440 On the Reclamation of Peat-Land in the Netherlands. 
that there are manufacturers of artificial butter who send to 
England from 60 to 80 tons per week, — in fact, the three largest 
in Holland send between them about 200,000 cwts. per annum, 
— and there are at least 50 or 60 factories in the country, the 
quantity just estimated may be regarded as within the mark. 
Effect on price of English Butter. — The effect of this competi- 
tion upon the British dairy farmer is very serious. Last winter 
I was informed by a large factor that if it had not been for the 
importations of artificial butter the price of good fresh butter in 
London would have been at least half-a-crown per pound. Good 
artificial butter is much more palatable than bad real butter, and 
is quite as wholesome ; and if it were sold for what it is, instead 
of for what it is not, neither the farmer nor the consumer could 
complain. The convictions of fraudulent dealers obtained from 
time to time scarcely touch the subject, as they chiefly refer to 
the selling of bad qualities of the article, whereas the best 
qualities of " Bosch " almost defy the skill of the analyst to 
prove that it is not real butter, however much he may suspect it. 
XXVIIL — On the Reclamation of Peat-land in the Netherlands. 
By H. M. Jenkins, F.G.S., Secretary of the Society, and 
Editor of the ' Journal.' 
[Reprinted from the ' Eeport on the Agriculture of the Netherlands to the Royal 
Commission on Agriculture.] 
Different Kinds of Peat. — In the Netherlands peat-land is divided 
into two categories, known respectively as Lageveen and Hooge- 
veen. The distinction is based upon the relative height or depth 
of the land in relation to the sea-level. If the water-table is 
below the level of the sea, the tract of peat comes into the cate- 
gory of Lageveen or low-lying peat, but if the water-table is 
above the sea-level, then the area is deemed a Hoogeveen or high- 
lying peat. This distinction is accompanied by differences of 
legislative regulations, geological circumstances, and agricultural 
practices. But before describing them it should be stated that a 
peat-bog is of little or no value unless it is in, or can be brought 
into, direct water-communication with the general system of 
canals which traverse the country in every direction. Given 
this essential condition, a peat-bog may be worth lOOZ. per acre, 
more or less, according to the thickness of the peat ; but if the 
canal has to be made, the estimated cost of its construction 
must be deducted from the fee-simple value of the land. One, 
and probably the only, reason why so much of the high-lying 
peat in Holland is still unreclaimed, is that such tracts are too 
far from any existing canal to render profitable their reclamation 
at the present time. 
