ArPLICATION TO AGRICULTURE. 127 



Society of England. It came in first among the farms which 

 were utilising the sewage of not more than 20,000 people. This 

 was in 1879, and on the whole it is a soil well adapted for the 

 application of sewage. It is sufficiently porous for irrigation, 

 and measures 183 acres, but 30 acres are not sewaged. 

 Additional ground has, however, been obtained lately, and it is 

 all wanted for the quantity of liquid which has to be disposed 

 of. The volume of sewage is estimated at 950,000 gallons per 

 day, which is nearly 4500 tons, from a population of 19,500. 

 It flows out in a covered way to the farm, at the distance of about 

 a mile, where pumping works have been erected, which lift the 

 sewage 13 or 21 feet, according to the altitude of the ground to 

 which it is applied. These are propelled by two capital horizon- 

 tal steam engines of 12-horse power each. 



Assuming that the estimated quantity is pumped daily, it 

 would show that each inhabitant was supplied with more than 

 40 gallons every day. It is necessary to explain, however, 

 that the storm w^ater is conducted into the town sewers, and 

 that the area of the town exceeds 500 acres. Like most other 

 towns, the local authorities have erred in this point, and thus 

 the sewage is w^atered down, and deteriorated much. There is 

 the farther fact, that the main sewer, which is adjacent to the 

 river, admits more water in its passage to the pumps. Suppos- 

 ing the pumps are kept in operation during 310 days in the 

 year, it would be equal to a rainfall of 86 inches over the 153 

 acres under irrigation, were it equally distributed. As the land 

 under the corn crops is not irrigated, a much larger quantity falls 

 to the other fields. When the annual rainfall on the farm itself 

 is added, which amounts in the bygone years to 25 or 26 inches, 

 the aggregate quantity comes to no less than 110 or 112 inches 

 per annum. We thus see the importance of obtaining a large 

 extent of ground for the disposal of sewage, otherwise the land 

 would be so flooded as to destroy any crop that could be tried. 

 It need scarcely be told, that when great rainfalls occur, the 

 sewage cannot be applied to the land. 



The cost of the site on which the pumping works were placed, 

 with the necessary buildings, engines, and pumps, was £3756 

 and the laying out of the farm, carriers, pipes, &c., was £3192, 

 making a total of £6948. Only about 5 acres re([uired under 

 draining, which was done with 2 incli pipes, 60 feet apart and 

 3 feet deep. This was the sum necessarily expended before 

 irrigation work was commenced, and rents and labour becoming 

 due before much return was obtained from the produce of the 

 farm, the actual loss in two years amounted to £860. Under 

 these untoward circumstances, and at the end of the year 1872, 

 the Local lioard resolved to obtain a report of the farm from ^Ir 

 J. C. Morton, in which he stated that it was possible to mako 



