1914k 
THE RURAL* NEW-YORKER 
S63 
PROTECTING RIVER BANKS. 
R EPLYING to request of John Alan 
Hamilton, Erie Co., N. Y., on page 
743, relative to protecting banks of 
stream, would suggest that he build what 
we call, up in our Catskill country, a 
stone and timber “docking.” This con¬ 
sists of a layer of water beech brush, 
butts up stream, saplings about 20 feet 
long, piled four feet thick, then a layer 
of rocks and a layer of tree trunks at 
least two feet in diameter as a backing 
and rock over it. Docking should run at 
an angle to stream and if properly con¬ 
structed, will build up a bar the length 
of docking. I have built two, one 3G 
feet long, and one 40 feet long, 10 feet 
wide. Top of docking should be two 
feet above high water. I think if this 
docking was built from the shore to a 
point just beyond the point of this island, 
the stream will fill in solidly with sand 
and grass beyond the end of the docking. 
This is the way the Dutch do, to make 
the sea “keep itself out.” My dockings 
cost .$25 each. I shall build two more. 
Our farm is on Neversink River, Sulli¬ 
van Co., N. Y., and while the Neversink 
is a limpid and beautiful stream, it is 
awful when on the rampage and terribly 
destructive to property. 
IIENRY C. COUSE. 
John Alan Hamilton wants to know 
how to protect the bank of a stream from 
washing. Commence at the lower end of 
the space to bo protected, pile brush or 
small trees, the butts against the bank 
and the tips extending out into the 
stream, pointing down stream somewhat. 
Build up to the top of the bank, theu 
load the brush with large stones, the 
larger the better, to prevent the brush 
from washing away. Be sure that the 
protection extends up stream as far as 
there is danger of caving, so that the 
current may not eat in behind the brush 
and wash it out. It is well also to drive 
large stakes down through the brush into 
the earth below. If these stakes are of 
willow they will take root and af¬ 
ford additional protection. There are 
miles and miles of this kind of work 
along the river banks in Vermont. An¬ 
other way is to place logs of any length 
in front of the caving bank, notched and 
built up with short logs reaching back 
to the banks after the style of a log dam 
or the side of a block house. The short 
logs must be loaded with stones to pre¬ 
vent washing away, and the space be¬ 
tween the bank and the rampart had 
better be filled with brush and stones suf¬ 
ficiently at least to prevent any current 
passing that way. If the gentleman has 
not plenty of stones for the purpose we 
Vermonters would be glad to furnish 
them gratis. E. G. H. 
New Haven, Vt. 
Stakes and Brush Piling. 
E VIDENTLY the cause is higher up the 
stream, where the opposite bank has 
been worn to an angle that throws the cur¬ 
rent against the crumbling bank. The 
trouble could be remedied by putting a line 
of sheet piling at the point above to 
direct the current into the old channel, 
or a line of the same across the now 
channel, or still, as a protection in front 
of the bank that is suffering.' This would 
be an expensive job, and would require 
a great deal of labor or the rigging of 
some kind of pile driver. Doubtless this 
remedy will be recommended. I would 
suggest the practice of some of the gov¬ 
ernment engineers in treating washes, 
which is not expensive, and the material 
is probably at hand: 
Drive a line of piling, that is posts say 
six inches or over in diameter, setting 
them deeply in the bed of the stream so 
it would not eat them out, placing them a 
couple of feet apart, beginning a little 
above where the crumbling of the bank 
begins, and carrying them a little below 
where the worst of it ends, and putting 
them a couple of feet from the bank. 
If however there is a deep cut, it would 
be well to carry the line across it and 
then put a second line a couple of feet 
behind the first at that point. I should 
then cut any small growth of willow, 
hickory or in fact any kind of similar 
growth, or even brush, and tie it in bun¬ 
dles and throw it between the bank and 
the piling, and if rocks are handy after 
filling the space pile them on top to 
sink the bundles. If rocks are not at 
hand, bags filled with sand or pebbles 
will do as well, but loamy earth should 
be avoided as it will dissolve out. Should 
the stream undercut any in the bed, the 
bundles will sink and fill the place and 
keep the wash from touching the bank. 
