Evening Republican, Volume 21, Number 206, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 15 September 1917 — Page 2

WATER SOUPPLY FOR THE FARM HOUSE

John Daniel Walters says no feature of home architecture will afford so much comfort and be so conducive to health as abundant supply of pure

THERE was a time when the farmer drank his fill from the “old oaken bucket that hung in the well,” when his bathtub consisted of an abandoned wash boiler placed out In the summer kitchen or down in the cellar, when the watercloset was a four-foot—by -five-foot shanty planted behind the corncrib, and when on wash days the needed soft water was obtained from an old barrel that stood at the corner of the front porch; but these primitive conditions are rapidly vanishing—they are almost a thing of the past. No one argues now, as was the case then, that one or two baths a month ought to be sufficient for a healthy person, or that a well-lighted, well-warmed and well'furnished bathroom is a luxury and an enfeebling detriment to the development of a robust constitution, that a .water-closet in the house is unhygienic, and that labor-saving comforts in the kitchen and laundry will make the cook lazy. We all agree on these points. The. problem is, rather, how~ •can we get good water in sufficient cheaply and effectively, 'where it may be needed, 1. e., into the /bathroom, the kitchen, the laundry, the 'front yard, and the feed lot. The first question to be answered in any water-supply problem is naturally. How much water will be needed? The answer must differ in accordance with the conditions involved. In the smaller towns it is usual to place

the minimum consumption, exclusive of the water needed for lawn sprinkling, at about 4,000 cubic feet per .year for the average family of five. This means a minimum of 333 cubic feet, or about 2,500 gallons per month, or about 83 gallons per family per day, or about 16 gallons per person per day. While this daily allowance is sufficient during the greater part of the year, it Is generally insufficient In the four or five summer months. Few homes can get along in the summer with the minimum quantity named, so that 5,000 cubic feet Is probably a closer estimate of the actual annual consumption of a family of five members. Many homes are provided with hotwater cisterns from which the necessary laundry and bathroom water is

Pressure Tank With Pressure Gauge and Hand Pump.

drawn. The average per capita consumption of soft water, like that of hard neater, differs very much. - It depends on the size of the cistern and the character of the plumbing fixtures quite as much as on the size and habits of the family. Most homes

tom contains sediment that has washed fronTthe roof, and cannot, or should not, be used. This leaves about 365 cubic feet or 8.7 barrels, for actual use. If we assume that the cistern is completely emptied three times a year, it gives a dally consumption of just 3 cubic feet, or 22% gallons, per family of five members. Some families undoubtedly use twice as much or several times as much soft water as the quantity stated, and more would be used in many homes if the supply was more adequate arid easier to obtain. The water reports of large cities show much greater consumption figures, because enormous quantities of water are being used in factories and packing houses and for street sprinkling and building purposes. The farmer should not of course be*misled by these city statistics. When calculating the consumption of water in the average farm home the following comservatlve table is generally used: To fill a bathtub requires from 8 to 20 gallons. ■_ ■ .., —... . ■ To flush a closet, each time, from 3 to 5 gallons. To fill a lavatory, from 1 to 1% gallons. For sprinkling lawn, per 100 square feet, from 7 to 8 gallons. For soaking lawn, per 100 square feet, from 15 to 20 gallons. The consumption of water by farm animals depends upon the season, the feed, the*hge, and the individual hab-

Water Supply to Various Fixtures.

its of the animal and its surrounding local conditions. The following tables will give a good idea, however: Horses, 6 to 12 gallons a day each. Cattle, 6 to 12 gallons a day each. Hogs?, 1% to 2 gallons a day each. Sheep, 1 to 2 gallons a day each. When estimating the consumption of water for large herds of cattle and horses, old and young, as they are found on the average farm, it is safe to reckon it per “head” at a minimum of one cubic foot a day; that is, about half of the minimum amount needed for each person. Every one who intends to study water-supply problems should know the following relations: ' 1. 1 gallon equals .134 cubic feet. 2. 1 cubic foot equals 1,728 cubic inches. 3. 1 "cubic foot equals 7.48 gallons. 4. 1 cubic foot of water weighs approximately 62% pounds. 5. 1 gallon of water weighs 8 1-3 pounds. 6. 1 gallon contains 231 cubic inches. —7. 31% gallons make one barrel. Chemically pure water Is never found in nature. It can be obtained only by distillation. When left In contact with common air, or with earthy o.r organic substances, water rapidly absorbs parts of them and becomes Impure. Even the rain water that falls from the clouds is not entirely pure, but contains dust particles, ammonia, and traces of numerous other ingredients. However, as most of these admixtures are harmless, the problem is, therefore, not how an entirely pure water can be obtained, but rather how

would use larger quantities jof cistern water if they had a more edequate supply or more modern pumping contrivances. The average home cistern holds nominally about 420 cubic feet, which is 100 barrels , of water, but a pa ctofthls cistern is not available, since the water at the bot-

