Peat and its Products. 
767 
that which lies above it. The uninitiated are prone to consider 
turf moors and heath moors as identical, but for centuries the 
former have afforded a livelihood to a large proportion of the 
population, and at the present time they likewise do so to tens 
of thousands of people. 
The low-level moors produce the so-called short or dredged 
turf. This is obtained by dredging with a kind of scoop, when 
a soft black substance is brought forth, which is spread out to a 
depth of 5 to 6 inches on a flooring of boards, and is then 
trodden down by labourers with specially-adapted wooden shoes, 
with the object of obtaining one adhesive mass. This is subse- 
quently cut through crosswise with a spade, each portion having 
the form of a turf, and the whole mass is then left exposed to 
wind and weather until the turfs have become sufficiently dry 
and hard to allow of their being handled, when they are stacked 
in long rows to a height of 2 to 3 feet. The exposure to the 
sun and wind results in their drying entirely, and attaining the 
necessary hardness. They are then collected and stacked in 
large heaps, with a covering of reeds, and are subsequently 
brought to market. This kind of turf is exclusively used for 
domestic purposes. Numbers of skippers with their barges 
proceed throughout the year to the moors in the northern 
provinces, where they buy the turf for subsequent retail sale in 
the towns and villages. 
The hujh-level moors are associated with four widely diver- 
gent industries: — (1) The crdtivation of buckwheat. (2) The 
production of peat moss, which has been carried on for 
only about ten years, and which in no other country has 
assumed such dimensions as in the Netherlands. (3) The manu- 
facture of black or factory turf. (4) Cultivation for agricultural 
purposes. 
As regards these moors, the Netherlands are much more 
favourably situated than any other country in Europe, as the 
grounds can easily be intersected by channels communicating 
with the rivers and the leading canals, without involving large 
outlays for sluices, which, but for the configuration of the 
country, would otherwise be necessary. The importance of this 
fact is very patent, considering the bulky nature of turf and its 
comparatively low value. The cost of transit represents a large 
proportion of the selling price. In order, therefore, to be able 
to sell at the lowest price, it is obvious that the means of trans- 
port must be cheap, and in this respect carriage by water claims 
first rank. 
In order to open up a high-level moor of, say, 1,000 hectares 
( = 2,470 acres), it is in the first place necessary to drain it 
