THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



VOL. I. 



siiicgiMMicDsr®9 ^n^^ ass^a 



NO. 12. 



EDMUND RUFFIK, EDITOR AND PROPRIETOR.— T. W. WHITE, PRINTER. 



For the Farmers' Register. 

 ON DRAINING. 



Addressed to Young Farmers. 

 No. II. 



■ [Continued from p. 390, No. 7.] 

 Having- seen in more than one communication 

 to the Farmers' Register that my former obser- 

 vations on drainin^i; have not only attracted some 

 attention, l)ut have served also to draw forth oth- 

 ers, I willingly resume the subject, and offer the 

 contniuation which has been thus invited. It :s 

 particularly gratifying to me that my former la- 

 bor in this cause, if of no other value, has brougl.t 

 forward Mr. Ilarjjer, (p. 51S, No. 9,) in opposi- 

 tion to the legal obstructions to drainage. The facts 

 which he has there offered, are striking cxamjdes 

 of the evil which I. hod charged upon our exist- 

 ing laws, and our whole race of law-makers. I 

 was not aware of the existence of the particular 

 facts connected^wiih the Deep Creek drainage — 

 nor that any other individual had attempted to 

 expose this enormous and unjust part of our legal 

 policy — by which, a government which profiissts 

 to be most friendly to (what are called) " internal 

 improvements," and which certainly spends vast 

 sums for such objects, should at the same time, 

 and in the strongest manner, in effeci, forbid the 

 drainage of swamps, though these works are ihe 

 most necessary, and would be the most cheap and 

 profitable of all internal improvements. 



My former communication treated of open drains 

 for surface or rain water, and of carriers of prin- 

 cipal streams. It now remains to consider side 

 ditchoS, open or covered, to receive water from 

 springs — cross ditches — and the mode of cultiva- 

 tion, as aiding or opposing complete drainage. 



Owing to the peculiar texture of the subsoils, 

 and to the inclination of the different strata, some 

 bottom lands are nearly or quite free from springs 

 oozing out of the adjacent higher land ; and are 

 consequently not subject to the heaviest tax in 

 drainage, the keeping of side ditches open, and 

 in good order. But generally, in Lower Virgi- 

 nia, springs and oozy places are so frequent along 

 the foot of the surrounxling hills, that continu- 

 ous side ditches can seldom be dispensed with 

 These springs generally burst out from the high 

 land about as low as the level of the low ground — - 

 but often, also, at great erand at various elevations, 

 which adds greatly to the dilliculty of diverting 

 the water. 



Let us suppose the lowground,or bottom land, 

 similar in general character to the example offer- 

 ed in my former communication ; and the main 

 carrier, &c. in the course of execution, as was 

 there advised. And to make my remarks more 

 plain, the annexed plan of a piece of lowground 

 will serve to show examples of all the operations 

 described. 



B G C the upper, and A H D the lower extre- 

 mity of a piece of alluvial land or bottom, sup- 

 posed to be drained as in the annexed description. 

 Vol. I.— 89 



In the plan above, the former crooked bed of 

 the stream, a s 6 C cZ, is supposed to be laid dry, 

 by the main stream having been turned into the 

 straighter artificial channel, or main carrier, G I 

 H, as described at page 394, No. 7. 



K I is part of the main carrier, keeping along 

 the side of the highland, so as to serve as a side 

 ditch. 



O P, A H, and m H, cross ditches leading into 

 the main carrier. 



r s, a " grip," or shallow dry cross ditch, to pre- 

 vent rain water remaining in tlie under furrows, 

 between the beds r, t, a and x. 



The crooked line between the letters C i r K, 

 j-epresenls.the line of division between the tiat al- 

 luvial land, and the sloping and higher, (though 

 wet) land adjoining. The plan of drainage, and cul- 

 tivation, serve to add this oozy slope to the bottom. 



o,p,f, &c. wide beds, made after the land has 

 been completely subjected to the plough. 



Ww steep hill side covered with trees. 



Xx hill side under cultivation. 



Yy gentle slopes, arable. 



The references toother parts, will be made as 

 they are described, in the course of the following 

 observations. 



The first operation required in side ditching, is 

 to cut off the springs which burst or ooze out of 

 the adjacent high land ; and which should be done 

 either by open, or by covered drains, according to 

 existing circumstances. If the slopes bordering 

 on any part of the lowground, are in wood, or are 

 not intended for cultivation, and tlierefore not 



