The alkali stood on the ground in white patches here and there, and Claude hated the sight of it.

Cousin Harriet, however, was very enthusiastic about trying to reclaim this "alkali sink," so that it might bear crops.
Alkali extended over the fields of adjoining neighbors, and Cousin Harriet thought that if only her hired men could conquer her alkali patch, then the discouraged neighbors might think it possible to do something with such parts of their land, also.

So, one of the first things that was done with Cousin Harriet's "alkali sink" was to make some redwood drains, shaped like the letter V, and place these about three feet below the surface.

A "sump," or drainage pit, was dug, too, into which the drains might discharge the alkali water.

The hired men expected Claude to help dig the "sump," and it proved quite hard work.