The preceding and the following pages have been written in the hope that they may afford some assistance in arriving at a correct decision, with regard to the necessity of precautionary works, and with the view of calling to remembrance many of the principal points to be considered in order to remedy slips, a matter usually demanding prompt decision. With respect to the measures that should be adopted to prevent slips, and the works required when they have occurred, it would be a mistake to generalize from any successful application of one method of reparation, as it is necessary to consider each soil separately, and to discover the reason of a slip; for an attempt to arrest the forward movement of a large mass will be futile; the disturbing cause must be ascertained and removed, or so lessened and controlled as to obviate further motion or deterioration; sand or porous strata, which may emit water uniformly, must be treated differently to earth which sets free water in a particular place, as also the same soil if it should be in a dissimilar condition. The object of all such works is to support, maintain, and drain the earth and prevent any accumulation of water in the slopes and formation, so that movement is improbable; therefore, water flowing towards the slopes must be intercepted and led away before it has time to percolate; and the method of discharging it must be governed by the position and nature of the soil, the chief aim of draining operations being to cause the earth to be always in its most consolidated condition. Without obstruction to the drainage, a general preservative is to cover the surface, and protect it against the deleterious effects of rain, frost and thaw, particularly in the case of soils which disintegrate rapidly under the influence of weather. Some of the means that can be adopted to prevent slips and subsidences in cuttings and embankments may be enumerated as follows. 1. Systematic drainage of a cutting, and the natural ground and deposited earth in an embankment, so as to augment its weight sustaining power and general stability. 2. A side ditch near to the foot of each slope, and at the top of the slope adjacent to the fence line. 3. Catchwater drains upon the slopes. 4. Wells, filled with broken filtering material, contiguous to the fence line and connecting drains with them. 5. Open timber trenches, strutted at intervals, and acting as drains and counterforts, at the toe of a slope. 6. A channel for the discharge of any water issuing from an intercepted field drain. 7. Tapping springs in the slopes or formation of a cutting, or that exist in the ground upon which an embankment has to be deposited. 8. The profile of the formation being made higher in the centre, so that water will flow into the side drains or water-table and not remain, due provision being made for its discharge. 9. Side drains being made before the excavation is commenced or deposited.