Frome House, rivers

There is a circumstance belonging to the rivulets in Dorsetshire, which requires peculiar treatment. The water of this and the adjoining counties of Hants and Wilts, often consists of small rivers, called bourns, some of which are perfectly dry during the summer, and others are so shallow as to be nearly invisible, from the quantity of grass and weeds floating on the surface. Where the water is meant to be ornamental, it will often be advisable to mow and rake the stream, which requires as much attention as a grass or gravel walk, not to appear slovenly, or overgrown with weeds.