501 



SCIENCE OF AGUICUI/lUrtK. 



II. 



tend to regain ili.it perpendicular position in which alone it is In a state of equilibrium. The upper hinge 

 should, therefore, be placed on the highest bar of tin- gate The distance between the centra ofthe two 

 cylindrical knobs of iron on d ma) in- 5 inches, which will be found sufficient to give a strong impetus 

 to the gate to (hut Itself. The power of ■ rate to .-.hut itself, in all cases, is a certain advantage, even 



where held- aie in a COUIM Of constant Cultivation, and a very obvious advantage where they arc kept 

 chiefly in gr.i>s There is no providing, in nrdin.irv ca.-os, against the carelessness of persons, who will 



rather Ua\c a gate open than undergo the little labour required to shut it. There is an apparent ob- 

 jection. Indeed, to this species ol gate, » hich Is, thai each time a cart or waggon passes, the gate must 

 not only hi' opened, but held open until the carriage has passed. The Inconvenience, however, from tins 



ot so groat in |'ii' ticc a- might lie supposed. It >- very rare that farm horses will not ohey the voice of 

 the driver, and pass N bile he hold- the gate open with his hand. Where the gate must he kept constantly 

 open, as when there i- a leading of corn or hay from the field, or of manure te 't. it can either he prnpjwd 



back b] a si >ne, or removed from the hinges, and laid aside till wanted; or ill inconvenience of this 

 nature may he obviated effectually, by sinking a stone in the ground, and nxing to it a simple hook or 

 latch, to which the gate ni.iv he attached when opened, 



" Tin- Intel* of a tint,- qj lAji/Wnd mustbemadeto open with as little force as possible To this end, 

 the spring e' , two feet in length, is fixed nearly at right angles to the piece of iron /), which passes 



through the head of the gate, and is attached to the handle by a joint or hinge fixed to the handle g , 



while the handle itsell is attached t" the hack of the head by a similar joint. The notch in the hori- 

 zontal plate, lor the reception of the spring, must be in the plane of a perpendicular from the upper 

 binge" 



3099. The dimension* of this gate are as follow: — "There arc five horizontal, one diagonal, and four 

 upright b.irs The hindmost of the latter, or, as it is generally called, the heel, is 4 inches by 3, 

 and the foremost, or head, 3 inches square. Into these are mortised the extremities of the hori- 

 zontal bars. The uprights, or braces, consist of pieces of plank nailed to one side of the gate, 3 

 inches hy ]}. The diagonal, from the lower end of the head to the upper end ofthe heel, is of thesame 

 dimensions, and is nailed to the opposite side of the gate. The heel rises a font above the upper bar, 

 the other uprights fi inches above it, and all of them project about 4 inches below the lower bar, which 

 again is 6 inches from the ground. The horizontal bars taper from the heel to the head, being 2% 

 inches square at their junction with the former, and 2J inches at their junction with the latter. They 

 may be bevelled a little at top. The length ofthe gate, including the breadth of the head and heel, 

 is |i feet ; the height over the hars .; feel 9 inches ; the distance between the heel and the pillar 5 inches; 

 ami between the head and the pillar 3 inches. The plate for receiving the spring ofthe latch is 11 inches 

 in horizontal breadth." 



3100. The best species of post or pillar" is a single stone of granite, greenstone, or any ofthe harder rocks. 

 In this case, instead of fixing the bands of the hinges into the stone, by running them in with lead, they 

 should he carried through to the opposite side, and fixed hy a holt or screw-nut When wood is used for 

 posts, any coarse kind, whether fir or hard wood, which is unfit for other useful purposes, may be employed. 

 For the gate itself, the best Memel timber only should be used. Spruce is liable to break, and larch to 

 warp ; and Scotch pine, it is well known, when exposed to the weather, is one of the least durable of the 

 pine tribe. All the mortises of the gate, and the parts at which the uprights and diagonal cross the bars, 

 should be carefully coated with white lead ; and when the parts of the gate are joined together, the whole 

 should afterwards receive two coats of paint Gates of Memel wood, constructed on these principles, and 

 with these precautions, have been known to last for thirty years, without repair, or tending to trail upon 

 the ground. Expense in all 21. 7s." (Quar. Jour. Agr. vol i. p. 727.) 



3101. The tresscl-bar gate (Jig. 506.) consists ot 

 two liars, one hung by a few links to each gate-post, 

 and in the middle of the opening, where the bars 

 meet, they are supported by two legs, like a tressel, 

 and may be padlocked, or fastened by a pin and 

 a few links, &c. In the promenade at Florence 

 such gates are made use of to close the larger car- 

 riage openings. 



3102. The slip-bar gate is, perhaps, the most 

 durable of any, especially where the gate-posts are 

 of stone, with proper openings left for the reception 

 of the bars. The only objection that can possibly 

 be made to the slip-bar gate is the trouble of open- 

 ing and shutting, which, when servants or others are passing through it in a hurry, occasions its being 

 frequently left open. In other respects, it is preferable to every other description of gate, both in the 

 Original cost, and greater durability. It is to be noticed, however, that upon the verge of a farm or 

 estate, especially where it is hounded by a high road, the slip-bar gate will not answer, as it does not 

 admit of being locked or secured m the same way as other gates ; but in the interior of a farm or estate, 

 it will he found the cheapest sort of gate. 



310 i. The chained slip-bar gate, though more expensive, is not liable to the same objections as the last 

 Here the bars arc connected by a chain down the middle ofthe gate, and therefore, if one bar is padlocked 

 to the post, none of them can lie moved till that one is unlocked. 



•3104. The turn-about, or wicket-gate, is only used in cases where there is a necessity for leaving an entry 

 for the people employed to pass backwards and forwards. This purpose it answers 

 very well, and at the same time keeps the field completely enclosed, as it requires 

 no trouble to shut it in the time of passing. 



3105, The double, or folding gate (jfig. . r >ii7.\ is considered hy some to be much more 

 durable than those ofthe swing kind; because the hars, from being only half the 

 length, render the joints of the gate not so liable to be broken, or the hinges to be 

 hurt hy straining. On the other hand, such gates require more time and 

 attention in the opening and shutting, and the latter operation is troublesome 

 to perform, when both halves have fallen at the head. These gates are not, 

 therefore, in such general use in agriculture as the swing kind; but they are 

 common as gates to parks, and other scenes of dignity and ornament 

 fl. Clarke's window-tosh gate Jig. 508. ia a recent invention, which may be of use in some cases, 

 hilly in farm-yards. It is suspended by two weights, and opens aud shuts exactly on the principle 

 ofthe window-sash. The weights may he of stone or cast iron, and the pulleys are of iron and nine 

 inches in diameter. It was applied in the first instance to a cattle-court ; but has since been erected in 

 different situations. Its advantages the inventor considers to be the following: — It is easy to open (b), or 

 shut (a) ; remains in whatever situation it is placed : is not liable to be beaten to pieces hy the action ofthe 

 wind ; shuts always perfectly close, whatever be the height of the straw or dung in the court or gateway ; 

 a cart may be driven quite close on either side before opening; is perfectly out of the way when fully 

 open, and not liable to shut on what is passing; the gate bottom not liable to decay by being immersed 

 in the dung, as is commonly the case with cattle-court gates; not liable to go out of order; may be 

 erected in a hollow place, where a swinging gate could not open either outwardly or inwardly ; and is 

 likely to be more durable than ordinary gates. A small gate of this description (Jig. 509.) is said, by 

 I.asteyric (Col. dc Machines, 8[C.) to have been long in use hy the Dutch. 



3106. 

 espec 



