for pressure tank to blow whistle, one popular 
grain grinding mill in which I have ground hundreds 
of bushels of grain for feed and family use, one swing 
cut-off saw, and outside, but connected by six-inch belt 
a 28-inch saw where all of our wood and some of the 
neighbors’ is reduced to stove length. F.ight cords 
have just been sawed and 14 more are now in sight 
ready for the slaughter. I keep no steady help, but 
use the tools and machines in place of men. If I want 
a boat I make it; if a sled or a wagon I make them too. 
My shafting is arranged so 1 can run one machine 
without driving superfluous gears, and while there are 
times that the wind fails, by being around here most of 
the time I can do the required work on short notice. I 
have hot and cold water all over the house, and cold 
water at stable. If a person is not of necessity com¬ 
pelled to use the power at specified times the windmill 
is the best thing there is. It is easy to believe that it 
takes power to run some of the machines enumerated, 
the largest driven by six-inch belts. With 30 miles of 
wind, which we often have here, I can get 10 horse 
power. The mill has given me little trouble, but I do 
have to go 60 feet in the air to oil it, and as I am 60 
years of age I am in hopes within the next 25 years 
something better may be offered, so that I won t have 
to climb so high, but at this date, climbing included, it 
is, in my opinion, the best thing for a private power 
plant, where wind is as prevalent as on this Connecticut 
coast. CHAS. Q. ELDREDGE. 
I own a geared windmill, and pump water out of a 65- 
foot well, forcing it 360 feet at an elevation of 50 feet 
to cistern. I use a pump which a three-year-old child 
can pump by hand. I grind any kind of small grain, 10 
to 20 bushels per hour, 105 feet from the mill, where 
the barn is located, with a one-fourth-inch endless soft 
wire cable, and am able to cut feed with wonderful 
speed, and can keep warm on a very cold day at cutting. 
The wheel is a 12-foot one on a 40-foot steel tower 
that is to one side of pump 10 feet; this mill will de¬ 
velop four to six horse power in a 25-mile wind. 1 he 
mill is a ball-bearing one, and needs no attention except 
oiling, and will take care of itself in any w'ind, as it 
will blow' out when a sudden gust strikes it. It is not 
any more expensive than a good gasoline engine, and 
25 cents worth of oil will keep it oiled for a year. I 
can pump, grind and cut feed at the same time in a 10- 
mile wind. Wind is the cheapest power on earth if you 
get hooked on properly. w. T. p. 
Wellsburg, Ind. 
MORE ABOUT WIRE FENCE. 
As a subscriber to your estimable paper, and as a 
director and considerable stockholder in two wire fence 
manufacturing concerns, I am greatly interested in the 
discussion, bv your correspondents, regarding the qual¬ 
ity of the w'ire and the galvanizing which enters into 
wire fence construction. From the tenor of the con¬ 
tributed letters, it would seem that the general impres¬ 
sion is that the manufacturers of fence are quite gener¬ 
ally derelict in their duty toward the farmer, frequently 
sacrificing quality of wire and galvanizing to cheapness. 
While this may occasionally he true, yet T am certain 
that an overwhelming majority of manufacturers are 
extremely particular in their endeavor to secure the 
very best product of the wire mills. In the fence busi¬ 
ness, competition is extremely keen, and the margin 
between actual manufacturing cost and wholesale prices 
to agents, is as small as on any other staple produc¬ 
tion. Hence, the manufacturer who wilfully sacri¬ 
fices the quality of his product by employing cheap ma¬ 
terial, certainly invites financial ruin. Profits in the 
fence business can only be acquired and continued by 
upbuilding an enviable reputation which will endure . 
throughout the ordinary business existence. 
In our own factories it is not an unusual thing to 
return annually a number of carloads' of wire because 
of some defect in the galvanizing or tensile strength. 
Rigid inspection, such as this, frequently results in 
A POWER WINDMILL AND SHOP. Fig. 88 . 
temporary loss by stoppage of looms which otherwise 
would be engaged in filling orders. 
It is therefore a self-evident fact that it behooves the 
manufacturer to give his patron, the farmer, a “square 
deal,” and any effort which your paper may make in 
securing a betterment of existing conditions will be 
heartily seconded by the manufacturers themselves. 
On the other hand, it must be borne in mind by the 
consumer that it is usually the case that when a line 
of staple production becomes standardized, he almost in¬ 
variably gets just what he pavs for. The purchase of 
fencing is no exception to this rule. At the present 
time, as we have previously stated, the margin of profit 
in the fence business is not excessive, and the pur¬ 
chaser who pays a cheap price must expect and be satis¬ 
fied w'ith a cheap fence. The wire market is usually 
stable and is less liable to violent fluctuations even than 
wheat, hence there are few “bargains” in fence, for the 
price of fence is, of necessity, based upon its weight 
per rod. 
If the agricultural experiment stations can influence 
legislation in favor of the adoption of a standard 
amount of spelter per mile, or ton, of No. 11 w'ire, or if 
“FARMING IN FLORIDA.” Fig. 89. 
See Hope Farm Notes, Page 209. 
they can improve upon the formulas now in use by the 
wire mills in creating their product, and work an actual 
improvement in each case, none will hail it with greater 
delight than the manufacturer of fence, unless, per¬ 
chance, it be the manufacturer of wire himself. Do 
not permit the agitation of this vital topic to cease, for 
it can scarcely fail to be productive of good, and real 
results can only be obtained by the freest interchange 
of thought and experience. The experience of the con¬ 
sumer of a product which is up for criticism, if intelli¬ 
gently expressed and confined to explicit statements of 
facts is of incalculable value to an unbiased manufac¬ 
turer, and it is my hope that you will invite the freest 
discussion of this most interesting and important sub¬ 
ject. MANUKACTURER NO. 2. 
