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THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



brought about this secession, and in no way so markedly 

 influential as in that connected with all their arrange- 

 ments bearing on the trials of the implements and 

 machines, and in the prizes offered for them. The imple- 

 ment makers have, indeed, great reason to complain of 

 the Society's conduct in these respects. They have 

 always shown a strong desire to grace the Society's 

 shows with the best and ablest of their performances, 

 and have gone to great expense in doing so, and they 

 have certainly some right to expect a deference to their 

 opinion and a consultation of their interests. The 

 Society has of late made some grievously bad steps 

 in the wrong, it behoves it for its best interests 

 to get back as speedily as possible to the right way. 

 For the interests of the implement makers, and alike 

 for the interest of the Society, we deplore this se- 

 cession. Let the Society, as representing the guide 

 of agriculture, do all it can, by rapidly undoing much 

 of its recent work, to heal the breach already 

 made, and not to widen it by lack of graceful conces- 

 sion, for the redress of past mistakes, or of generous 

 acts for the guidance of future labours. It is all very 

 well for the Society in its corporate consciousness, 

 or shall we say unconsciousness? — for bow often do we 

 see " bodies" perpetrate absurdities which the indivi- 

 duals composing it would not for the fear of ridicule or 

 contempt, dare to do ! — to assume a haughty and aristo- 

 cratic indifference on the subject. The truth really is, that 

 if the implement makers cannot well do without the So- 

 ciety, the Society can as little do without the imple- 

 ment makers. Working together in future as in the past 

 days of old, heartily desirous to aid the onward progress 

 of that noble and creative art all really love so well, 

 we prophesy great things for both; working separately, 

 with interests clashing and inimical, it is hard to say 

 what will be the nature and how great the extent of the 

 evils which we may yet have to deplore. If the imple- 

 ment makers have shown a too hasty readiness to 

 secede, let the Society remember that they have been 

 mightily provoked to it. Let both, by concessions 

 gracious and grateful, make up a peace which will be 



lasting in its effects, a peace which will be productive in 

 future times of triumphs as noble and as useful as those 

 which have graced their connection in times gone past. 

 The reader must forgive this digression ; but the truth is, 

 that the subject which has prompted it, bulks so largely 

 in all minds interested in the true progress of agricul- 

 tural mechanism, that it is impossible not to dwell upon 

 it when eligible opportunities offer themselves. But to 

 return to the plough trials, which, in point of fact, were, 

 as they were carried out, quite unworthy of the name ; 

 trials to make trials would be the most fitting phrase to 

 use, in writing about them. But if we have little to say 

 about the trials, that little being in another part of this 

 Journal, and by another hand, well said, we have some- 

 thing more to say about the ploughs, their nature and 

 construction, which played an important part in the 

 day's proceedings. 



In order fully to understand the principal features 

 of operation and construction of the Kentish turn-wrest 

 plough, it will be necessary briefly to glance at those 

 of the ordinary plough, the plough as we may term it ; 

 this distinctive title being, we think, fairly earned by it 

 from the fact of its being almost universally used 

 throughout the country ; the turn-wrest plough being 

 confined to a comparatively limited district, and that, 

 are we wrong in saying ? nay, we shall put it mildly, 

 and say, not the best farmed in England. 



The leading feature of the wheel or swing plough is, 

 as our readers know, its mould-board or turn-furrow ; 

 this always occupies the same position relatively to its 

 other parts, and its ofiiceis to turn the furrow slice over 

 at a determinate angle ; the slice being previously cut 

 from the bottom of the furrow by the share, and from 

 the land side by the coulter. Passing from the share, the 

 slice is taken up by the mould-board, and through the 

 medium of its varying outline, or contour, it is made to 

 assume a variety of positions, till it is finally laid over at 

 a determinate angle, this being generally 45 degs. The 

 following diagram, fig. 1., shows the various positions 

 which the furrow slice assumes. 



Fig. 1. 



Thus, if the line a & represents the original upper sur- 

 face of the slice torn and cut from the soil, I d re- 

 presents the land side cut by the coulter, and c d the 

 bottom cut by the share ; this shows the slice at 

 that stage, before the lifting and turning over process 

 commences ; at a succeeding stage the slice assumes the 

 position say &t e f, g h, the side fh corresponding to 

 h a, feto b d, and g hto c a. The final or last stage 

 is shown at ij k I, where what was the upper side (6 a) 



is now the lowest (j k) , what was the lowest {c d) is 

 now the upper side; I It corresponding to a c, and ij 

 to b d. A series of the furrow slices thus laid over 

 assume the position shown in fig. 2, in which all the 

 grassy or stubbly surfaces originally exposed, as the side 

 a S in fig. 1, are completely hidden or covered up by 

 contact with the parts of the other slices. A series of 

 seed-beds (a b c, c d e, e / g, and ff k i) are thus 

 formed, and a series of shoulders, as b c d,de f, and 



