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CIKITLAR No. 8. Revised edition, October, 1903. " (8.45.) 



United States Department of Agriculture, 



BUREAU OF SOILS. 



U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, 



Washington, I). C., August 3, 1901. 

 SIR: 



About six months ago Dr. L. O. Howard, the P^ritornologist of this Depart- 

 ment, requested the cooperation of the Division of Soils in some practical 

 demonstrations of the feasibility of getting rid of the mosquito pest in certain 

 tidal swamps of the Atlantic Coast. Dr. Howard had been advising about the 

 extermination of mosquitoes in an area around Oyster Bay, L.I.,and requested 

 us to investigate the character of the soils of the tide marshes and the possibil- 

 ities of reclaiming them for agricultural purposes. Mr. Thos. H. Means, of the 

 Division of Soils, was assigned to this work, and made a preliminary examina- 

 tion, the results of which are briefly described in this circular. 



It is believed that the information contained herein is sufficiently suggestive of 

 the possibilities of further work to warrant publication at this time, and that the 

 seriousness of this problem along the whole coast is certain to demand attention 

 in the future. The presence of the mosquitoes has been an important contribut- 

 ing cause to the abandonment of lands and the depreciation of property values 

 along the Atlantic, Gulf, and 



MILTON WHITNEY, 



Chief of Bureau. 



Hon. JAMES WILSON, 



Secretary of Agriculture^" 



RECLAMATION OF SALT MARSH LANDS. 



INTRODUCTION. 



Tidal swamps and salt marshes are a prominent feature in nearly all 

 States which border the Atlantic or Pacific ocean. A few years ago 

 much was heard about their reclamation. Their value as farming lands 

 was clearly shown, and the fact that they were a serious menace to the 

 health of people in the vicinity was dwelt upon. About this time sev- 

 eral Government reports were issued. Notable among these reports 

 were "Sea Coast Marshes of the United States," by N. S. Shaler, pub- 

 lished in the Sixth Annual Report of the U. S. Geological Survey; 

 "Tidal Marshes of the United States," by D. M. Nesbit, published as 

 Special Report No. 7 of the U. S. Department of Agriculture, and 

 numerous notes and reports in the publications of the New Jersey Geo- 

 logical Survey. Some of these reports are out of print and all are now 

 lillicult to obtain. 



Within the last ten years investigations have been pursued by scien- 

 tists in Europe and this country which have conclusively proved that 