THE EVENING REPUBLICAN,

to obtain a water with an admixture which is not harmful for the purpose for which it is Intended. Many spring or well waters contain large quantities of lime in solution. This lime prevents soap -from dissolving and lathering; it makes the water ! hard and almost unsuited for laundry ' purposes. The chemist has means to extract the lime from the water, but It is a process that could not be cheaply introduced into the household. However, for drinking purposes, such spring or well water is not harmful. Other substances that are frequently held in solution by watef from the earth, or from rock, are common salt.

Section of House, Showing Complete Water Supply and Plumbing System.

magnesia, and alkali. When any of these are present in large quantities the water tastes bad and is unfit to drink. Only the practical chemist, by means of carefully conducted experiments, can positively determine whether or not such water can safely be used. Other frequent admixtures of water are sand or clay. These may badly discolor the water, but they are usually harmless. The most dangerous contamination of water is produced by organic poisons and the bacteria or germs—microscopically small plants. These organisms, invisible to the naked eye, enter the Intestines of man with the water which he drinks, multiply there at an enormous rate when the conditions are favorable, and may produce disorders, diseases or death. They are the more dangerous because they can not be seen in the water. Even if they exist there by the million, when examined by the eye alone the liquid may appear entirely or nearly clear. It is a fact, however, that these germs cannot live long in water which does not contain organic substances. In so-called surface water, 1. e., drainage water from fields, meadows or barnyards, in water from roofs or roads, or in water from forests and cemeteries, they are always present. It is for this reason that cistern water Is not always so harmless as is often assumed, and that water from ponds, creeks and rivers or from the oldstyle open well is positively dangerous. The question is often asked, “If such surface ’water is generally polluted by germs, why is it that the farm-

Pump and Air-Pressure Tank.

ers and their animals who drink it freely are not promptly killed?” The answer Is that most germs cannot live in the perfectly healthy body of man nr nnfmnl, Only certain kinds of germs have the power to live and multiply within the larger animals. Most of them die when they are deposited in the stomach; others areharmless, and still others are necessary for the purpose of digestion. A comparatively small number of species produce sickness and death, and the only way of avoiding the effects of their attacks is to use only pure water, or to bpil all drinking water that comes from contaminated sources. The refreshing taste of springs or well water is due to several causes.

First, the water coming from a low stratum in the ground is nearly always quite cold; second, it cjmtqins much common air and considerable quantities of the dioxide of carbon. Thpse qualities make the water palatable. They, can be imparted to tepid water artificially, but not readily or cheaply. Water can be boiled to rid 4t nf dangerous germs: it can be cooled by Ice, or by means of an ammonia cooling apparatus, the so-called ice machine. Air and carbon dioxide can be forced through water to freshen it. There are many different kinds of pumps or contrivances for lifting wa-

ter from wells or cisterns into the kitchen, the laundry, the bathroom, the farmyard, or into the storage tank. According to the mechanical principle involved in their construction or operation, they may be divided into several classes, as follows: 1. Water hoists, 1. e., contrivances which raise water by means of buckets fastened to belts, wheels or levers. The old-fashioned cistern “pump” belongs to this class. Another form is the tread wheel employed in Oriental

Section of House, Showing Location of Compressed-Air Tank, Electric Pump and Plumbing Fixtures.

countries to tialse water a few feet for irrigation. Still another form is the “worm hoist,” of which a short description may be found in almost any dictionary. Another form is the “old oakfti bucket.” 2. Compressed-air lifts, or steam lifts, 1. e., contrivances that hoist water by means of air or steam blown into the lower end of the outflow pipe, or into closed tanks filled with water. 3. Centrifugal pumps, or pumps that drive up the water by means of rapidly revolving fan wheels —a pump form which is used muclijn bridge buildings to raise water from foundation pits, and in Irrigation work. 4. Suction pumps and force pumps, or pumps that hoist water by means of pistom action —the usual form of hand pump and windmill pump. The smaller kinds are single-acting pumps and the large are double-acting pumps. 5. Hydraulic rams—pumps which work automatically by the energy of a stream of water which flows through -them. , ■<> ■'—. ..

