I 



Repoi't on the Trials of Iinplcmeiifs at Bedford. 663 



Section II. — Horse-Hoes. 



Class XIII. Horse-Hoes for General Purposes. — There were 

 twenty-nine entries in this class, and seventeen of these imple- 

 ments were tried. Being for general purposes, it was necessary 

 to try them both on turnips and corn. 



The first trial took place in a field of swedes on Mr. Prolle's 

 farm at Elstowe, where the soil was loose and clean, and the 

 rows were 27 inches apart. 



The second trial was made on a field of oats ; these were 

 considerably overgrown and full of bineweeds and thistles. 

 The whole field was also not equal as regards cleanness ; the 

 consequence was, that the last-tried hoes had much cleaner 

 ground than the first ones, but this was duly taken into con- 

 sideration by the Judges. 



In the turnip-field most of the implements were worked with 

 three hoes, namely, a duck-foot hoe in the centre and two semi- 

 duck-foot hoes on each side — \-t- \ / '\'\. and s:ood work 



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was made ; but in the oat-field few of these implements went 

 20 yards without choking up. Here, also, those implements 

 having single duck-foot hoes attached, left many of the thistles 

 uncut even in the centre of the interspaces ; they also did 

 not cut close into the edge of the rows, and frequently cut 

 up the corn unobserved by the attendant. Where semi-duck- 

 foot hoes were worked on either side of the rows of corn, fair 

 work was made, for the thistles and other weeds were cut close 

 into the rows ; they also kept clean, especially those where 

 the alternate hoes were placed well apart : there is, however, some 

 danger of cutting up the corn, if the implement is not very 

 carefully guided. Two implements were fitted with hoes placed 

 across the interspaces, being bent at right angles to the stem — 



L-_\\ 



but the hoes were placed too close together, and 



frequently choked up ; they, however, possess the great advantage 

 that there is less danger of cutting up the rows of corn with them. 

 The Judges were of opinion that for light soils the hoes bent 

 at right angles to the stem are best ; but for stiffer soils, they 

 prefer the chisel-pointed semi-duck-foot hoe : they also prefer 

 independent lever hoes to those fastened on a rigid frame. 



No. 972. Smith and Grace, of Thrapstone. — This is an independent lever 

 horse-hoe without a fore steerage, the horse being attached to a two-wheeled 