The piling could be carried more above 
or below if it is seen the.bank is caving 
at either or both points later. These 
bundles will never rot so long as they 
are under water. I believe this would be 
the most practical method, for it will 
ftocA r 
Tree Traa/rs 
Brush 
Bock. 
Brash 
Bed of Stream : . 
Diagram of Docking. 
take the least outlay of cash. I have 
seen bad washes in gullies stopped by pil¬ 
ing loose brush where the wash came 
down with heavy rains. 
Alabama. marsena a. Parker. 
The only way Mr. Hamilton can per¬ 
manently protect the banks of his stream 
is by straightening the channel and build¬ 
ing walls of riprap, masonry or cement 
along both sides. To be really permanent 
this should be carried back to both sides 
of the valley at the upper end. Tempor¬ 
ary relief may be secured by the build¬ 
ing of concrete or masonry walls on 
the outside of each curve. This would 
be permanent if it were not for the fact 
that the curves of every stream are all 
the time moving or trying to move down 
the valley and sooner or later a wide 
curve is likely to get behind the retaining 
wall and leave it stranded. In times of 
freshet this may be done in a few hours 
and a large outlay of time and money be 
rendered useless. Retaining walls for 
this purpose should go well below the 
stream bed and be built with a flare out 
at the bottom to prevent the stream from 
cutting under them and letting them fall 
over. Alfred c. weed. 
Wayne County, N. Y. 
Jack : “Bridget, did my wife just come 
in?” Bridget: “No. sir. That’s the par¬ 
rot you hear a-hollering.”—Judge. 
w 
Clarifying Maple Syrup. 
ILL you advise me how to settle 
maple syrup after boiling down? 
New York. I. w. 
The ordinary household method of 
clarifying maple syrup is to strain it 
while hot through muslin cloth and after 
it has cooled to add a little sweet milk 
or eggs beaten up. It is then returned 
to the fire and allowed to come to a 
boil. As it approaches the boiling point 
the coagulated albumen of the eggs or 
milk rises to the top with the finer par¬ 
ticles of dirt entangled within it. This 
is quickly skimmed off, not being allowed 
to boil into the syrup. The amount to 
use varies, but will be learned after a 
trial or two; ordinarily, perhaps, one egg 
or a half pint of milk will be sufficient 
for a gallon of syrup. M. B. d. 
Acetylene Waste. 
F OR illuminating purposes I am using 
acetylene, until the disposal of the 
refuse has become a trouble. I saw 
an article referring to this, but I do not 
recall just what the directions were for 
its use on land. Is it advisable to spread 
this on land which needs lime in its 
liquid state as it goes from the generator, 
or must it stand a certain length of time 
before it is suitable to use on land? 
Rochester, N. Y. w. w. 
This refuse contains lime and nothing 
else of any particular fertilizing value. 
This lime is of about the quality of fine 
limestone, and is not equal in value to 
slaked lime. It is not a good plan to use 
the liquid as it comes from the generator, 
as this liquid may contain a principle 
which would injure certain crops. After 
exposure for a long time, however, this 
refuse is all right for use. Lime of that 
character would be most useful on very 
light soils, on soils that are sour or very 
heavy day soil. It may be spread on 
after plowing and well harrowed or raked 
in. 
Suburban Gardener: “This ‘sure 
death to bugs’ I purchased here doesn’t 
seem to kill the pests at all.” Salesman : 
“Ah ! you see, sir, the properties of this 
preparation are not to kill the bugs at 
once, but to undermine their constitu¬ 
tions.”—New York Evening Post. 
When you write advertisers mention The 
R. N.-Y. and you'll get a quick reply and a 
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[258] 