Her Sense of Humor.

Even gentle woman is capable, when dealing with tramps, of perpetrating a type of humor of which one would little suspect her. "I told dat lady,” Cindet Smith relates, “dat I wanted just a little sompln’ to keep Soul an’ body together.” “An’ what did she give you?” inquired Billy Trucks feelingly. Cinder Smith exhibited the hand— t. “She give me die safety pin."

Battles Which Made the World

BLENHEIM The Daulla* Strategy of Marlborough, Which Baffled the Scheme of l«nl«TlV, but Almost Fell Before the Bravery of the Irish.

Each really great battle In history has been one in which the forces of liberty and democracy ranged themselves on one side against the forces' of absolutism on the other. Such was the battle of Blenheim, fought on a hot August day in 1704 and won by the genius of John Churchill, first duke of Marlborough, of whom it has been said that he never fought a battle he did not win and never besieged a City he did not take. By victory at Blenheim he smashed the power of the grand Monarque, Louis XIV, he who boasted “There are no longer any Pyrenees,” who had extended tremendously the French possessions and whose intention was to Include all Europe in his kingdom. But for Blenheim all Europe might have suffered for centuries under the effects of French conquests resembling those of Alexander for extent and those of the Romans for durability. Against Louis, who had the assistance of the elector of Bavaria, were leagued England, Holland and Austria. Generalissimo of the allied forces was Marlborough, a man who had on onte occasion betrayed his king and his country, who owed his first advancement in court favor to the fact that his sister was the mistress of the duke of York, who laid the foundations for his great fortune by being the paid loser of one of the favorites of Charles H, whose defects in character were so base and sordid that they can be obscured not even by his virtues, but who as a soldier was almost supreme in military genius. He won Blenheim by a march which for brilliancy of plan and execution is rivaled only by that of the Consul Nero to the Mataurus. For the first two years of the war of the allies against France, Marlborough commanded in Flanders, taking various enemy towns but accomplishing nothing of decisive importance; Indeed, the advantage rested rather with Louis, for the—elector of Bavaria took the strong fortress of trim, thereby opening communication with the French armies of the upper Rhine and seriously menacing the integrity of Austria. Thereupon Louis decided to act on the defensive- in Glanders, while Marshal Villeroy kept busily at work with a big force in the Moselle region, Marshal Tailard marched through the Black forest to join the elector, the French army in Italy advanced and all combined to take Vienna and dictate terms to the emperor in his own capital. This inspired Marlborough with the audacious plan of himself advancing clear to the Danube and there fighting it out. The more timid and the more conservative opposed, since such a campaign might leave Flanders exposed, but Marlborough—and he must have had a hard time of it with bls often stubborn foreign allies —overcame all opposition. On the nineteenth of May, calming as well as he could the agitated fears of the abandoned Dutch, he put his army in motion, thereafter proceeding with a speed and an elusive certainty which utterly be- ' wildered Villeroy. That worthy, marching hither and thither, could not Imagine where the English general meant to strike his blow. Tailard, previously ordered to join the elector, became convinced that Marlborough aimed at Alsace and hence kept back his 45,000 men that France might be protected In that quarter. When at last the real intention of Marlborough was disclosed it was so late that the effort could not be rendered abortive. Crossing the Danube, Marlborough swarmed into Bavaria and in a series of actions m a( i e himself master of the elector’s dominion. Tailard, meanwhile, woke up and pressing forward managed to effect a junction with his friends. Marlborough recrossed the Danube, combined his forces with those of Prince Eugene and took up position near Blenheim.

The troops of Marlborough and Eugene numbered 56,000, with 52 cannon. Opposed to them were the armies of the French marshals and the elector, 60,000 strong and 61 pieces of artillery. It was absolutely necessary that Marlborough should attack before Vllleroy should become aroused and advancing through Franconia give to the GalloBatarlan allies overwhelming force. With the Danube securing, their right flank and the high ground Of the Gold Berg and Eich Berg their left, it was only in the front that the GalloBavarian allies could be attacked. Tallard was in chief command. He weakened his center in evident reliance upon the swampy ground before it. This was at the hamlet of Oberglau, where lay 14 battalions of infantry, Including the celebrated Irish brigade. A fog which covered the ground early on the morning of obscured the advance to Tallard until the oncoming British left wing was close upon him. Then he opened a terrific cannonade. Lord Cutts, with a strong brigade of infantry, hurled himself against Blenheim only to suffer repulse, while Marlborough was crossing the little river, Nebel. Here the duke wpS in serious trouble, for his squadrons of cavalry became mired in the swamp while the French artillery played upon them mercilessly. It was only by resolutely advancing

