io6 Proceedings of Ninth Annuai, Meeting 



nary construction, that represents a tremendous difficulty over- 

 come. Ordinarily sheet piling will get curves in it ; as time goes 

 on it will shift, but apparently this timber has prevented that. We 

 really have some new and rather unusual features in those two 

 types of structure. 



Dr. Brown — In addition, I would like to say there has been 

 considerable sentiment against this system of drainage ditches 

 for the past twenty-five years on the part of Jersey farmers; but 

 since we have put in this tidegate they have not only come to us 

 to thank us for the work but they want more. We have drained 

 hundreds of acres for about two miles where the farmers are 

 now actually raising produce for the market. In the northern 

 part of the county, near our new isolation hospital, where we did 

 only a little work last year, the farmers have proposed that the 

 council pay a third, they pay a third and the commission a 

 third to do additional work there. 



Mr. Rider — Mr. President, I did an unusual thing this morn- 

 ing in asking for the privilege of the floor. But before saying 

 what I had in mind, I wish to add in a general way some thoughts 

 concerning this damming and drainage business. 



Dams, bulkheads and tidegate problems have been worked out 

 by cranberry growers, and it would seem to be good business 

 to benefit by their experience. 



Our problem in Atlantic County has not yet called for this kind 

 of work. Our dams have a different spelling. The others are in 

 the far offing, but I beheve will come later. 



At the last meeting of our commission our president suggested 

 the propriety of cutting out the ditch cleaning for a period, that 

 we might put on another tractor and machine on breeding areas 

 that we had been unable to reach. This set in motion a new train 

 of thought. Is there not a way that this increasing expense can 

 be eliminated or reduced to a minimum cost? Nature keeps the 

 crooked creeks clear with tides flowing in and out, why not our 

 artificial ditches built on straight lines with more rapid flow? 



I had seen these ditches dug beautifully and enconomically, 

 but I had been derelict in not following them to their source to 

 see that nature had been permitted to do her part. This was a 

 principle in drainage which my experience had taught me was 

 necessary and invaluable. 



I confess I did not know that these beautiful, straight ditches, 

 came to dead ends at the shore. Had I known this, I should have 

 said at once, here is where we have fallen down and caused this 

 extra expense. 



