Chapter Thirteen Embankments

CONNECTED with the improvements of our vallies and low land, is the embanking of them from external waters, to secure them from the damage, depredation, and ruin, that may be occasioned by inundation. Leicestershire as an inland county, is secure from the sea ; its rivers (excepting the Trent) are of a minor or secondary class, it has no bogs or fens of any considerable extent, but is liable in common, with other similar counties, to sustain injury from the overflow of its rivers, in floods occasioned by excessive rains, or the melting of snows.
I did not meet with any public or private work in the county, having for its object the securing of meadow land from floods ; but as the Board has proposed this as a subject, and the writer has had some experience in it, he will just treat of it shortly, in a general way.
The water of most rivers is liable to overflow its banks after excessive rains in summer, and if it happens when mowing grass is growing on the land, such grass becomes greatly injured by being fouled with mud, sand and extraneous matter ; is very difficult to mow, and of little value for hay when mown ; if such flood happen in hay harvest, as is often the case, the damage is still greater, the hay is often totally ruined, and sometimes large quantities of it floated away. I know of a valley of rich meadow land in another county, where this was expected to be the case on an average, once in three years, and the occupiers provided accordingly, by keeping a good stock of hay before hand, when they had the opportunity from a dry summer and good hay harvest ; but this valley is now embanked and drained.
On the opposite side is given an ideal sketch of a work of this kind, which may be applied according to circumstances. A B is a natural river flowing down a valley from A to B, with a feeder, or brook on each side falling into it ; b, b, b, &c. embankments on each side of the river and up the brooks of the same level, suppose four and half feet high, f, f, &c.; floating gullies from the brooks, with floodgates below to drive the brook water along them for floating the upper land on each side of the valley ; drains may be cut down the valley on either side the embankments, with aqueducts under the brooks, if necessary, to discharge the drainage water to the lowest attainable level.
Fig. 2. Section of the river and embankments : suppose the channel of the river to be a perch, or five yards and a half wide, and four feet six inches deep, and the embankments to be 22 yards asunder, and four feet six inches high, then the space between the embankments will be equal to four times the channel of the river, or the river when the channel is full, will have room to expand itself into five times that space, before it overflows these embankments ; this in most cases would be sufficient to confine summer floods ; the land between the embankments and the river will be of the same value as before for grazing, when the water is down, on which account the banks may be constructed farther from the stream, in those cases where it is subject to greater floods.
The materials for the embankments, may in all cases be pared down from the sides of the river, which might be rendered beneficial in enlarging and regulating the channel of the stream, and where outside open drains are wanted, as is often the case, the spoil from them may be used for the same purpose, if near enough ; these embankments should be turfed up the slopes, and on the top, by which means surface ground is gained instead of lost ; they may be constructed upon this scale at 2s. per yard running measure ; and supposing in the adjoining sketch, the length and breadth of the valley, as from the scale to be 25 chains by 12 that contains 30 acres, the length of the embankments does not exceed 1500 yards at 2s which is £150, or £5 per acre, for securing hay from floods ; this security will generally be worth £1 per acre per annum, and will consequently be worth 20 per cent. Per annum upon money expended.
Every work of this kind, and where different interests are concerned, must of course be left to a commissioner, to award to each one his due share of expenses as well as benefits ; in this the distribution of waters from floating should be duly attended to, particularly from the collateral streams ; and each one ought to be at liberty at all times, injuring none other, to take in water through the embankments in floods, for the purpose of soaking or floating his land at pleasure, by means of trunks and paddles, floodgates, sluices, or any other means, not injuring the public. These banks are not liable to be out of repair from the effect of great floods, the water passing over them as gently and gradually as over the level surface.

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