By CAPT. ROLAND F. ANDREWS

(Oopyrlf bt, 19W, by MoClorv Mewspaper Syndicate)

fresh men that Marlborough got himself out of his predicament. Eventually he formed his whole left, wing in splendid strategic position, only to be placed on the very edge of disaster at the center where the prince of Holstein Beck, with 11 Hanoverian battalions was charged and utterly routed by the fiercely cheering Irish brigade. Breaking through the lines the Irish were Close to achieving victory akin to that they afterward gained at Fontenoy. But their ardor carried them too far. Marlborough sent them reeling back with furious cavalry Charges, while three hastily summoned battalions raked them as they retreated. Meanwhile Eugene, on the right wing, was so hard pressed that only the steadiness of his Prussian regiments and his own personal exertions saved him. However, he held on, while Marlborough with a Hannibal-like reliance upon cavalry prepared the finishing stroke elsewhere. At five in the afternoon he massed 8,000 horsemen and artillery and sent them against 10,000 French cavalrymen whose line was interlaced with infantrymen. For a time the; issue hung in the balance, for the British squadron wavered before the hot French fire, but the artillery supports came into action most manfully, the French fusillade slackened and Marlborough instantly orders Ing a charge along the whole line the French cavalry lost their heads, fired in the air and dashed off the field, leaving nine infantry battalions to be ridden over by the overwhelming mass of British horsemen.

This won the battle. Resistance continued, the French making a desperate effort to cut themselves out. Marshal Marsin and the elector did get away from Eugene, but the 24 battalions and 12 squadrons at Blenheim were forced to surrender. Of the great French army there remained, according to Voltaire, only 20,000 uncaptured effectives. Twelve thousand were dead. Fourteen thousand were prisoners. The victors lost 5,000 dead and 8,000 wounded. Ulm, Landau, Treves and Traerbach surrendered. With Blenheim ended the proud visions of Louis for universal domination.

TO BE IMMUNE FROM COLDS

Only Safeguard, Apparently, Is Continued Exposure to Elements, Deciares London Writer. t I If you want to avoid all likelihood of catching cold in future, you had better turn explorer and trot off to the arctic regions. There sneezes are unknown, and a cough would probably scare a polar bear out of its life, says a writer in London Tit-Bits. Although the clothes of explorers In those' regions are often saturated with perspiration, and are a mass of ice when they retire for the night, and despite the fact that they often have to sleep out in the open in their sleeping bags, and that this is their only means of thawing themselves, their health does not suffer in the least. Then there is the classical and somewhat mythical instance of the St. Kllda cold. On the rock islands, lying some forty miles beyond the western Hebrides, there are about one hundred inhabitants, access to whom is practically impossible during eight months out of the twelve, owing to the stormy seas. Oddly enough, however, whenever a steamer touches at this island, all the inhabitants, including the very infants —Bo runs the legend—are seized with violent sneezing fits, which develop into colds. Exposure is pot the direct cause of colds. The only safeguard is continued exposure.

Vastness of China.

A large part? of the great Chinese empire has never been surveyed or even explored. As a resuft, all sorts of varying estimates as to the size of China have been given. An estimate can merely be an approximation representing the last guess. This last guess is estimated to be about 4,000,000 square miles for China’s area—about 500,000 miles larger than the total area of our United States. While one of the 18 provinces of China is several thousand square miles smaller than our own state of Texas, yet within the border of this Chinese province there have been dwelling 20 times as many Chinese inhabitants as there are Americans" who dwell without our great state of Texas.

Guiana.

Guiana is the name applied to all that country in South America bounded fey the Atlantic ocean, the Amazon river and its branches, and the Orinoco river and its branches. The western districts belong to Venezuela, , the southern and eastern districts to Brazil. The three European colonies, the British, Dutch and French Gulanas, extend from the seacoast to the frontiers of those republics. Settlements were made in Guian in the sixteenth century by explorers from England, France and’, the Netherlands, though later there were troubles between the three countries and the coloi nies changed hands seVaral times. ;■?