IMPROVEMENT OF SOILS. 85 



the end of the beam, for adjusting the draught or pull 

 of the horses. Let us see how it works. When the 

 . horses start, the ploughman lifts the handles, and the 

 point of the share sinks into the ground. Then 

 the ploughman's work is simply to guide the horses, 

 and, by means of the handles, to keep the plough 

 straight and level. The coulter cuts off the weeds 

 and divides the sod ; and the share, as it is dragged 

 forward, slides through the soil, and turns the part 

 cut loose by the coulter upon the mould-board. 

 Here the soil, or the sod if there is one, is turned 

 completely over, and falls upon the last furrow upside 

 down. If there is no sod, the soil loosened and 

 broken falls in a cascade from the end of the mould- 

 board. 



A good plough turns the sod completely upside 

 down ; it buries the grass or other plants out of sight, 

 and leaves the soil loose and broken on top ; it should 

 also run straight and smooth, and be easy to pull 

 through the ground. Ploughs made and used in this 

 country are among the best in the world, and in some 

 respects are the very best made anywhere. There are 

 many shapes and styles used for different soils and for 

 different purposes. Some are for one horse, some for 

 two or more. Some are on wheels, and the driver 

 rides on top, as in the sulky-plough and gang-plough. 

 There are ploughs for turning over wild prairie-lands, 

 and for moving light garden-soils ; ploughs for deeply 

 stirring the subsoil, and for making ditches. In Eng- 

 land, ploughs are often drawn through the ground by 



