878 THE COMPLETE GRAZIER. BOOK ix. 



high as its banks next the sides, but are lower towards the middle ; 

 and, when they are of a proper height and distance from each other, 

 the water will flow uniformly over all parts of the bank. 



The trenches should be made with a small ascent in the bottom, 

 from the river to the farther end, and should all unite near the river, 

 where a sluice should be placed with gates or hatches. This being 

 shut, in order to keep back the water coming from the river, and a 

 small sluice in the side communicating with the main drain of the 

 canal being opened at the same time, the water in all the trenches or 

 mains will, to a greater or less extent, return from the farther end, 

 and, passing through this small sluice into the main drain, leave the 

 trenches, in a short time, perfectly dry. The bottoms of the drains 

 are, on the contrary, to be made highest next to the river, and thence 

 deepened to a large drain at the lower end of the meadow ; so that, 

 when the water ceases to run into them over the sides of the trenches, 

 they will soon be emptied into the main drain, and the whole meadow 

 thus be laid dry. 



When the meadow is to be watered again, the small sluice must be 

 shut and the large one opened, which will admit the water from the 

 river, and irrigate the meadow as before. The water should be made 

 to flow over the sides of the trenches, and over the surface of all the 

 land lying between them and the drains, as equally as possible ; and, 

 for this purpose, the earth dug out of the drains and trenches at first, 

 and afterwards when they are scoured or cleansed, should be spread 

 upon the lower part of the ground, in order that it may lie evenly and 

 form a regular descent towards the drains. The soil, thus dug or 

 scoured out, also serves to repair the banks of the trenches. The 

 land should be as level as possible, and where the surface is very 

 uneven, the inequalities should be removed ; for, although the expense 

 of doing this is considerable, it will be more than counterbalanced by 

 the value of the improvement. 



The construction of sluices is one of the principal items of expense, 

 partly because they are usually made of timber, a material subject to 

 decay in the course of a few years ; whereas brick and stone, cemented 

 together, are equally suitable, and would be much more durable, 

 particularly when the sluices are constructed upon correct principles, 

 so as to prevent them from being blown up, or the water from forcing 

 a passage at the bottom. Great improvements have latterly been 

 made in conducting this operation. The land is more carefully pre- 

 pared, levelled, and inclined; the trenches, drains, &c., are better 

 constructed, as are the sluices. In the Hampshire water meadows, 

 sliding water-doors, regulated by a cog-wheel, turned by a movable 

 winch, have been introduced. 



It would be beyond the scope of this work to detail the mode of 

 constructing the sluices, stops, &c., necessary in the system of flooding 

 land. We shall, therefore, proceed to illustrate our remarks by the 

 following plan and explanations, and at present need only observe that 

 the different parts of the works should be carefully examined and 

 scoured out in autumn, and all necessary repairs made. Mch infor- 



