CHAFF-ENGINES. 



CHAFF-ENGINES. 



by hand bringing it by small portions to the 

 front edge, where it was severed by a long 

 knife attached to the end of a lever, till in 

 1794-5 the Rev. J. Cooke of Holborn, London 

 and W. Naylor of Langstock, respectively ob- 

 tained patents for machines for expediting the 

 process. 



In the year 1797 we find Robert Salmon, of 

 Woburn, whose inventive talent and practical 

 experience added many and various original 

 ideas and improvements to the then limited 

 knowledge of agricultural mechanics, con- 

 structed a chaff-engine, which, although cum- 

 brous in its appearance, was effective in its 

 operation, and furnished the original idea 

 which was subsequently improved upon; first 

 by Rowntree, and afterwards by Thos. Pass- 

 more of Doncaster; the latter of whom, in 

 1804, patented the machine known as the Don 

 caster engine, upon the plan of which, for 

 many years, most of the engines in the mid 

 land and eastern counties were made ; and 

 even at the present time, few of the machines 

 in general use are found more effective. A 

 reward of thirty guineas was conferred on 

 Salmon by the Society for the Encouragement 

 of Arts, &c. for this improved machine. 



Passmore's machine was a simplification 

 and improvement on Salmon's straw-cutter. 



In 1800 and 1801, W. Lester of Paddington 

 patented a straw-cutter, which, with some alte- 

 rations, is much used at the present day, and 

 is known as the " Lester engine." It is a very 

 simple machine, having but one knife, placed 

 on a fly-wheel; the fly-wheel turns on a cranked 

 spindle, which communicates motion to a rat- 

 chet-wheel fixed at the end of one of the feed- 

 ing-rollers by means of a small hook or catch, 

 which is capable of being so adjusted as to lift 

 one, two, three, or four teeth at each revolution, 

 and by this is regulated the length of the straw 

 projected in front of the face-plate, and which 

 is severed by the knife. On the roller was 

 fixed a revolving cloth or endless web, which 

 passed over another roller at the hinder end of 

 the box ; a heavy block was used to compress 

 the straw. In the more modern engines the 

 rolling-cloth is entirely dispensed with, as the 

 purpose for which it was intended is effected 

 by the introduction of an upper feeding-roller, 

 to which motion is communicated by a pair of 

 cog-wheels, one of which is attached to the 

 lower feeding-roller before described; the heavy 

 block is substituted by a pressing-piece, which 

 receives its motion from the cranked spindle, 

 alternately presses down the straw previous to 

 the cut, and rises afterwards to allow the straw 

 free passage. The improved machine is made 

 of different sizes, and the larger are frequently 

 used with horse-power. 



This is the best modern chaff-engine ; it will 

 adjust and vary the work to the following 

 Jengths of cut: inch, $ inch, and $ inch. 



Butheli of fodder 

 per boor. 



At J inch it will cut from 18 to 20 

 4 40 to 50 



I 50 to 60 



Another chaff-cutter is made on the same 

 principle, but a size smaller, which 

 308 



Bushels of fodder 

 per hour. 



at i inch wilt cut from 



10 to 12 



30 to 40 



| 40 to 50 



A still smaller engine can also be had, cut- 

 ting inch lengths only, suited to gentlemen's 

 stables and small establishments, made entirely 

 of metal, and adapted for hot climates. This 

 will cut from 15 to 20 bushels of fodder per 

 hour. 



Passing by several, which in the course of 

 the next fifteen years were introduced, but 

 which, however ingenious, were too compli- 

 cated and cumbrous for general use, in 1818 

 we find a simple invention was patented by 

 Thomas Heppenstall, of Doncaster. It con- 

 sisted in the application of a worm to turn two 

 wheels, which in their revolution meet each 

 other. These wheels are attached to two feed- 

 ing-rollers, which convey the straAV forwards 

 to the knives. Two of these knives are placed 

 on a fly-wheel, which is fixed upon the same 

 spindle as the worm. This is the simplest 

 form of chaff-engine, and, with a slight altera- 

 tion, substituting wheels with the cogs on the 

 face instead of on the outer edge, is the com- 

 mon form for the small engines now in use. 



Two patents have also, within the last year 

 or two, been taken out for considerable im- 

 provements on this machine, one by Lord 

 Ducie in connection with Messrs. Clyburn and 

 Budding, two engineers residing at Uley. 



The only remaining machine we have to 

 bring before the notice of our readers, is one 

 for which a patent was obtained a few months 

 ago by Mr. Charles May, engineer of Ipswich, 

 a partner in the house of Ransome. We saw 

 this among the machines exhibited at the Royal 

 Agricultural Society's meeting at Cambridge, 

 where it appeared to perform its work admira- 

 bly. It is intended to be used by horse-power, 

 and is so contrived that cog-wheels of different 

 diameters may be placed on the spindle to 

 which motion is first communicated ; these, 

 working in different movable wheels upon an- 

 other spindle, will regulate the speed of the 

 feeding-rollers, so as to vary the length of the 

 chaff to be cut, from three-eighths of an inch 

 to three inches. Its capabilities are estimated 

 to cut 8 cwt. of straw per hour in half-inch 

 lengths. 



A chaff-cutter is indispensable on a large 

 farm establishment. This implement, as has 

 been shown, is either constructed with a good 

 deal of expensive machinery, or of very simple 

 mechanism ; it may be made up at the cost of 

 only 11. or II. 5s. 



Patent straw-cutters in great variety are to 

 be found in the United States. They are per- 

 haps in most general use in the Eastern States, 

 for which reason we extract the opinions of 

 their respective merits held by an Eastern au- 

 horty of high repute, Mr. T. G. Fessenden, 

 editor of that valuable periodical, the NewEng- 

 'and Farmer. In his very instructive little 

 volume, " The Complete Farmer," Mr. Fessen- 

 den makes the following remarks : 



"There is not only much saving and gain in 

 cutting fodder when hay is low, but the animal 

 is kept in better health", more particularly old 



