178 FARM DEVELOPMENT 



tical farm illustrates numerous problems in the drain- 

 age of very flat, dense lands in a cold country. The 

 slough or lake, F-G, in flood times, receives a large 

 amount of water from the south which overflows its 

 eastern banks, spreading out over the farm. With a 

 large canal at A-B, this flood water will not overflow 

 upon the farm. The figures giving the height of the 

 several " forty " corners as compared with the lowest 

 point at the middle of the north line, taken as a bench 

 mark at 100 feet above datum plane, and the contour 

 lines, dividing areas for each foot in height, show the 

 direction of the very slight grades in the surface of this 

 level farm. This land is very dense and water per- 

 colates slowly downward. Further, the level character 

 of this land would necessitate tile drains being laid 

 with such a slight grade that large-sized tiles would 

 be required to carry off any considerable amount of 

 water, and the cost of the tiles might be so great as to 

 make their use impracticable, besides no outlet could be 

 secured without carrying the main drain some distance 

 to the river through lands belonging to other people. 

 It is probable that this land would be materially 

 benefited by tile drainage, and ways may be found of 

 arranging the outlets for tile drains by extending and 

 deepening the large canals being constructed to carry 

 off the surface waters. Since surface drains could best 

 be used in this instance, it was necessary to construct 

 them so as to have them work rapidly and effectively 

 very early in the season, and also be in repair to remove 

 the excess of water at any time throughout the summer. 

 This land being nearly level, the gentle slopes were 

 easily determined when water was seen standing on 

 parts of the land. In this case, cross-sectioning with 

 the leveling instruments was hardly necessary, because 

 the standing and the flowing water had shown the levels. 

 That the reader may better appreciate the very level 



