To remedy these defects the Swiss Government entered on the gigantic project of rectifying and deepening the entire waterway from the junction of the Lower Thielle with the Aar to the mouth of the Broye in Lake Morat. The scheme also included the cutting of a new channel for the Aar, by means of which it would be entirely diverted from its old course, and made to debouch into Lake Bienne by a straight and much shorter route. (See Sketch Map, page 23.) The hydrographical result of these works (which were begun in 1868, and only completed a few years ago) was to lower the surface of these lakes to the extent of six or eight feet. In the winter of 1871-2 the operations began to tell on Lake Bienne, but it was some years later before the others became sensibly affected. When, however, the works were completed, the permanent effect on these lakes, especially on Lake Neuchâtel, was very marked--harbours, jetties, and extensive tracts of shore-land being left high and dry by the subsiding waters. This was the harvest-time of archæology. Many of the lacustrine abodes became dry land, and were visited by crowds of eager searchers; even fishermen forsook their normal avocations, finding it more profitable to fish for prehistoric relics. Government at last interfered with this indiscriminate "howking," and passed a law restricting the privilege of excavating to the authorities of the respective Cantons on whose territories the stations happened to be. Thus the "Correction des Eaux du Jura," as the undertaking was called, greatly facilitated the investigations of the Swiss lake-dwellings, and contributed enormously to the elucidation of the culture and civilisation of their inhabitants. [Illustration: Plan of Lake-dwellings in LAC de BIENNE, LAC de MORAT, LAC de NEUCHATEL, and Correction des Eaux du Jura.] In the following descriptive notes of the stations in Lake Bienne I follow simply the order of their distribution along its shore, making, as it were, a circular tour of the lake, beginning at Nidau, and passing along its southern shore, then round to the other side, until we come back to our starting-point. NIDAU-STEINBERG.--This station was so thoroughly investigated by Colonel Schwab and his assistants that little remained to be done after the lowering of the water. The objects collected are both numerous and varied, and being among the earlier of the kind brought to light from the lake-dwellings, they have been fully illustrated by Dr. Keller. (B. 15 and 22.) Among them were some heavy stone weights, some perforated, and some with an iron hoop; discoidal stones, with a marginal groove; a variety of corn crushers, polishers, and hammer-stones, etc.