49 



cedar swamp. The result is that, although the old trees have 

 disappeared, the roots and stumps still remain just beneath the 

 surface of the meadow. So that in digging ditches, instead of 

 meeting the expected cutting through soft porous material, con- 

 ditions are presented which are very similar to those found in 

 constructing drains on the upland. The result was that it was 

 found not only very slow work to dig the necessary ditches, but 

 extremely difficult to get ditches down to full depth. Despite the 

 extreme difficulties thus created, the State and county working in 

 cooperation succeeded in placing nearly 90 miles of ditches on the 

 salt marshes of Bergen County during this, our first season of 

 active work. In certain localities, where it was found almost im- 

 possible to get the full 30 inches depth, a special arrangement 

 was made whereby the drains were to be from 18 to 20 inches at 

 the woodland and even in fall attaining the required depth of 

 30 inches at the outlet. This arrangement was made only on 

 such places as necessity seemed to demand it, and I should say 

 that not more than 15 per cent, of the ditching cut was of this 

 character. We have had to meet other problems on our marsh 

 land caused by poor outlet streams, sewage pollution, sunken 

 meadows and poorly installed tide-gates, but as these questions 

 are common to all the counties at work, it does not seem wise to 

 stop in this paper and go into them in detail. This matter of 

 underlying and intertwining roots and the presence of stumps 

 so generally over the entire meadow is of so serious a nature 

 that it served to complicate the work and render it more costly 

 than was at first contemplated, and for this reason it has been 

 treated somewhat at length. 



One other condition with which we find ourselves contending, 

 and which, so far as can be ascertained, is peculiar to Bergen 

 County, is that the cedar swamps themselves, of which mention 

 has previously been made, are prolific breeders. Inspection 

 showed that early in the spring breeding of cantator was going 

 on in these swamps. This was not in itself alarming, as it has 

 been known occasionally in the spring that (breeding will occur 

 in places of this kind. Early spring breeding was looked for, 

 but it was expected, and inspections of other years had lead us 

 4 MO 