CONCRETE FOR FARM USE . 
Part I. 
In a recent issue some one asks for information in 
regard to concrete construction. In localities where 
cement and labor are cheap, and sand and gravel are 
convenient, concrete can often be used economically. 
In all mortars the sand must not contain very much dirt. 
If it soils clean hands very much it should not be used. 
A more accurate way to test it is as follows: Take 
about 12 to 15 pounds of sand as it comes from the 
ground, wet and dry it thoroughly; then weigh out 654 
pounds, 100 ounces, and put it into a clean dish. The 
dish should be large enough to hold three or four times 
as much, so as to give plenty of room for water. Pour 
on water liberally, and stir well. Wait a few seconds 
for the sand to settle, and then pour the water off. 
Repeat this till the water comes off clear. Then dry 
and weigh again. If the shrinkage is more than two 
ounces—two per cent—the sand should not be used. Of 
course sand is not at its best unless perfectly clean. 
Two per cent of dirt, however, is not enough to spoil 
it for ordinary work. 
Engineers have appliances for testing cement, but the 
farmer who has not would better consult some one 
who has. Let him write to the city engineer of the 
nearest large city asking for brands of the best cements 
on the market in his locality. Nothing but moisture ever 
injures cement. When a barrel is opened there is 
sometimes a slightly packed or slightly set crust around 
the outside. I have known engineers who would con¬ 
demn all of such a barrel. If such cement crumbles 
to flour from a smart blow with the fiat side of an ax 
it will be all right. If, however, it breaks up in chunks, 
only so much as will run through a very fine sieve 
should be used. It sometimes happens that cement 
gets wet, in which case all that has been wet will be a 
stone, and may be used in the concrete the same as any 
other stone. Where cement is spoiled it may be ground 
fine and burned again, and be as good as ever. To burn 
it spread it on a piece of boiler iron over a hot fire, and 
heat it enough so that it will burn a stick of wood if 
put in it. Keep it at this temperature for 15 to 20 
minutes, and it will be all right. Where only a small 
amount is needed it sometimes pays to renew some old 
cement rather than spend time to go after new. Pure 
clay if puddled and dried will always crack, while if 
sand in sufficient quantity is mixed with the clay it 
will not crack. Cement and sand work similarly. A 
R. N.-Y. correspondent speaks of mixing two parts of 
sand to one of cement. The more cement used in the 
mixture the greater the danger of cracking. For this 
reason mortar mixed three to one will be less liable 
to crack than if mixed two to one. For low walls that 
do not support a heavy load good sand and cement 
mixed four to one is all right. A three to one mixture 
if properly handled while setting will make a stone 
harder than ordinary sandstone. It will not be imper¬ 
vious to water, however. For a cistern, mortar should 
be as rich as two to one, or even richer, and under 
very much pressure will need to be treated with a water¬ 
proof solution also. 
Hollow concrete blocks are being used for large 
buildings. These blocks are made in a factory. The 
molds are filled and placed in a tight room. Live steam 
is turned on for 48 hours or more. It must he remem¬ 
bered that cement must be kept damp until it sets. In 
ordinary Summer weather 10 days to two weeks are 
required. A man can walk on it sometimes after 24 
hours, but it is not thoroughly set yet, and if allowed 
to dry at this stage it will never be very hard. Bear 
in mind also that cement will not set if too cold no 
matter how wet it is. I once saw cement mortar mixed 
two to one with the best German cement in the bottom 
of a sewer, with a stream of water running over it con¬ 
stantly for two weeks, which had only set enough to 
keep from washing. The cement was condemned and 
ordered taken out. The contractor protested, and to 
prove that his work was good, took a handful of that 
cement mud, made a ball of it, and put it in a warm 
place in his office. In two days that ball was as hard 
as marble. The season was late Fall, and the water 
was cold. In . the factory the live steam furnishes 
moisture and heat, and the cement sets much quicker 
and better, but factory details are not practicable for 
the farm. The blocks can be molded, however, kept 
shaded and damp for 10 days in ordinary Summer 
weather, and a very good stone be the result. If, at a 
month’s age it is not as strong as ordinary sandstone, 
the fault is either poor cement, dirty material or im¬ 
proper management while setting. 
Note that the bulk of wall is only equal to the bulk 
of the gravel used. The cement disappears, filling the 
voids in the sand, and the mortar should only be enough 
to fill the voids in the gravel. The greatest economy 
requires that gravel should range in sizes from one- 
eighth-inch in diameter up to three or even four inches, 
for the small gravel helps to fill the voids in the large 
gravel. Every stone added increases the bulk without 
decreasing the efficiency, provided that the voids are 
all filled. If hollow stone blocks are made nothing 
coarser than pea gravel can be used, thus requiring more 
cement in proportion to the stone made. In a solid 
wall stones up to the thickness of the wall may be used, 
but such large ones should be placed in position by 
hand. The quantity saved by the hollow in the stone 
will hardly equal the amount saved by being able to put 
in larger stones. Further, hollow blocks are more 
liable to break in handling. In the factory with skilled 
workmen and proper appliances this last objection does 
not amount to as much as on the farm. It will be seen 
then that for our folks the solid wall will be better. 
Washington. e. j. Hermans. 
