Surface Water 
out his ditch across the road? In the spring 
and autumn, if there’s a robin’s or a wasps’ nest 
in my ditch, the boys comes and tramples the 
banks in, and then I got to clean the ditch out or 
have my fields under water. Why shouldn’t he 
do the same?” 
But he suspected, John Smith told me after- 
wards, that his neighbour had friends on the 
council. 
However, some weeks later it was reported in 
the local paper that “ the projected drain against 
Mr. ’s property had not been laid, Mr. Smith 
having raised an objection. The matter was 
allowed to drop.” 
And the farmer remarked, “‘I don’t much 
believe in these councils. It seems to me there’s 
a bigger set of fools than ordinary gets put on 
7em.”’ 
57 
