Do not waste money by digging and, partly constructing, afterwards seeking information. Prepare a plan and work from it. Get in touch with your county agricultural and home demonstration agents. Advice may be obtained also from extension workers, State agricultural colleges, State and local boards of health, the United States Public Health Service, and the United States Department of Agriculture. Do not guess distances and levels. Use a measuring tape and some type of level—engineer's, architect's, drainage, hand, or carpenter's. Study this bulletin, and design, lay out, and construct in accordance therewith. Remember to: (1) Isolate the septic tank—locate it 50 to 100 or more feet from any dwelling and, if practicable, to the leeward of prevailing summer breezes; (2) locate the cesspool or sewage distribution field downhill from the well or spring, and, if possible, 300 feet therefrom; (3) select dry, porous, deeply drained ground for disposal of all sewage; (4) do not apply more sewage to a given area of land than can be thoroughly absorbed and oxidized; (5) lay sewers straight and below the reach of frost, ventilate them thoroughly, and make the joints water-tight and root-proof.

Makeshift methods, materials, or devices should be avoided or used sparingly. Do not place a vent pipe in the top of a cesspool or septic tank if near a dwelling. Siphon chamber and siphon may be omitted in those rare instances where it is feasible to discharge into salt water or into a large stream already badly polluted. Disposal of sewage in a running stream should be a last resort. Such practice endangers water supplies downstream, and unless the volume and velocity of flow are good nuisance may be created in the vicinity. Do not neglect inspection and operation. Clean out settling tanks yearly or oftener. All pipe lines below ground should be marked with iron or stone markers to facilitate examination, repair, or extension of the system.

There is a general but erroneous belief that the cost of sewerage is little in the city but almost prohibitive in the country. All personal and realty properties in one eastern city represent a valuation of $10,382 per home, which pays $355 for sewers outside the cellar wall. An average farm in a Middle West State represents a valuation of $17,259. Is not the farmer justified in the small outlay required to dispose of the farm sewage? Because of the issuance of bonds and the apportionment of sewer assessments for a series of years the city dweller may have his burden distributed over a long period. The farmer does not pay interest on these obligations, and sewer work can be done more cheaply in the country than in the city.

Safe disposal of farm sewage is not a passing fad but a vital necessity. Besides being an asset a good sewerage installation greatly promotes the wholesomeness and healthfulness of the farm. Moreover the benefits are far-reaching, because farm products go into every home, and farm and urban populations mingle freely.

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