STEAM- WINDING DKUMS FOE PLOUGHING, ETC. 133 



This is possible by using special ploughs, which are made 

 after the fashion of steam-cultivators. These machines were 

 invented and patented in France, and constructed in Eng- 

 land by Fowler, and in France by Bajac. They are made of 

 a very resistant iron frame, rounded at the rear, and narrowed 

 between the wheels, strongly braced with double braces, 

 between which the bodies of the implement are fixed. 



The bodies of the plough may be fixed in four different 

 positions lengthways ; the mould-boards may be so arranged 

 as to throw the soil towards the centre or towards the out- 

 side (Fig. 84). During this work the vines must be pro- 

 tected against any friction from the cable which might pull 

 down the stakes, or break the stumps. With this object^ 

 two arms B are fixed on the frame, and their width may 

 vary so as to bring the cable on the outside of the next row 

 of vines. The return cable is placed by the ploughman with 

 the aid of a special mechanism at the end of the arm B, and, 

 when the plough proceeds, it unwinds and places it between 

 the next row of vines. With this system, the return cable 

 becomes the traction cable ; when the plough has reached 

 the end of the row, the cable is simply thrown on the ground, 

 the plough pivoted round the wheel nearest the ploughed part, 

 and started in a new row, in an opposite direction ; the other 

 cable is lifted on the corresponding arm, and while the 

 plough proceeds, it is placed between the next rows as in the 

 first instance, ready for the return. 



Many of these ploughs are working in Algeria, and are 

 giving excellent results. They enable vignerons to plough 

 between vines to a great depth, which has the advantage of 

 allowing the water to reach the subsoil, thus keeping the soil 

 moist during summer droughts. 



With these machines, vine-growers will be able, not only 

 to create and reconstitute vineyards, but also to use their 

 winding-plant all the year round. 



