190 THE BOOK OF THE LANDED ESTATE. 



form for use as fuel. Temporary bridges made of timber and turf are 

 put across the ditches to allow stock to get across, and sometimes I have 

 seen the sides of the ditches sloped back in places to make a crossing 

 for stock 



There are different opinions given as regards the drainage of moss-land, 

 some recommending shallow draining and others deep. Peaty soils con- 

 tain a great amount of water, and as soon as drains are cut, the water is 

 drawn off and the peat subsides ; but the water will only be removed to 

 a certain depth in the soil in proportion to the depth of the drains made. 

 Presuming that drains are cut in moss-land to a depth of two feet, 

 the water will not be removed to a greater depth in the soil than 

 one foot, and not to the full extent of the drain, as peat acts like a 

 sponge, and will retain the water to a certain height above the bottom 

 of the drain, so that very little advantage is gained by drainage at a 

 depth of two feet for the cultivation of almost any kind of crop. If 

 drains are cut three feet deep, the drying of the soil to a depth of, say, 

 two feet, will cause the peat to shrink down from eight to ten inches, as 

 I have seen it do in several instances. A few drains cut to the bottom 

 of the peat will dry the soil much more effectually than a large number 

 of shallow ones cut on the surface. In cases of very deep mosses, the 

 expense of cutting the drains to the bottom of the peat would be more 

 than the land was worth ; but I repeat, that where it can be done at a 

 reasonable outlay, it is the most effectual and permanent. 



I reclaimed a portion of moss-land in Strathspey iii a very- effectual 

 manner. The extent was ten acres, and the peat ranged in depth from 

 nine to twelve feet. It was, previous to reclamation, of a soft spongy 

 nature, on which neither horses nor cattle could walk. In 1857 I had 

 it drained by open cuts made in the way shown in fig. 70, making the 

 main cuts one foot deeper than the small ones. The small ones were 

 cut four feet deep, with a good slope on the side to prevent any soil falling 

 in. After these drains had remained in operation for twelve months, I 

 found the peat had subsided considerably, and I again had the open 

 cuts deepened ; and this time I was enabled to get to the bottom of the 

 peat with nearly all the small cuts, but not so with the main drains, 

 which had been opened in the lower parts of the ground, where the peat 

 was deepest. I allowed the drains to remain open for another year, 

 during which time the peat dried very much and subsided to a depth 

 of fully one foot. In the spring of 1859 I had drain-pipes with collars 

 put in the small cuts, and filled them in. One of the main drains 

 I allowed to remain open, and in the others I put drain-pipes laid on 

 broad wooden soles to prevent the pipes sinking in the moss. 



