Qfye loafer ^uppCj? of 

 Jlncicnf porclpe^fer, dating 

 from 



By Major COATES, R.A. 



(Read Dec. 13th, 1900.) 



'ATER for the supply of ancient Dorchester was 

 obtained from a small stream, which rises near 

 Compton Valence, and was carried in an open 

 water channel some ten feet wide in a winding 

 course of over twelve miles, entering Dorchester 

 at the top of the town. Altogether about six 

 miles can still be traced. Most of this has been 

 levelled at some time for cultivation, the result 

 being that the remains of the aqueduct for a great 

 part of its course look much like a road. Only about three- 

 quarters of a mile in the neighbourhood of Whitfield Farm, 

 Bradford Peverell House, and a few other places still show the 

 aqueduct in its original form. The remainder of the aqueduct 

 has been entirely obliterated by cultivation, although in one or 

 two places it may still be traced by the different colours of the 

 crops. 



The part of the aqueduct I first noticed was near Whitfield 

 Farm, where the aqueduct still remains almost perfect in its 



