Report on the Trials of Implements at Bedford. 631 



on the coulter-levers, could not penetrate to a greater depth than 

 two to three inches. 



The distance of run was about 220 yards. Seven drills were 

 entered, and six were presented for trial. First thej were tried 

 with one bushel of oats and three bushels damped manure, with 

 the coulter-lever press-bar full on. Tlie attendant was made to 

 go on to the field with the coulters up, and at a signal given 

 by the Judges to let them down, and put the pressure on to 

 the levers, at the same time putting the seed and manure 

 barrels into gear. In the middle of the field the attendant 

 was obliged to take the coulters off the ground, carry them 

 round while the drill was being turned, and again let them 

 on to the ground. After this first run, two of the drills were 

 allowed to be withdrawn, namely, Harrison's, No. 852, and 

 Rainforth and Son's, No. 3358. In the second run one bushel 

 of wheat was used instead of oats, and after this, three drills 

 were selected for a third trial, namely, Thomas Harrison's, 

 Nos. 851 and 852, and James Coultas's, No. 2790, which were 

 now tried with dry superphosphate and coulters off the ground, 

 in order to observe the regularity of manure deposit ; at the close 

 of this, James Coultas's, No. 2790, and T. Harrison's, No. 851, 

 were selected for the awards. Each of these drills was now 

 changed from corn-drills into turnip-drills ; it being observed 

 how manv men were required for this operation, and in what 

 time it could be done. In Coultas's drill three men did so in 

 fifteen minutes, while in Harrison's two men were occupied for 

 forty minutes. 



The regularity of the seed-deposit from the respective coulters of 

 these drills is given in the accompanying Table (p. 632), where in 

 the first column we have the actual maximum, mean, and minimum 

 delivery into the bags, which were weighed ; these weights, 

 together with their greatest differences, being recorded in ounces. 

 In the second column these are calculated into the rate of lbs. 

 per acre, while in the third column they have been respectively 

 reduced to the rate of 120 lbs., or 3 bushels of oats, and 124 lbs., 

 or 2 bushels of wheat. It will be seen that in the first run 

 with oats the greatest difference per acre in Coultas's drill was 

 17*9 lbs., and in Harrison's 15*1 lbs. ; while in the second run 

 with wheat these differences were respectively 7 '8 lbs. and 

 13'2 lbs. : so that, on an average, Coultas's had the most equal 

 delivery. 



The different modes of distributing the manure consisted 

 in — 



1. As in J. Coultas's drill by a Chambers's revolving notched 

 cylinder, with inclined, laterally working stirrers ; and inde- 

 pendent steel-spring scrapers placed on the lower side of the 



