STEAM CULTIVATION. 135 



and 4 miles an hour. With such power any reasonable 

 depth can be reached, and as the disintegrating power is, by 

 a well-established mechanical law, as the square of the 

 velocity, the soil is broken up with four times the mechanical 

 effect at 4 miles an hour, as in the case of a horse-drawn 

 plough at 2 miles an hour. 



In the words of the carefully-considered report of the 

 committee of the Royal Agricultural Society on steam culti- 

 vation (1867) "A culture deeper than it is possible for 

 horses to effect works a highly beneficial change in the tex- 

 ture of the soil, imparts additional efficiency to drainage 

 works, augments the value of the manure applied, brings 

 into operation certain latent properties of the soil which 

 much increases its fertility ; and it also fits land formerly 

 unfit for the growth of turnips, allows of their being fed off 

 by sheep, the operations of the field are economized, and the 

 growth of all crops is stimulated." 



" These are," says Engineering, " the remarks of a com- 

 mittee who had been labouring industriously for months in 

 examining the results of steam cultivation upon nearly 200 

 steam-tilled farms in all parts of England and in some parts 

 of Scotland, and are simply the deductions of the best expe- 

 rience. At the time of their report steam tilla,ge was not 

 only better but was considerably cheaper than horse tillage. 

 Now, the steam-engine, rope, and other tackle and the 

 attached implements have been very much improved, and 

 the comparison would be still more in favour of steam. It 

 would be something to save 2s. or 3s. per acre upon the 

 10,000,000 acres of tillage land in England yearly, and 

 experience shows that this saving of 1,000,000 to 

 1,500,000 can certainly be accomplished. But the greatest 

 gain is in the improved crops, due to thorough tillage, and this 

 may amount to an extra quarter of wheat, an extra 3 or 4 

 tons of turnips, or something equivalent, and, in this way, 

 the average crop may be increased possibly to the extent of 

 10,000,000. There are many recorded instances of steam- 

 ploughed fields yielding 2 or more quarters of wheat per 

 acre more than they did under horse tillage." 



No doubt the cause of steam tillage has suffered from an 

 indiscriminate use of deep ploughing in certain instances, 

 but that has been a misapplication of the power. 



On the other hand, in addition to ploughing and cultivat- 

 ing, great benefit is found to follow the application of steam 



