The water supply of Kent : with records of sinkings and borings / by William Whitaker ... with contributions by H. Franklin Parsons ... Hugh Robert Mill ... and J.C. Thresh ... Pub. by order of the lords commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury.
- Whitaker, William, 1836-1925.
- Date:
- 1908
Licence: In copyright
Credit: The water supply of Kent : with records of sinkings and borings / by William Whitaker ... with contributions by H. Franklin Parsons ... Hugh Robert Mill ... and J.C. Thresh ... Pub. by order of the lords commissioners of His Majesty's Treasury. Source: Wellcome Collection.
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![the fields by a cut, the stream takes the main road as its course for a quarter of a mile to Oh. Alkham, where it turns into the cut channels, and passes on through two fields to Wolverton—a good deal of water is probably absorbed during its course through these fields—but at Wolverton it receives a large accession from another abundant spring of the same character as that of Drillingcour, and a fresh supply at Chilton Farm.” “ Drillingcour spring is said to have some connection with Lydden spout,” but as the-former flows out at from 200 to 220 feet above sea-level, and the latter at about 20 the author seems to doubt this. As a matter of fact the two are in inde- pendent areas of drainage, separated by hills. “ At Lydden village [nothing to do with the Spout, and about three miles N.N.E. of Drellingore] the wells have risen con- currently with the outburst of Drillingcour a considerable height. . . At Alkham, Drillingcour, and Wolverton, the water in the wells has risen to the same level as the overflow from the springs . . The . . tradition amongst the old people in the Minnis is that the spring recurs about every five or seven years, but that when a long continuance of S.S.W. winds has prevailed during the winter^ the pressure on the sea coast and cliff squeezes the water out of the inland hills and valleys and produces the phenomenon, whereas N. and N.E. winds do not produce that pressure, and the pump remains dormant. Unfortunately for this theory the winter of 1887-8 has been remarkable for prevalence of N.E. winds.” This is a good illustration of the curious theories that have been advanced to explain the occurrence of bournes. Mr. Stilgoe noted, in 1898, that the nailbourne had broken out several times since 1888, amongst others in 1889, 1893 and 1896. Mr. C. Buckingham has given the latest account of this nailbourne^) and he reports as follows:—On ■ December 12, 1903, the hollow at Drellingore began to fill and in a few days reached a height of 15 ft. and formed a stream 200 yards long. On December 17th, water began to rise in the dyke about a mile lower down the valley, and a stream soon flowed which reached up to South Alkham on the 20th. On the 22nd the Drellingore stream joined this. The stream flowed for a few weeks and then dried rapidly. The streams rising from the springs at Mongeham and Eastry, which join^ midway, have been so artificialised that one can say little of them under this heading; but their springs are noticed on p. 34. The North Stream. The above is the name given on the Ordnance Map to the stream which joins the Stour just below Sandwich, but I 1 E. Kent Soi. N. H. Soo. Repo ser. ii., vol. v., 1905, p. 13. *](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b28126737_0067.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
