32 



BRITISH HUSBANDRY. 



[Ch. II. 



The cx]teriiiieiUs made by Mr, Wilson liave been carried on with one 

 horse, guided by a boy, wliile the inij)lemcnt is held by a man ; and, from 

 his calculation, it appears that about five acres a day could be dressed, at 

 the expense of 5?. 6d. to 7^., or at Is. Id. to \s. bd. per acre ; which is cer- 

 tainly very far under the average expense of hand-hoeing ; but ho admits tliat 

 its greatest advantages will be found in situations where a sufficient num- 

 ber of hands cannot be j)rocured to meet the exigences of the season when 

 circumstances render expedition indispensable. In this view of it we agree ; 

 and we therefore annex the description given of it in the Transactions of 

 the Highland Society* ; though we think it much too complex, and are of 

 opinion that it might be materially simplified, without lessening its effi- 

 ciency. 



* " It consists of an outer frame of timber, measuring 4^ feet in breadth by 3^ in length, 

 and supported in the fore-part by two wheels of about 20 inches in height, the axles 

 of which are bolted to the lower side of the front bar, and to this bar also the draught is 

 applied. The two side bars are attached to the front by a hook-and-eye joint, 

 allowing a considerable freedom of motion in every direction ; they are also attached 

 to the hind bar by a mortise-joint and loose tenon, admitting of motion in a hori- 

 zontal direction only. The nve coulter-bars are attached to the front bar by a species 

 of double binge, having one joint moving vertically, and the other in a horizontal 

 direction, giving a certain degree of universal motion along with the side bars. 

 The hind end of the coulter-bars are connected to the back bar of the frame by 

 means of a bolt, which is fixed in the coulter-bar, but is made to slide easily in 

 the corresponding holes in the hind bar, the coulter-bars being thereby allowed to 

 rise and fall in the hind end. A slight spring is attached to each of tbe coulter-bars, 

 and is adjusted to act against the lower sideof the hind bar, thereby keepingthe coulters 

 at their greatest depression. The coulters are fitted to a mortise at about two-thirds of 

 the length from the fore end of the bars, and are fixed by wedges at the required height. 

 In front of each coulter a wheel of about six inches diameter is attached to each bar, 

 serving to regulate the depth to which the coulters are to work. To the hind bar are 

 also attached a pair of stilts or handles, adapted to the height of the man who directs 

 the implement. 



" Although the implement is shown with goose-feet coulters,, any other form may be 

 sid^stituted — as plain teeth — to act as a harrow for pulverizing or for covering in grass 

 seeds ; or they may be so formed as to earth up the crop if required." — N. S. Vol. HI., 

 p. 332. 



