.SoMK NoTKs ON U.nukh<;koum) Watkk. i .■^:) 



ami repoits of M. Suivl — an enginoer of tliat corps, wlio realise*! the 

 overlapping of the two professions — that France is largel}' incfebted for 

 the works now in progress for the reclamation of torrents and the })re- 

 vention of tloods. Atfbi'estation is of vital inii)()rtaiice for maintain- 

 ing tln' pei-manence of streams ; and the forests that creat<? natural 

 reservoirs on e\ery sipiaie yard of theii" surface, and form the ••}ii«^f 

 source of water-supply, should he preserved at all costs. 



lo._8()^[E NOTES ON UNDERGROUND WATER. 

 By A. 1). TiDHOPE. 



The practice of boring for water in South Africa is extending, and 

 considerable success has attended the efforts of tliose who have em- 

 barked in this enterprise, with great atlvantage to the stock farn)ers in 

 particular and to agriculturists to a certain extent. 



Under the Government subsidy system records are, no doubt, kept 

 of the quantity of water obtained and other details, which would be of 

 great interest if published in complete form as the results of several 

 years' work. 



The quality of water obtained from underground sources is, h<iw- 

 ever, hardly recei\ing the attention it deserves, especially, in the 

 author's opinion, with regard to its effect upon tlie land, when used 

 for ii-rigation, wjiich will eventually, it is hoped, form a subject of 

 special investigation 



The Railway Department has naturally confined its search for 

 water to the narrow strip of land traversed by the railwa}'^, and to those 

 places where water for locomotive purposes is chiefly requii-ed. By 

 the courtesy of the general manager of railways, the details of some of 

 these bore-holes, selected as covering a fairly w ide area, are recovered 

 from dusty shelves of oflicial records referred to in our president's 

 address, and are given in this paper, and show generally how highly 

 charged with salts our underground supplies are. 



Where a water level is shown in the tabular statements with 

 supply Nil, it means that water put into the hole for drilling pui-poses 

 w<juld stand at that level or that there was a small seepage into the 



