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whether this accumulation of mud is a nuisance or injurious to the
public health. I have inspected the heap with your engineer, Mr.
Duckham, who has afforded me every information respecting the
method adopted in the depositing of the dredgings as well as to the
disinfectants used. Early this year [meaning 1895] the idea suggested
itself to me that the mud-heap with its banks (about 30 to 40 acres)
instead of lying barren, might be utilised for planting quick growing
trees, e.g., willows, etc., after the same manner as a sewage farm, and
if willows, etc., could be grown it would save your Company the
expense of using disinfectants; the ground would be purified by
natural processes and a new industry created in the district, to say
nothing of the financial benefit to your Company. I communicated
with the distinguished botanist, the Rev. G. Henslow, lecturer on
botany to St. Bartholomew's Hospital, and described to him the mudheap.
The Rev. G. Henslow kindly forwarded my letter to Messrs.
James Veitch & Sons, Royal Exotic Nursery, 544, King's Road,
Chelsea. Messrs. Veitch answered my letter, and I opened communications
with them but they wrote stating that it was too late
in the season to think about planting willows. In October I renewed
the subject with Messrs. Veitch, and I interviewed Mr. Duckham. It
was arranged that Messrs. Veitch's responsible nurseryman, Mr.
Howard, should meet your engineer and myself to view the mudheap,
as to whether it was suitable for willow growing. This meeting
and inspection took place on 21st October, and on the 28th of
October Mr. Howard wrote, 'I am strongly of opinion that the waste
land or sewage land may be utilised for willow growing and return a
profit; but before going into any great expense I should advise the
directors to make an experiment of about two acres and see the
results. If it turns out a success large quantities may be cut annually,
and the time for doing this should be in the spring time.' In a postscript
he asks that about a quarter of a hundred weight of the mud
might be forwarded to Messrs. Veitch to see if there were any injurious
matter contained therein to affect plant life. I communicated
with Mr. Duckham who sent Messrs. Veitch some of the soil. The