750. For Whom Were Well Enclosures Permitted?

Shabbos 17:30

The use of walls around wells was only instituted in Israel, for the benefit of the animals belonging to those making pilgrimage for the Festivals. Similarly, permission was only granted for public fresh-water wells. If a person wants to drink from a well, he should either descend into it and drink, or he should erect a barrier ten handbreadths tall (about 30”) around the well, stand within the enclosure, draw water and drink. If the well is very wide so that a person is not able to climb down into it, he may draw water and drink within an enclosure of corner pieces.

Shabbos 17:31

It is likewise prohibited to draw water from a public pit or a privately-owned well, even in Israel, unless one erects a barrier ten handbreadths tall around it.