The short leg of the siphon tube dips into an insulated ink-bottle, so' that the ink it contains becomes electrified, while the long leg has its open end at a very small distance from a brass table, placed with its surface parallel to the plane in which the mouth of the leg moves, and over which a slip of paper may be passed at a uniform rate, as in the spark recorder.
In this vessel is placed the short leg of a draw-off siphon, reaching to nearly the bottom.
The clear juice in the meantime flows over the edge of the cylindrical vessel without disturbance and finds its way out by the short leg of the siphon, and so passes to the canal for collecting the defecated juice.
Where warehouses or station buildings run parallel to the quay line, the high truck is often extended, so as to span the whole quay; on one side the " long leg " runs on a rail at the quay edge, and on the other the " short leg " runs on a runway placed on the building.
Choices include long or short leg lengths.
