FRANCE. 199 



when mown for hay ; and, in feeding cows 

 and oxen on it, he has rarely made lefs than 

 he mould have done by good crops of wheat 

 in the bed of lands. The wet lands he has 

 drained, and converted to meadow and fields 

 for potatoes and cabbages, in which three 

 products, no foil exceeds the wet peat-earth, 

 when laid dry. As there feemed to be foine- 

 thing curious in this part of his informa- 

 tion, I defired he would be particular in 

 giving me a particular account of the im- 

 provement, which was as follows : 



The tracts he is poflefled of are quite flat, 

 and, from the wetnefs, have no fponta- 

 neous produce. They are perfectly level 

 vahs, between rifmg grounds ; the whole 

 furface being peat, a mofTy wet fpungy fu fa- 

 fiance, to the depth of about four feet, and 

 then a ftiff whitifh loam : his method of 

 draining has been only digging open 

 trenches about four feet wide, and three 

 feet deep, at fuch diftances as to lay the 

 peat dry and found : thus he left it, for fix 

 or eight months, to fink, and become tole- 

 rably folid, which it did, after having 

 cleanfed the ditches out once, and funk 

 them to the white earth. He then ploughed 

 O 4 it, 



