472 
Sutherland Reclamation. 
where the peat was deep and soft, the subsoiler sank into it 
and brought up huge furrows of soft black peat, throwing them 
up one over the other in the most irregular forms. In these 
soft spots the plough rolled and pitched about like a vessel 
ploughing the waves, but, like a good sea-boat, was never 
capsized. As a mere mechanical achievement it was won- 
derful to see how it rolled on its way, lifting thick rolls of peat 
from a depth of often fully 30 inches ; but as such masses of 
peat are extremely difficult to deal with, and are most intract- 
able if once they become dry, it was soon found to be necessary 
to remove the subsoiler altogether on soft peat, and the eastern 
side of the field was therefore only worked one furrow deep. The 
whole field was drained in the spring of 1878 at distances varying 
from one to four rods apart, but mostly at four rods ; the pipes 
were all laid into the solid land, except about two chains in 
length of one drain, where dry turf was first thrown in and a board 
laid upon it ; on this the pipes were then laid, with a board on 
each side to keep them in their places. The whole field was 
"disced" in July 1878. In August, five tons of lime per acre 
were carted on to it by horses, spread by shovels from the cart, 
and afterwards chain-harrowed. Turnips were sown in 1879, 
but late in the season. The crop in August was poor and 
stunted in growth ; the best result on the new land being 
obtained on a part dressed with bone-meal. In one other spot 
of the field the turnips were growing vigorously, the explanation 
being that it was the site of an old croft. 
No. 7 (45 a.). On the southern side of the stream a strip of 
land has been reserved as a green road for driving sheep through 
the farm to the hills. All the land on the northern side has 
been drained ; a portion of green-land has not been broken up, 
but the rest was ploughed without the subsoiler in the autumn 
of 1877 ; " disced," harrowed, and dressed with ErriboU lime in 
1878 ; in 1879 it was again "disced" and twice harrowed by 
steam, then sown with 8 lbs. of rape and the following grass- 
seeds per acre : 1 bushel Italian and 1 bushel English, rye- 
grass, 4 lbs. rib grass, 4 lbs. of mixed seeds, and 4 lbs. each of 
yellow, white, and alsike clover. At the beginning of August 
the rape was nearly fit to feed off, and had every appearance of 
being the crop best fitted to the soil. This is one of the fields 
intended for pasture. 
No. 8 (44 a. 3 r. 24 p.). This was Sutherland-ploughed in 
August and September 1877 ; drained in the summer of 1878, 
mostly two rods apart, but in some places one rod ; " disced " in 
.July and August 1878 ; limed with horse and ox-carts in August 
1878, receiving 2.V tons of English and 2J tons of ErriboU lime 
per acre, harrowed in by oxen. In 1879 Sandy oats were sown 
\vith 10 cwt. of a low-class superphosphate, 4 cvvt. of kainite, 
