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be seen over the surface—that these patches are so high abovethe rest of the field, that they have not been overflowed—andthat these alluvial lands have been formed by the adjacent rivers,is beyond a doubt. Hence all this rich and fertile soil, consistsof all the varieties of earths over which such rivers run in theircourse. Sand, clay, and calcareous earth, and many most va-luable salts, are thus deposited in these extended levels, by theoverflowings of rivers. Thus the richest composts of alluvialsoils are formed.
Lastly., Wherever water is allowed to stagnate over the sur-face of any moss, it undergoes a similar change by similar means.This may be seen in many mill-ponds, and artificial sheets ofwater. They are frequently formed over the surface of low, le-vel, mossy lands.
If these ponds were to continue always full of water, in a stag-nant state, without any springs running into, or issuing fromthem, they would soon be filled up with new formed moss;and in the course of ages, these lakes would disappear: * But asthey are occasionally full and empty by turns, and as there is aconstant influx and efflux of water running though these ponds,no new moss is formed in them ; and the aquatic useless plants,which formerly flourished on their surface before it was laid un-der water, are checked in their growth. In a few years, theydecay and disappear altogether ; and if such ponds are laid dryand drained, they will form an excellent soil, though formerlysterile moss.
These are a few evidences of the salutary effects of floodingwaste lands,; they are like the voice of Nature—pointing outthe very plan we ought to pursue in reclaiming such Soils ; butthough that voice has been loud, and long heard over all theBritish empire, it has seldom been listened to. Of course, thismethod of reclaiming waste lands has seldom been attempted ;nor has any author pointed out the plan we ought to pursuethat plan is simple. Follow Nature f in this, as in every otherprocess. Mark the silent and slow, but steady and irresistibleoperations, that are going on over the face of the earth. By i-hiitating these, and lending our feeble hand to aid them, we can-
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^ * Tile precise process by which this is accomplished, is stated in Dr Hen-iixe’s Second Essay on Peat Moss .
f Nature is an ambiguous expression ; it is sometimes used in a sense thatcannot be justified. In this Essay, it is to be understood, as expressive of thoselaws established by the Great Creator for the preservation and government ofthe material world. In this sense alone, it is to be understood by the reader,and in this sense alone, it is justifiable. If another mode of expression oc-curred to me that was equally explicit and short, it would be used; but thebest writers have used it in, the sense above pointed out, and therefore it is re-tained