FARM IMPLEMENTS. 129 



At the public trial of reapers at Geneva, fifteen years ago, 

 all the machines 'were very defective in the execution of their 

 work. The draught was very heavy, and the side draught even 

 in the best of them was described as killing for the horses. 

 There was not, at that time, a self-raker in the country that 

 was capable of doing satisfactory work. Five years later, at 

 Syracuse, some progress had been made in this direction, but 

 scarcely more than to make it certain that a self-raking reaper 

 was destined eventually to succeed. 



At the Auburn trial, in 1866, the self-rakers did better work 

 than the hand rakers, and they will very soon drive the hand 

 raking machines completely from the field. They had im- 

 proved in other respects to such an extent that they could 

 readily cut lodged and tangled grain, and leave it in a good 

 condition for binding. The side draught, which, in previous 

 trials, had been severe, was reduced to a very low point, some 

 machines showing none at all. 



The next demand on the mechanical ingenuity of the country 

 is for a self-binding, as well as a self-raking, reaper, and there 

 is strong reason to believe that this important object will soon 

 be attained. Attempts have been made to accomplish this, but 

 they have not as yet given general satisfaction. Perhaps ex- 

 ception should be made in favor of Carpenter's automatic Grain 

 Binder, patented by S. D. Carpenter, of Madison, Wisconsin, 

 who is thought by many good judges to have discovered the 

 principle on which an automatic binder, to be attached to the 

 reaper, is possible. This is a contrivance which binds with a 

 wire in bundles to be regulated by the character of the crops. 

 It does not materially add to the draught of the reaper. 



The automatic rake and the automatic binder, both attach- 

 ments to the reaper, must be regarded as the most important 

 recent inventions in agricultural machinery. Neither of them 



