Page:Popular Science Monthly Volume 88.djvu/983

 Popular Science Monthly

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���This cistern is made of concrete blocks. Its height is about ten feet

A Cistern of Concrete

THIS cistern, located above ground and on an elevation, makes it possible to have water under pressure in all departments of the farm. Water is pumped into the cistern by the farm windmill, the frame of which can be seen in the illustration. The cistern is built of concrete blocks laid in cement mortar. It is a round structure, the inside diameter being twelve and a half feet, and the height ten. The size is ample for farm use, yet the cost of the improve- ment is within reach of the average farm owner. The materials should cost about sixty dollars in the middle west. The foundations and the floor are of solid concrete. Build the foundation walls below the frost line and make them ten inches thick and the floor five inches thick. About 300 blocks will be required for the cistern. When the desired height has been constructed, the next step will be the building of the concrete slab roof or cover. This will be re-enforced with a heavy wire mesh

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���and there will be a 24-inch cast-iron manhole in the center. Build the form work of lumber well supported by timbers and joists. After the concrete has been poured and allowed to harden, the builder can enter the cistern through the manhole and remove the form lumber in pieces. The inside walls should be given a good treatment of cement wash mixed to the consistency of thick cream.

Automatic Feeding-Hopper Built for Twenty-five Cents

PROCURE the following articles at a ten-cent store; a tin pail, a funnel, a pie-tin, and a strainer. The large end of the funnel should be a good fit for the inside of the pail.

Cut out the bottom of the pail and remove the spout of the funnel. Place the funnel in the pail and solder securely. Cut a V in the pie-tin, bring the edges together and rivet or solder them, making a conical deflector. Cut the piece taken from the bottom of the pail so that it will fit on the strainer; fill the strainer with corn and solder the piece

���Cross-section plan of the cistern, showing its dimensions

��Chickens can be trained to feed them- selves by means of this device

on to keep the corn in. A rubber band or light spring and a spool cut in half are also needed.

From the cover of the pail fasten a cord to a rubber band, also run a long cord from the end of the rubber band through the funnel to the spool valve, then to the deflector, and to the bait bar or strainer. The cord is fastened to the spool by the wooden plug. When adjusting, the plug is loosened; or the feeder can be adjusted by the cord on the cover of the pail.

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