[ No headline ]

To the real estate editor: A hydraulic ram is a simple, fast-acting, off-on valva in a fluid line. It harnesses some of the energy in a moving stream to lift a small portion of the fluid above its source and operates by inertia.

Any clever plumber or mechanic should be able to make or repair a hydraulic ram.

High-school science textbooks in the 1920's and '30's typically included a few paragraphs on hydraulic rams.

A fond recollection of mine relates to a hike in a remote area of the Colorado mountains about 1950. After walking miles in a wilderness, I realized I was nearing civilization when I heard the clak-clak of an operating ram. There is an old saw that steel wool is the fleece of a hydraulic ram. But few today would understand. Paul A. Miller Wichita, Kan.