A. J. C, Binghamton, N. Y., writes:

"In planning a house which I am building, the architect has designed to use a house sewer only 6 inches in diameter. I claim that nothing smaller than an 8-inch sewer should be used. In the house in which I now live there is an 8-inch sewer which is frequently obstructed, causing expense and annoyance Both architect and plumber are against me in this matter. Who is right ? "

[If the house sewer is for sewage which will come to it through properly set and flushed fixtures and storm water, the architect and plumber are right; if it is for old cans, ashes, shoes, rags, and broken dishes, you are right, though you will only be right a short time, unless you make the sewer large enough to allow a cleaner to enter and remove the accumulation of insoluble matter with which it will soon be choked. A 6-inch sewer should be large enough for any private residence in the country, provided it is properly laid, with the right material, has the right kind of bends and connections, a proper pitch, and is sufficiently flushed. It must also be understood, however, that only soluble matter should be allowed to enter the sewer. We know of a large 16-room city house which has but a 4-inch drain inside and a 5-inch sewer from the house to the main sewer. This sewer is over 100 feet long. The house has been occupied 10 years, and so far the sewer has not failed to perform its functions. The house has seven water-closets, four bathtubs, five washstands, laundry tubs, slopsinks, china sink, kitchen-sink, etc. In this case the owner was willing to pay a fair price and left the entire matter in the bands of the architect, who in turn gave his instructions to a competent plumber, who carried out the details. A small sewer, sufficiently large, will scour, the flow of water and matter being more confined and rapid. A larger sewer induces a sluggish movement, tending to convey only the fluids and dissolving matters. The others remain to adhere and clog and eventually to choke the sewer.]