290 



0)1 the Drainage of Land. 



the lands^ as these are in many instances no less than 30 feet wide, 

 and drains may be necessary at half that width."^ This^ however, 

 must not be construed into a recommendation of altering the form 

 of the lands, which is always a difficult and frequently an unpro- 

 fitable operation ; but even when their size, and the inclination 

 or bend of their declivity are in every respect unobjectionable, 

 and the course of the furrows such as a surveyor would approve, 

 it might perhaps be better to sink the drain in the very centre of 

 the ridge. Some intelligent farmers, indeed, place them within 

 three or four feet of the furrows, and find that plan very advanta- 

 geous. Should the drains be, nevertheless, made in the furrows, 

 then care should be taken to sink them a few inches deeper than 

 if made in level ground, in order to prevent the injury which might 

 otherwise be occasioned by the tread of horses at plough, when 

 stepping in the trench. Nor should the covering materials which 

 are placed over the water- channel be formed merely of the soil 

 which has been dug out of the drains ; for if that be loose earth, 

 it may find its way into the channel, and choke it up ; or if it be 

 clay of an impervious nature, and trodden down by the working 

 of the cattle, it will materially impede the good effect of the 

 drainage. 



Among the many expedients which have been resorted to for 

 the purposes of under-drainage, none has been longer or more 

 universally employed than stones ; and in situations where they 

 can be found in sufficient abundance upon the land, of a smooth, 

 rounded form, not larger than the size of a man's fist, they will 

 no doubt continue to be used, as good and durable drains can in 

 that case be made with them at moderate cost. But if they are 

 to be quarried, or to be carried from any long distance, they be- 

 come so expensive that many persons have given them up, not 

 only in consequence of that objection, but of others which will 

 be hereafter stated. Schemes have also been adopted, such as 

 the filling up of the conduits with peat, or with bands of twisted 

 straw ; and there is one called wedge" or "plug-draining," w-hich 

 has been within these few years rather extensively used in some 

 of the strong clays, to which alone it is applicable, and better 

 adapted to pasture than to arable land. 



The operation is commenced by cutting a turf of 12 inches wide 

 and 6 inches deep, followed by other cuts at such an angle down the 

 side of the intended drain as will leave the bottom (at 2 feet deep) 

 only If inches wide, into which the plug is inserted. This is 



* In the case here supposed, I have seen a very intelligent farmer place 

 the drains on each side of the furrow, midway between that and the crown 

 of the ridge. This ingenious arrangement seems to meet all future difficul- 

 ties that might otherwise arise in gradually ploughing down the lands to a 

 level.— Ph. Pusey. 



