AN ENGLISH WATER MEADOW. 103 



banks of a small river, the Mersey, which finds its exit 

 into the sea at Liverpool. The upper part of this stream 

 flows through broad, alluvial lands, which, before their 

 reclamation, must have been marshy, and of little value. 

 Extensive works have been in existence, however, for 

 many years ; precisely how long could not be ascertained 

 by enquiry, all that could be learned was that "they 

 were always there." The river banks were enclosed by 

 dikes, or as they are termed on our Western rivers, 

 "levees," sufficiently high to prevent overflow, even in 

 freshets. Substantial water-gates were made in these 

 banks, leading into lateral channels at right angles to the 

 river. These lateral channels had banks of equal hight 

 and solidity with the main banks. The lateral banks 

 extended from the river until they reached the gradually 

 rising ground at their level. From these, other banks, 

 enclosing lesser canals, with water gates at their heads, 

 and parallel with the river, extended until they met the 

 next range of cross banks ; thus dividing the broad bot- 

 tom lands into a series of parallelograms enclosed in a 

 system of canals at right angles to each other. From 

 these canals, gates sliding in perpendicular grooves, and 

 raised or depressed by racks and pinions, opened into the 

 meadows. "When the level of the river was raised by un- 

 usual rains, the gates were opened, and the meadows en- 

 closed within the different canals were flooded with water, 

 to a depth of about six inches. So long as the river re? 

 mained high, the gates were opened sufficiently to permit 

 a gentle flow of water from one section of meadow to 

 another, until it escaped into the river again at a lower 

 level, by drains through the banks ; or the water remain- 

 ed upon the meadows, in a state of quiescence, to deposit 

 upon them the fertilizing matter which it held in suspen- 

 sion. For centuries this practice had been followed, and 

 the grass thus grown had been mowed and fed to cattle, 

 or made into hay. The same practice was afterwards ob- 



