126 



IRRIGATION. 



so as to confine the water which is diverted from them 

 and is carried in a level channel which gradually diverges 

 more and more from the stream, until the whole of the 

 land to be brought under treatment is inclosed. As the 

 level of the surface slowly descends, that of the canal 



Fig. 57. SECTIONAL PLAN OP WATER MEADOW. 



rises gradually above it until there is a difference of at 

 least a foot between the levels of the water and the ground, 

 at the upper portion of the meadow. The more regular 

 the slope of the meadow the better in every way. If a 

 perfectly smooth surface can be made, the meadow is 

 then a perfect one. A perfectly formed meadow is the 

 one that lies in a succession of smooth, gently sloping 



f 



Fig. 58. GROUND PLAN OF MEADOW. 



tables, each one one or two feet, of more, below the level 

 of the other. A meadow so prepared will show a section 

 similar to that in fig. 57, in which the irrigating canals 

 are seen at e, e, and the collecting drains at/, /. Spouts 

 in the banks, at a, a, may pass the water from one level 

 to another. (See also page 113.) 



