THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



249 



inanas;e to accomplish half the allotted work. Mr. Collin- 

 son Hall, too, with a very high pressure engine, and com- 

 paratively light to travel, did but a very small portion of 

 his, whilst both the fields were finished wjrere the ropes 

 were used. At Chester, again, the fields where ropes were 

 used were completed, whilst Messrs. Boydell and Burrell 

 were from some cause hindered from getting to their work, 

 and Mr. Ricketts, of Buckingham, who exhibited a traction 

 engine with the long-wished-for rotary grubber in its rear, 

 was obliged to leave the engine in the field, with its work 

 only halt-finished, from the breaking of a chain. Warwick 

 again, witnessed the same results; the rotary cultivator of 

 Roniam broke down, so that in no one single instance have 

 the traction engines completed the work allotted them at 

 the shows of the Royal Agricultural Societj'. There is 

 another instance which I migiit mention, which occurred at 

 Lord Hatherton's in Staffordshire, at a trial ot different 

 modes of steam culture, where an engine of the 

 JMarquis of Staiford's working a rotary grubber, could 

 not travel at all on account of the rain, whilst Mr. 

 Fowler's, and Lord Hatherton's (who used Smith's tackle) 

 were making good work by the rope system, a sufficient 

 proof that the learned author of " Talpa, or the Chronicles of 

 a Clay Farm," in criticising our present mode of " pulling a 

 plough," although he did not admit to notice the law of gravi- 

 tation with respect to the sole of a plough, did so, on the more 

 momentous question of the weight of a steam-engine when 

 filled with water, and carrying in addition a supply for use, 

 together with fuel, and the weight of the rotary cultivator, 

 which is to he six feet in width. I have no hesitation in say- 

 ing, from having witnessed the greater part of these trials, that 

 except on comparatively level ground, it can never be accom- 

 plished, and moreover, even there it cannot be done, except 

 assisted by the endless railway. It is but fair on the part of 

 Mr. Boydell, to observe that his engines have proved them- 

 selves capable of drawing great and heavy loads, and he has 

 always been in the rear at the trials of the R. A. S. for the 

 want of a suitable implement to work with. With respect to the 

 implements used and the effect produced by the avoidance of 

 compression with the horses' feet, a few observations will suf- 

 fice, as I consider it needless to note any but those in use by 

 the rope system. Mr. Fowler abides by his original plough, 

 which he alters into a grubber when required, by removing the 

 bodies, aud substituting a flat fia, which leaves the soil in a 

 beautiful condition. Mr. Smith still sticks to his cultivator or 

 smasher, and his double tom for ridging. I use my own cul- 

 tivator, which I consider the best for all purposes, on account 

 of its independent action from the framework, and I think 

 Mr. Chandler will agree with me, that the work I did with my 

 cultivator for his brother-in-law, at Hdcot, could not have been 

 done by any other implement in existence. My ploughs, 

 though one would differ from Mr. Fowler's, inasmuch as every 

 plough is separate and distinct from each other, and they make 

 capital work. Mr. Coleman has brought out a strong and 

 powerful grubber on the principle of his scarifier, but it is much 

 too heavy for the width it takes. Messrs. Chandler and 

 Oliver, have invented a plough, which was exhibited at War- 

 wick ; it consists of three rigidly fixed ploughs in a frame, 

 working on the lever principle within another frame, but to 

 enable them to work well they have placed them so close toge- 

 ther, that unless the soil be perfectly dry and free from filth, 

 I am certain they cannot work without choking, and which I 

 saw from the report of the Long Sutton trial which lately took 

 place, was the result. With regard to the economy of the work 

 hitherto accomplished, of course to a great extent it has 

 been experimental, and consequently so far has beeu 

 costly ; but enough has beeu done in trials, and 

 during the laat twelve mouths by the tackle now 

 sent out to many first-class practical farmers, to show that 

 in addition to the superior manner in which all the work is 

 completed, and the labour subsequently required to induce the 

 soil to a good tilth being lessened by a full third, the plough- 

 ing and cultivating is still done at less cost than by horses. At 

 the trial of Mr. Fowler's " round-about system" at Mr. 

 Fisher Hobbs', the judges of the R.A.S. put his work at Ta. 

 2§d. per acre, and calculated that horses would have done it 

 for 78. Now, allowing that horses could have done it at that 

 price, even here was a very close run ; and at Chester the vic- 

 tory of steam over horses was so complete that I will give you 

 a few extracts from the judges' report, at the same time ob- 



serving that I have, for the sake of brevity, omitted every 

 part 1 possibly could to render it intelligible. " The daily 

 working of Fowler's machine we estimated at 28. 6d. ; these 

 results enable us to give the cost of ploughing by Fowler's 

 machine, of light land at 6s. per acre. 



According to the rate of work done in trials, or 



taking six acres per day as the average, at .... 7s. 2d. 



Of heavy land, at Qs. 2d. 



Of trenching ditto, at 18s. 4d. 



our estimate of the quality and value of the work thus per- 

 formed is, that the light land could not have been done by 

 horse power for less than 8s. per acre ; that the heavy land 

 could not have been ploughed by horse power for less than 128. 

 6d. per acre; and that the trenching by manual labour, with 

 the spade and grafting tool, could not have been done for less 

 than lOd, per pole, or £6 13s. 4d. per acre, and then only in a 

 very inferior manner. Smith's system of cultivation, as exhi- 

 bited by Messrs. Howard, requires two operations. The prin- 

 cipal trials took place on the heavy land at Blacon, when four 

 acres three roods were gone over by the first operation with 

 the smaller cultivator (three tined), taking a breadth of twenty- 

 six inches, in ten hours thirty- seven minutes. In the second 

 operation, with the five tined cultivator, taking a breadth of 

 forty-eight inches, four acres three roods thirty-three polea 

 were flmshed in four hours fifty minutes, which, inclusive of 

 stoppages, &c., gave a result of work completed by the two 

 operations of about five acres in fifteen hours, or three and a- 

 half acres per day. The daily working expenses of this ma- 

 chine are £2 6s. 9d. This shows that the work was done at 

 a cost of fourteen shillings per acre, while to effect a similar 

 result with the ordinary implements and horse power, three 

 distinct operations would be required, which could not be per- 

 formed at less than eighteen shillings and sixpence per acre. 

 We wish it to be distinctly understood that throughout the 

 trials we have charged the machines with the maximum of 

 working expences, and have credited them with the maximum 

 value for the work performed. From the foregoing result of 

 the trials, intrusted to our decision by the council of the 

 R.A.S., and conducted throughout under our immediate super- 

 vision, it is beyond question that Mr. Fowler's machine is 

 able to turn over the soil in an efficient manner at a 

 saving, a a compared with horse labour, on light land, 

 2^ toi /(Tcent. ; on heavy land, 25 to 30 per cent.; 

 and in trenching, 80 to 85 per cent.; while the soil 

 in all cases is left in a far more desirable condition 

 and better adapted for all the purposes of husbandry. We 

 are, therefore, unanimously of opinion that he is fully en- 

 titled to the prize of £500, and we now give our award 

 accordingly." Signed b}' the four judges. The judges in 

 their report at Stirling, where Mr. Fowler was awarded the 

 £200 prize, speak of the economy of the steam-plough over 

 horses as equal to £1 per day; whilst several gentlemen 

 who have tried Mr. Fowler's plan, all speak to the economy as 

 well as the efficiency of the work they have done. A letter 

 from Mr. Redman, the only person I know of that has had 

 any material trouble with his tackle, I will read to you, that 

 j'ou may form your own opinion, how satisfied even he is 

 with steam culture: — "Overton, 26th Dec, 1859. — Mr. 

 Williams— Dear Sir, — In reply to your enquiries respecting 

 my steam ploughing this season, I beg to state thatm con- 

 sequence of the old set or windlass part giving way (which 

 was of the original construction), we were left without a set 

 for some time ; Mr. Fowler then sent an eight-horse set 

 which ploughed aboitt40 acres ; Mr. G. Pocock, of Bourton, 

 also kindly lent me his lO-horse set, and ploughed nearly 

 the like quantity ; this completed my ploughing for wheat, 

 with the exception ofa few acres of after turnips, which went 

 in healthy and well. The eight-horse set went to another 

 farm, and Mr. Pocock had his away ; also, consequently, 

 I have a good part of my fallow land to plough, which! 

 mean to reserve till I get my new set of 12-horse tackle next 

 month. I am fully persuaded that should steam cultivation 

 (and I am in favour of the turn-over system) will be the 

 rule, and not the exception, on large heavy -land farms. The 

 soil is left in a very different state by this new application 

 than when trodden and poached by animals, as it must be on 

 some lands this season. I am as satisfied as ever I have been 

 with steam culture, and would not be without it on any ac- 

 count ; if any part of this statement of facts is useful to you I 



