The Belgian Campine

In the northern part of Belgium, and extending across the confines of Holland, is another very similar heath plain, called the Campine. This is a vast sand flat, interspersed with marshes and inland dunes, and, until recently, considered wholly incapable of cultivation. Enormous sums have been expended in reclaiming it by draining and other familiar agricultural processes, but without results at all proportional to the capital invested. In 1849, the unimproved portion of the Campine was estimated at little less than three hundred and fifty thousand acres. The example of France has prompted experiments in the planting of trees, especially the maritime pine, upon this barren waste, and the results have been such as to show that its sands may both be fixed and made productive, not only without loss, but with positive pecuniary advantage.