74 THE SOILS AND CEOPS OF THE FAEM. 



ment. The story of its development forms one of the 

 most iaterestiag pages in the history of agriculture. 

 Many attempts have been made to introduce substi- 

 tutes for it, and these have been largely successful so 

 far as cultivation of the soil while crops are growing 

 is concerned; but the plow is still the chief reliance in 

 preparing soils for crops. 



The modern plow cuts, lifts, and turns a furrow. 

 Sometimes it does a good deal in the way of 

 breaking up and pulverizing the furrow slice. There 

 is much difference as regards this last point be- 

 tween the common practice in the United States 

 and in England. American plows, especially those 

 designed for use" in loose soils, take a wide and 

 comparatively shallow furrow, crumbling the earth 

 in stubble land, sometimes leaving it in fair con- 

 dition for seeding without further tillage. Eng- 

 lish plows, as a rule, take a narrower and deeper 

 fuiTow and the effort is made, especially in autumn 

 plowing, to expose as much surface to the air as pos- 

 sible, by laying the furrow slice at an angle of about 

 forty- five degrees. Nine inches is a common width of 

 furrow slice in England; twelve, fourteen or sixteen 

 inches, the latter for three-horse plows, are common in 

 the United States, especially in prairie soils. An acre 

 to an acre and a quarter is counted a good day's work 

 in plowing in England. In this country, twice as 

 much is often done with a pair of horses. 



Plows have been much improved in recent years. 

 The draft has been reduced and the quality of work 

 done improved. But the best plows are not perfect 

 working implements. Plowing is relatively slow and 

 costly work. A man and team will go over a greater 



