Draining. 



As many overseers are entrusted witli tlie making ol' fiirni drains, or, 

 more correctly, tlie draining of farm lauds, a few words on such a 

 subject will doubtless be of interest to some of your readers, although 

 I do not intend to bring before them anything of a new or unusual 

 nature. 



Any practical remarks on whatever subject connected with our 

 profession have always some interest to us, even if they only confirm 

 our previous ideas. To exhaust the subject would occupy a great 

 part of your Journal for several months to come, but I mean to con- 

 fine myself to as few sentences as possible. 



Draining in Eoxburghshire has been carried on very extensively 

 for the last sixty years. The different systems practised are now very 

 numerous ; some of these are : — The cross or irregular stone drain ; 

 the furrow or parallel stone drain ; the rough stone drain ; the broken 

 stone drain ; the stone and tile or pipe drain, and again tiles and 

 pipes have been used in a variety of ways. 



Tiles were introduced here about the year 1840, and pipes shortly 

 after. As material is of primary importance I may begin by a few 

 words about pipes, which are now so well known as to need only a 

 passing remark. They should be of good clay and well burned : not 

 too soft to be easily destroyed by frost or broken in cartage, and not 

 too hard to prevent the water percolating. Tliey should be perfectly 

 straight and square cut at the ends. 



Two-inch pipes are the smallest that should ever be used. An inch 

 pipe will run more water than is often found in many drains, but 

 should the ends shift or be misplaced there is so little to spare, that 

 there is a risk of the whole drain being rendered useless before it has 

 been completed. Main drain pipes should be used of a size to contain 

 all the water falling into them at all times, so as not to choke back, 

 and consequently silt up the branch or furrow drains. These main 

 pipes I prefer to those of an oval shape, as the bottom is narrower and 

 runs clearer when there is little water in the pipes. It is of great 

 importance also to have main drain pipes made with openings in the 

 side to admit the end of the small pipe, as in breaking an opening 

 after they are made, many pipes are smashed and many more so 

 cracked as to go to pieces in the drain, which is tenfold worse. 



We shall next consider very briefly the making of drains. The main 

 drain should be opened first, and the ends of the small ones, for three 



