1

Maer. May 26/42

Examined field mentioned in my Paper [1] as marled 80 years ago – a mistake it was 28 years since. – Field has since been ploughed – dug in three places & found thickly scattered fragments of marl & cinders & bits of pottery, in all three spots 13 inches from bottom of potato furrow which is about 4 inches beneath old grass surface!! These material now almost rest on the general substrate of nearly pure white sand with large quantity pebbles; so that they cannot sink further. Soil of field very sandy & blackened, little vegetable matter requires much manure to give crops. – some earth worms – in neighbouring Croft said not to be quite  so good land – now in grass – I found some earth-worms – heaps.

In neighbouring very swampy, almost [tr...lling] field which was covered as matured by thick layer of red sand.

The layer quite distance & two inches beneath surface of short grass of fields – immediately beneath sand peat – much of soil above sand peaty & with vegetable matter – now seven years ago since sanded – I particularly observe no heaps of earth-worms in this field

1v

so that we have seen at least the mean time is not element of sinking & with some probability see the connection with presence of earthworms.

I have no doubt that the former field was poor in worms & hence sunk slowly, bit we see whole stratum of soil about 16 inches thick gives a resolution in about 30 years [2].

Look to worm in bogg field