Reclamation of Land from the Sea. 661 



the sand to a depth of from 6 inches to 3 feet, and the remaining 130 

 either shingley stones, or sea-sand, to an unknown depth. A very large 

 portion of the land inclosed was, therefore, either almost worthless or 

 requiring considerable outlay to bring it into cultivation ; moreover, 

 from the meeting of the tides from the east and west upon this spot, it 

 •was intersected by several large creeks, and the best portions of it by 

 innumerable small ones. 



In the autumn of 1859 the land was laid out for division into fields. 

 One road was formed, passing through the entire length, and crossed 

 at right angles at intervals of about 500 yards by two others. These 

 roads are each 30 feet wide, and arc bounded on each side by a ditch. 

 The lands between are again divided by a ditch into fields, varying in 

 extent from 10 to 20 acres. Every field, therefore, has access to a 

 road and is square — two very important advantages with steam-culti- 

 vation. 



In bringing it into cultivation the next operation was to fill up 

 the large creeks throughout the farm, sand being brought from a 

 distance where necessary by means of a portable tramway worked 

 with horses, or moved fi-om the adjoining lands, where available, by 

 barrow roads: in either case the creek was ultimately brought to 

 the level of the land on each side by a coating of soil of similar 

 quality. In the same way the small creeks w^hich appeared only in 

 the stiff lands were filled uj^, or else by digging, — and thus reducing 

 the level of the adjoining land. By the summer of 1862, a large breadth 

 of this land had been brought into cultivation ; coleseed, peas, wheat, 

 and oats were grown upon it, and a fm-ther portion was sown with 

 wheat — when the sea again came over it. Up to this date the crops 

 were better than they have been at any time since, and it seems pro- 

 bable that the cultivated lands, especially those which had been sub- 

 soiled, became more strongly impregnated with the salt than when in 

 their original state. The damage done to the watercourses and roads 

 was inconsiderable ; but the land had become so thoroughly saturated 

 as to be incapable of bearing horses imtil late in the spring, and the 

 roots of autumn-sown corn were destroyed by the wet and salt in the 

 land. 



Underdraining, which had been done partially before, was now 

 systematically commenced, and up to the present time about 230 acres 

 have been drained with lf}-inch pipes, at a distance of 12 yards in 

 the clay and 24 yards in the sandy subsoils — nearly all the drains 

 emptying into the ditches. The fields being all flat, considerable 

 difficulty was experienced in maintaining a regular and proper fall in 

 the di-ains, the slightest dip causing the drain-pipes to silt up in the 

 sandy lands. The plan now adopted is to set out the level of the 

 outlets ia the ditches, and a point 4 feet above the bottom of the 

 drains to be cut across the centre of the field, with a spirit-level, adding 

 the rise to be allowed in the di-ains. From these two points given 

 him, the foreman is enabled to give an even fall to the bottom of the 

 drain throughout its length, by placing a T staff 4 feet long upon the 

 level point at the outlet, and having a similar staff moved up and down 

 the drain, aligning it upon the level given him in the centre of the 

 VOL. III.— S. S, 2 X 



