232 SOILS 



by thrifty Holland, equalling the combined areas of 

 Rhode Island and Delaware, is an illustration 

 of what much of our salt marsh land may become 

 when diked and ditched. It is certain that during 

 the next half century immense drainage projects 

 for the reclamation of large swamp and marsh 

 areas in the East will be no less numerous than 

 the irrigation projects for the reclamation of 

 the arid lands of the West. The United States 

 Department of Agriculture has an Office of Irri- 

 gation and Drainage Investigations, employing 

 many experts, which has assisted in the draining 

 of over 300,000 acres of land during the past three 

 years. 



