been here omitted, because we have already, in the
chapter preceding this, given Mr. Denton's views, expressed more fully
upon the same subject, with his own illustrations.

It should be stated that the letter was in reply to inquiries upon
particular points, which, although disconnected, are all of interest,
when touched upon by one whose opinions are so valuable.

"LONDON, 52 Parliament Street, Westminster, S. W.

"MY DEAR SIR:--I have received your letter of the 17th August, and
hasten to reply to it.

"I am gratified at the terms in which you speak of my
roughly-written 'Essays on Land Drainage.' If you have not seen my
published letter to Lord Berners, and my recent essay 'On the
Advantages of a Daily Record of Rain-fall,' I should much like you
to look over them, for my object in both has been to check the
uniformity of treatment which too much prevails with those who are
officially called upon to direct draining, and who still treat
mixed soils and irregular surfaces pretty much in the same way as
homogeneous clays and even surfaces, the only difference being,
that the distance between the drains is increased. We have now,
without doubt, arrived at that point in the practice of draining in
this country, which necessitates a revision of all the principles
and rules which have been called into force by the Drainage Acts,
and the institution of the Drainage Commission, whose duty it is to
administer those Acts, and to protect the interests of
Reversioners.

"This protection is, in a great measure, performed by the
intervention of 'Inspectors of Drainage,' whose subordinate duty it
is to see that the improvements provisionally sanctioned are
carried out according to certain implied, if not fixed, rules. This
is done by measuring depth and distance, which tends to a _parallel
system (4 feet deep) in all soils_, which was Smith of Deanston's
notion, only his drains were shallower, _i.e._, from 2 to 3 feet
deep.

"Some rules were undoubtedly necessary when the Commissioners first
commenced dispensing the public money, and I do not express my
objection to the absurd position to which these rules are bringing
us, from any disrespect to them, nor with an idea that any better
course could have been followed by the Government, in the first