( 44A ; 



Italy on a very large scale aud with beneficial results of consider- 

 able magnitude, but it need not be touched upon here. The second 

 form of bonificazione, however, is of great interest in connection 

 with agricultural improvement in the hilly or undulating tracts of 

 this province. The system of reclaiming rugged land by means of 

 embankments and silt deposits is technically known as colniate di 

 montti or building up of the hill, and has been adopted in Italy 

 with much success for many years. This system consists essential- 

 ly in the digging of drains along the contour lines of the hills, so 

 that both surface water and the silt borne by such water are caught 

 in the drains. These drains are cleared out once a year and the 

 silt deposit in them is thrown out on the down-hill side and 

 ploughed in ; the ploughing being done in such a way as gradually 

 to work the soil down to the lower portion of the strip and thus to 

 make the strip more level. In the course of years of such treat- 

 ment these strips become level terraces. With regard to the 

 ravines which scour the surface of the Italian hills it is usual to 

 make across the ravines a series of small banks, beginning from the 

 top and working gradually downwards. When rain falls pools of 

 water form rapidly behind' the uppermost embankments which 

 serve a comparatively large catchment area. As each pool fills the 

 water escapes and is retained by the embankment next below until 

 perhaps all the embankments have pools behind them. By such 

 means the ravines gradually become silted up, providing fertile 

 terraces on which trees, grass or crops may be sown and generally 

 hold up the water-level of the neighbourhood. Parts of the hill 

 which were formerly precipitous and unculturable come under the 

 plough and bear crops, and thus both the area and the quality of 

 the soil is increased. 



5. The work thus carried out in Italy was brought to the 

 attention of the Government of India by Sir Colin Scott Moncrieff 

 and Sir Edward Buck, at one time Director of Land Eecords and 

 Agriculture in this province. As a result of the interest aroused 

 by a report on this subject by Sir Edward Buck the Government 

 of India suggested that the question of bonificazione in the United 

 Provinces should be considered and that one or two officers of the 

 Public Works department might be deputed to Italy for a short 

 period to study the methods utilized in that country. Accordingly 

 Messrs. Hutton and Clayton of the Irrigation branch of the Public 

 Works department of this province \vere deputed to visit Italy in 

 the year 1907-8- 



6. The history of Government activity in this matter is there- 

 fore a short one and little work has. as yet been done. Works of 

 considerable importance however have been carried out in 



