2 . Z)r. DAU'WiirSi'/^ccoufn of 



Near thy houfe was an old well, about one hundred yards 

 from the river, and about four yards deep, which had been 

 many years difufed on account of the badnefs of the water, 

 w^hich I found to contain much vitriolic acid, with, at the 

 fame time, a flight fulphureous fmell and tafte ; but did not 

 Carefully analyfe it. The m.outh of this well was about four 

 feet above the furface of the river ; an<l the ground, through 

 which it was funk, confifted of a black, loofe, moiit earth, 

 which appeared to have been very lately a morafs, and is now 

 Covered with houfes built upon piles. At the bottom was 

 found a bed of red marl, and the fpring, which was fo ftrong 

 as to give up many hogfheads in a day, oozed from between 

 the morafs and the marl : it lay about eight feet beneath the 

 iurf ice of the river, and the water rofe within two feet of the 

 top of the well. 



Having obferved that a very copious fpring, called Saint 

 Alkmund's well, rofe out of the ground about half a mile 

 higher on the fime fide of the Darwent, the level of which I 

 knew by the height of the intervening wier to be about four or 

 five feet above the ground about my w^ell ; and having obferved, 

 that the higher lands, at the diftance of a mile or two behind 

 thefe wells, conlified of red marl like that in the well ; I 

 concluded, that, if I fhould bore through this ftratum of marl, 

 i might probably gain a water fimilar to that of St. Alkmund's 

 well, and hoped that at the fame time it might rife above the 

 furface of my old well to the level of St. Alkmund's. 



With this intent a pump was firft put down for the 

 purpofe of more eafily keeping dry the bottom of the old well, 

 and a hole about two and an half inches diameter was then 

 bored about thirteen yards below the bottom of the well, 

 till fome l^-^nd w^as brought by the auger. A wooden pipe, 

 ^ which 



