Note 325 — Chapter I · THE STEAM-SHIP “QUEEN”—THE ORKNEYS AND MAES HOWE—THE SHETLANDS AND THE FÆROE ISLANDS.

I am well aware of the difficulties, and especially of the expense, objected to condensing peat. But peat au naturel can be burnt as the mottes in France and Holland have been used for generations. And I am also aware of the immense interests wielded by the Coal League—surely these must sooner or later succumb to the public good. Lands without coal leagues find no difficulty in the operation. The two companies lately established at Oldenburg use a large flat-bottomed steamer, which opens a canal 20 feet broad and 6 deep at the rate of 10 to 12 feet per hour: the soil is heaped up on the banks, and is cut into brick-shape, after which mere drying makes it fit for fuel.