Clakke.] Report on Steam Cultivation. 237 



vation. In fact, the cost is " a mere nothing" compared with the 

 "value received;" the deep tillage of strong land is not accom- 

 plished by horses for as little as twice the cost here incurred by 

 steam. 



We saw the apparatus at work, deeply breaking up a stiff piece 

 ■of bean stubble with excellent effect, though the rains had at that 

 time (September loth) hindered most people wherever we went 

 from Ijringing out their steam-cultivators at all.* We need not 

 <lescribe Messrs. Howard's windlass, compensating double-snatch- 

 blocks, two-way cultivator, rope-porters, anchors, «Scc. ; but one- 

 feature in the apparatus struck our attention as a great improvement 

 upon the old method of shifting the anchor-pulleys. This was the 

 " Bulstrode " sling, by means of which the pulley, mounted on a 

 boat-shaped block of wood, slides from one anchor to another, 

 effecting a considerable economy of time. We observed that only 

 7 or 8 seconds elapsed between the implement stopping at the 

 end and starting again. The headlands are 7 or 8 yards wide, 

 and the practice is sometimes to finish off these by horse-labour, 

 sometimes to break them up by steam before setting to work 

 upon the surface of the field — the same plan is sometimes pursued 

 with horse-grubbers not lifted out of the ground for turning. 



Our remarks upon the farms in general were that everything 

 seemed well done, and that the ground was very free from root- 

 weeds and " vegetation :" the mangolds were particularly good and 

 very clean. One splendid field of mangolds had been grown without 

 farmvard manure, the artificial dressing being 5 cwts. of guano 

 and 5 cwts. of salt. This was one of the ievf first-class crops we 

 saw in all our journey. We must also compliment Messrs. Howard 

 upon their magnificent swedes and turnips, upon rather kinder 

 land than the majority of their property, though this particular 

 piece has not been at present drained. One piece of yellow turnips, 

 on newly-broken-up land, Avas patchy and defective ; while a 

 portion of the same field, which had been longer under cultiva- 

 tion, bore an exceedingly good crop of the same roots, put in at 

 the same time and in the same way. The stubbles everywhere 

 showed well — the heaviest wheat being after potatoes, and sown 

 in a steam-cultivated seed-bed. 



We have remarked in our tour how few employers of steam- 

 apparatus adopt a new system of culture along with the new 

 power. In many, or rather in most cases, the rotation of crops is 

 altered ; but in comparatively few instances (which will be found 

 in the course of our Report) did we find anything like so great a 

 change in the tillage operations themselves as prominent advo- 



* This field has not been touched since, and, notwithstanding the wet seasoi;, 

 it is now a nut-brown, mellow tilth, " like an ash-heap,'' ready to be drilled with 

 barley after no other preparation than harrowing. — F. H. 



