1846. THE CULTIVATOR. 13 
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points the sides and perfects the joint, one-half of the 
live feet. Fine earth is then to be thrown into the 
ditch, and trampled down by these men on each side of 
the cement, and about six inches of dirt thrown in 
loosely over the top. The end of the rod projects be¬ 
yond the cement far enough for one man to take hold of 
it, and draw it, the other man placing himself so as to 
hold on to the sides of the cement to prevent a piece 
breaking off the end as the rod starts. In drawing the 
rod, be careful to first roll it a little, then start it end¬ 
wise, and draw it to the leather, which being flexible, 
will allow the rod to be turned back over the finished 
part and rest it against the bank, while another mold of 
cement is placed on the bottom of the ditch. This new 
cement must be carefully joined to the old, which by 
this time will have become quite hard, with the point 
of the trowel; then turn the rod down on this new ce¬ 
ment and, as before, press it into it, and put another 
mold on top, carefully joining it to the old cement—■ 
point it, throw in the dirt, and draw the rod. Any im¬ 
perfection growing out of the leather part of the rod, 
will be corrected by the piece of wood that follows. 
The rod should be perfectly smooth and a little larger 
at the forward end than it is at the back end, that it 
may draw easily. 
The proper way to attach the pipe to a penstock, is 
to put a lead pipe, of an inch and a half caliber, about 
three feet long over the rod, and cover one-half of its 
length with cement. A flange having been soddered on 
the end of the lead pipe, nail it to the penstock. If the 
water is to go down the same penstock, two holes must 
be bored through and connected with each other near 
the top, and both of them stopped at the bottom. A 
lead pipe just like the one described, on the other side 
of the penstock, will convey the water into the cement 
pipe, that is to carry it on. This plan of short lead 
pipes at the penstocks, is the only one known to me 
that will answer. The penstock may suffer quite a jar 
and not be put out of order, as the lead will bend. Ce¬ 
ment pipes will not bend, but if they are moved they 
break. The frost is apt to lift penstocks, unless great 
care is taken to prevent it. The way is to put a frame 
o? timber around the penstock and fill it with old tan- 
bark up to, and above the tube through which the water 
discharges. (See fig. 4.) 
The proper way to introduce the water into the pipe 
at the spring, is to put a log some four or five feet long 
into the spring, with a hole bored through it, but fast¬ 
ened up at the end in the spring; and a hole made from 
the lower side, and a chamber (fig. 4, a.) some four 
inches square made in the lower side of the log, and a 
sieve (c.) to keep out leaves, &c. By this arrangement 
the sieve never becomes clogged, for the water will not 
run out of the spring until it is as high as (1?.) The 
other end of this log is hewn oil'to a point, and the ce¬ 
ment put all over and around it, through the wall of the 
spring, making all tight and preventing decay of the 
wood. 
After the pipe is finished, it should remain slightly 
covered with earth, for some four or five weeks before 
the water is let in. The water being let in, careful ex¬ 
aminations should be made along the whole length of 
the pipe, to see whether there is any leak. If there 
should be any discovered, a little cement will generally 
stop them; but sometimes, owing to the cement being 
improperly prepared, or drawing the rod too quickly, 
the top falls in for a few inches. In such a case, cut the 
top off the pipe and form a piece of tin of sufficient 
length, into the proper shape for the top of the tube, 
and cover it with cement to the same size it was origi¬ 
nally. The tin will keep the cement in place until it 
sets, and that part of the pipe will be just as good as 
any other. But if care is taken in making the pipe, 
all this trouble can be avoided. 
No experiments have been made that I know of, to 
test the strength of such a pipe. Last winter, a pipe 
on my premises, not as large, but of the same caliber, 
froze up at the point where it crossed a road. This 
stopped the water, and the pipe filled up to the top of a 
penstock; thus subjecting it to the pressure of twenty 
feet, perpendicular of water, and the pipe suffered no 
injury. My opinion is that, after the cement has be¬ 
come we'l set , it would sustain a pressure at least equal 
to the atmosphere. 
As to the cost of cement pipes, I can only say that 
lime commonly costs twelve and a half cents a bushel 
at the mill, and sand, three cents, delivered. Two men 
will lay twenty rods in a day, and two men will mix 
the cement, and deliver it on the bank of the ditch. A 
bushel and a half of lime is sufficient for a rod. This 
would make the cost, exclusive of the ditch, and trans¬ 
portation, about fifty cents a rod. 
Whenever this pipe is strong enough to sustain the 
pressure, and a caliber of two inches is sufficient to con¬ 
vey the required amount of water, no other material 
can compare with it for cheapness or value when com¬ 
pleted. No rust or decay is to be feared, and the water 
is just as pure as though it had been brought in a porce¬ 
lain pitcher from the spring. 
The only objection to the universal adoption of ce¬ 
ment to convey water, in this country, is the difficulty 
of making pipes of large caliber, without using stone or 
brick to give them strength while the cement sets. But 
this objection is not so great but that it will ultimately 
go into general use, for a large pipe can be made of 
hard brick and cement, much cheaper than of any other 
durable material. Your friend, 
Geo. Geddes. 
Trier , Onon. Co.. N. Y. } Nov. 17th , 1845. 
Since the above article of Mr. Geddes, came to 
hand, we have received two others relating to the same 
subject. From one of them, signed “ Farmer C.,” 
and dated at Manlius, N. Y., we make the following 
extracts. After having stated that cement aqueducts are 
almost entirely superceding both wood and lead, he gives 
the first cost. “ Here, the common price for digging 
ditch, materials, laying aqueduct, setting penstocks, &e., 
including every expense, is $1.50 per rod, warranted to 
stand.” The lime is stated to be worth ten cents per 
bushel. “ This cement is probably the best article for 
an under-ground aqueduct that can be used. Lead only 
lasts about ten years in this county; and frequently, 
under barn-yards and through strong soils, not near so 
long, being destroyed by the acids of the earth.” “ Far¬ 
mer C.’s ” directions for making these pipes, do not 
essentially vary from those given by Mr. Geddes. The 
writer thinks “ water should not be admitted into ce 
ment pipes under three months after the work is com¬ 
pleted, and then they should not be excessively strained 
by a heavy head of water.” 
The other communication on this subject, is from Mr. 
Jas. W. Peckham, of Easton, Washington county, N. 
Y. He states that he constructed a cement aqueduct 
which has been used more than a year, and says “the 
convenience and satisfaction already derived from it, 
has almost repaid the expense of its construction.” 
THE POTATO DISEASE IN EUROPE. 
Durham , England , Nov. 12, 1845. 
L, Tucker, Esq. —The potato disease in this country 
has now assumed such a formidable aspect as to menace 
the very existence of that valuable crop. Government 
has become so much alarmed as to have sent three sci¬ 
entific men to investigate the nature and extent of the 
disease in Ireland. What they are doing in Scotland, 
the enclosed papers, from which you may, I shot*;]. I 
