Note 371 — Chapter IV · (continued 2)

It is very probably true that, as Lombardini supposes, the plain of Lombardy was anciently covered with forests and morasses (Baumgarten, l. c. p. 156); but, had the Po remained unconfined, its deposits would have raised its banks as fast as its bed, and there is no obvious reason why this plain should be more marshy than other alluvial flats traversed by great rivers. Its lower course would possibly have become more marshy than at present, but the banks of its middle and upper course would have been in a better condition for agricultural use than they now are.