58 THE MASSACHUSETTS SOCIETY 



the French Academy he said that it would be well, 

 having by the process wrought out a perfect mould- 

 board in wood, to use it as a pattern for producing 

 working mould-boards of cast-iron, and expressed 

 intention to have such made for his own use. 



The difficulty everywhere had been that no two 

 mould-boards were alike; that the most skillful 

 plough-maker could not duplicate another's work, nor, 

 "except by good luck," repeat his own successes; and 

 that "when the makers of good ploughs died, their art 

 died with them." The merit of the discovery made by 

 Mr. Jefferson was recognized by both the institutions 

 named. An authoritative writer upon the subject says 

 that the credit to be given him must be restricted to 

 his demonstration that ploughs could be made by 

 rule, and to the actual discovery of one of the rules 

 that are applicable to the formation of the mould- 

 board. 



In an official printed list of persons recognized as 

 "original members" of the Massachusetts Society for 

 Promoting Agriculture, appears the name of Timothy 

 Pickering. At the date of the organization, and for 

 many years afterwards, he resided near Philadelphia, 

 and was also a member of the agricultural society of 

 that place. One or two communications were received 

 from him by the Massachusetts society at this period, 

 and after he became finally domiciled in this State he 

 was a frequent correspondent. He, also, was an ob- 

 server and student of the plough, but bestowed the 

 results of his thinking in conversation, and in letter 

 writing to friends, as opportunity might invite, with- 

 out distinctly claiming to be a discoverer of new prin- 

 ciples of plough construction, nor attempting anything 

 concrete in that line. In one of his letters he wrote 

 thus: 



