THE FARMER'S MAGAZINE. 



181 



THE FORTHCOMING TRIAL OF STEAM-CULTIVATORS. 



THE LEEDS MEETING. 



Bt a Pbactical Farmer. 



Amongst the many and highly satisfactory improve- 

 ments adopted this year by the Royal Agricultural 

 Society of England, is the one relative to the steam- 

 plough and cultivator trials. There is much common- 

 sense and practical business in it. I have often blushed 

 to see the unbusiness-like manner of these trials. Upon 

 land as hard as a flint, or, it may be, stiff and brittle as 

 hard wax, or as adhesive and clung as gutta-percha, or, 

 again, as wet and soft as mud, have these powerful im- 

 plements been set to work for the purpose of testing 

 their invaluable powers, and to prove their relative 

 merits and qualifications ; verily, there is a time for 

 everything. I rejoice that at last we are likely to have 

 a fair and proper trial at the ensuing Leeds Meeting, or 

 in reality some few weeks prior to its commencement. 

 Owing to the indefatigable exertions of " Jno. Foioler," 

 the implement committee recommend that these 

 trials take place in April, and upon an extent of land 

 comprising about three hundred acres. Now, in this 

 arrangement there is breadth, scope, and time enough 

 for a good and correct trial ; and I trust suitable land 

 can be procured to test each competitive implement in 

 all its adaptations. 



For this purpose land of various kinds should be ob- 

 tained, heavy land for heavy work, light land for lighter 

 work ; for we want steam-cultivation adapting to every 

 kind of soil, from the most retentive waxy clay, to the 

 light bowing sand, or fenny moorland. It is pi'eposter- 

 ous to cultivate light peaty land, or light gravelly soils, 

 or sandy soils with Fowler's ponderous ploughs. We 

 want to see the various inventions for cultivating by 

 steam-power proved on every variety of soil that can be 

 conveniently procured, so that each visitor shall have 

 the opportunity of forming an opinion as to the pre- 

 ference for his own occupation ; for, after all, this is the 

 practical bearing of the whole trial. Judges are all 

 very well, and exceedingly useful in their departments ; 

 but I, for instance, prefer seeing the work performed 

 myself, and can then, better than any judge can tell me, 

 decide which system or which implement is best adapted 

 for cultivating my farm. This is the opinion of the 

 majority of farmers, and therefore sufficient time and 

 every publicity ought to be given as to the day end 

 place of trial. 



I am aware that some difficulty will arise here, be- 

 cause the evident meaning of these protracted and ex- 

 tensive trials is, that they shall be conducted when the 

 land is in a proper state for working. The notice will 

 therefore be somewhat indefinite, like the advertise- 

 ments announcing the sailing of the good ship so-and-so, 

 wind and tide permitting. However, the land does not 

 either hsrden or soften in a day, so that a reasonable 



notice can be depended upon, to be announced through 

 the leading agricultural papers and local press, and one 

 or two daily papers. Farmers will be on the look out, 

 and v/ill not fail to observe the notice as soon as out, 

 whether it be to postpone the trial or noticing its pro- 

 gress. In this way the press is highly useful in diffiu- 

 sing information, so that the public, through the press, 

 will quickly leara the state of the various trials, and 

 where the different implements are at work. 



As to the adjudications :,The judges have not only to 

 adjudicate the prizes, but they have to make a full and 

 comprehensive report of all the proceedings ; hence I 

 consider it to be requisite for the judges to be present 

 during the whole of the trials. Certainly, for their 

 personal convenience, a day or two might intervene, to 

 give them an opportunity of attending to their own 

 concerns ; but I conceive that during the time of the 

 competitive trials they ought to be present. At the 

 Chester Meeting, several of the judges were detained 

 seven or eight days, and some of them were laboriously 

 engaged from six o'clock in the morning till nine o'clock 

 at night, testing thrashing-machines and other machinery. 

 It is true, competent individuals might be engaged, to 

 weigh coal, take time, note stoppages, measure work 

 performed in a given time, and other matter, and leave 

 the judges to decide upon the work done. I cannot 

 conceive this would be satisfactory to the public ; this 

 work must of course be done, but it ought to be done 

 under the especial supervision of the judges, who are 

 alone responsible for the correct conduct of the trials, 

 and the results. The judges must be not only com- 

 petent, but industrious, and closely observant of every 

 circumstance. 



The Trials. — The Preliminary Arrangements : It 

 will be necessary for the Society to provide a friction 

 break and two dynamometers ; one of the latter to test 

 the power required to draw the rope and pulleys sepa- 

 rately, and the other should possess sufficient strength 

 to test the draught of the most powerful steam-plough 

 or cultivator. I have the pleasure to know that such a 

 one can now be procured. Mr. Bentall, to whom agricul- 

 turists are already much indebted, has constructed one of 

 great capacity, registering a draught of four tons, which 

 surely will be test enough for any reasonable work. 

 The friction break would of course be required to test 

 the engines before starting. This done, the next thing 

 is the work to be performed. Well, what does a farmer 

 require to be done ? Common ploughing, deep plough- 

 ing, subsoil ploughing, trench ploughing, and ridge 

 work or ploughing. He also requires his stubble land 

 to be " smashed up," as Mr. Smith calls it, and subse- 

 quent! j well working by cross -scarifying or cultivating, 



