Clarke.] Report on Steam Cultivation. 287 



pump" placed when required at the nearest available point, 1 

 horse is able to convey all the water and coal — costing say 2s. (kl. 

 per day. Removal, if in the same inclosure, takes a couple of 

 horses two hours ; if to a considerable distance, it requires 5 

 horses, that is, 3 to haul the anchorage, and 2 to the plough. If 

 a shift be requisite about every fourth day, the sum for this item 

 will be less than Is. upon each day's work. The oil costs \s. 

 Coal is generally burned at the rate of about 12 cwts. per day, at 

 15s. a ton, that is, 9.<f. worth in a day. The total of these several 

 items is 22i-. per day. The ordinary performance per day (in- 

 cluding the time wasted in removals) is about 6 acres of 

 ploughing, 7 acres of digging (with prong-breasts on the plough- 

 skifes), or 9 to 10 acres of cultivating with the 7-tined implement ; 

 so that the working expenses are 3^. 8<i. an acre for ploughing, 

 35. 2d. an acre for digging, and 2s. 2d. to 2^. Qd. an acre for cul- 

 tivating. In a fine time, these average quantities of work are 

 exceeded, and they have "raced" 14 or 15 acres in a day, for 

 which the working-expenses would be only Is. 6d. or Is. Id. an 

 acre. What must be put to these various prices for repairs, 

 interest and depreciation, we cannot exactly say. The rope 

 (from what has been stated above) would scarcely exceed 4c?. an 

 acre. The area steam-tilled on this farm in a year (that is, both 

 first and second times over) is under 200 acres : may we guess 

 the repairs at Is. 8c?. an acre? If this be anything near the 

 truth, the whole working costs per acre will amount to 5^. 8c?. 

 for ploughing, 5^. 2d. for digging, and 4^. 6c/., 4s. 2c/., down to 

 35. 6c/. for cultivating. The engine does all the farm thrashing. 

 If we allot a portion of the cost price to the thrashing account, 

 and take interest at 5 per cent., on say 500/., and depreciation at 

 5 per cent, on the same sum minus the value of rope and other 

 wearing parts, say on 400/., we shall have a yearly charge of 25/. 

 for interest and 20/. for depreciation, or 45/. to be divided over 

 the whole acreage done, say an average of 45. Gd. an acre. But 

 not knowing the relative quantities of the different sorts of work, 

 or the number of days occupied in the year's tillage, we cannot 

 say how much more than 45, 6d. should be charged on each acre 

 of ploughing and digging, and how much less than 45. 6d. should 

 be charged upon each acre of cultivating, though we believe that 

 Mr. Savidge does three times more of grubbing and digging than 

 he does of turnover ploughing. We may, however, fairly put 

 the case in this general way : Mr. Savidge appears to us to 

 execute the tillage of his farm (contract-working, in which other 

 people must pay for accommodation and expedition as well as 

 for mechanical efficiency, more than they would give for ordinary 

 horse work, does not come into the same category with these home 

 operations) at the above working figures per acre ; while over 



