FARM IMPLEMENTS. 295 



stationary surface for the cut grass to fall and rest upon. This 

 is claimed, by its inventor, as a great advantage. In its work- 

 manship, also, it is quite equal to either of the other machines. 

 But the amount of draught required to operate it, makes it a 

 very severe load for a pair of the stoutest horses. Whether the 

 power is wrongly applied, or whatever may be the cause, the 

 fact is so. This, if there were no other objection, makes the 

 use of it to any extent, in its present form, entirely impracti- 

 cable. 



The four other machines were tried upon another lot of grass, 

 on pieces of equal dimensions, each in succession, both when 

 the grass was wet, and dry. This was a heavy crop of clover, 

 Timothy and redtop, mixed, some of which was lodged. Por- 

 tions of the lot were rolling, and the surface generally quite as 

 far from level as are our ordinary grass fields, so that upon the 

 whole, it was an excellent lot to test the machines. 



They were also tried on a meadow bottom which had never 

 been ploughed, where various natural grasses, both coarse and 

 fine, were intermixed. 



The trial, you will thus perceive, was a thorough one, and by 

 it we were able to form a satisfactory judgment of the merits of 

 the different machines. The remaining machines and between 

 which we were to judge, were patented or known as Ketchum's, 

 Manny's, Heath's, and the Allen machine, entered by R. L. 

 Allen. The owners of the Ketchum machine allege that Mr. 

 Allen has infringed upon their patent, and has no right to build 

 or sell his machine, except within the limits prescribed in a 

 license procured from them, and that Massachusetts is not with- 

 in those limits. However that may be it is of no consequence 

 so far as our report is concerned, for we did not regard the con- 

 sideration of that question as within our province, and it there- 

 fore had no weight with us. The Ketchum machine, entered 

 by Nourse, Mason & Co., has probably been in use longer in this 

 State, and is more generally known, than either of the others. 

 The one which they entered for premium difters from those 

 which have been built by them in years past, in having a driving 

 wheel of comparatively small size, wrought iron substituted for 

 castings wherever it was deemed practicable, and every tiling 

 about the machine so made as to reduce its weight. In this they 

 have succeeded ; their machine, with pole and whippletrees 



