270 



FARMERS' REGISTER, 



[No. 5 



tions the provision for such contingencies is no 

 small portion of the whole capital employed. 



It is this expense, other things being equal, that 

 is to be compared with the. cost of an engine, and 

 the comparison is favorable to the latter. 



3J. Aherevery precaution, damages from floods 

 are of constant occurrence, and their repair is ex- 

 ceedingly costly. 



4th. The delay caused by freshets, &c., produ- 

 cing a stoppage from the too great supply of pow- 

 er. 



5th. The delay in seasons of drought, when the 

 supply is insufficient. 



These last are most vexatious occurrences, pre- 

 venting work olten times when most is to be done, 

 and the uncertainty arising from the possibility of 

 such delays and accidents, is a constant care to 

 the manager of such an establishment, whereas 

 to the consumer of steam, the perfect certainty 

 of the amount and regularity of the supply of 

 power is a great auxiliary in conducting busi- 

 ness. 



For a steam engine, (he only use of water is a 

 sufficiency for the boiler; and in these days of econ- 

 omy of heat and steam, a very small quantity of 

 fuel is used, and but little water. We have seen 

 a rolary engine, estimated at 15 horse power, eva- 

 porating but 40 gallons per hour. 



6th. Delay in winter, and in our uncertain cli- 

 mate this may sometimes be considerable, and 

 in an establishment of great extent perhaps fa- 

 tal. 



To balance all these expenses, pecular to the 

 use of hydraulic power, there is, as far as we can 

 recollect, but one peculiar to that of steam, name- 

 ly, fad. Now in saw mills this expense is no- 

 thing, and in all instances much less than former 



Our persevering countryman. Dr. Nott. has al 

 ready succeeded in greatly reducing this item of 

 cost — and he does not yet appear to be satis- 

 fied. 



As regards fuel, Avery's engine has immense 

 advantages over others, inasmuch as the quan- 

 tity of water used is less than in any other case. 

 The elasticity of the steam operates more advan- 

 tageously than in any other construction, the 

 small quantity of water used being a proof of 

 this. 



In the engine above referred to, the cost for coal 

 was rather less than .^1 for ten hours. 



It is almost needless to observe that, in many 

 large eslablishmenis, manufacturies, &c., the ap- 

 plication of a portion of the steam to heating, &c., 

 nearly, if not quite, compensates the cost of fuel. 

 Tlie certainty and uniformily of this method of 

 drying goods, have lully established its superiority. 

 Indeed, in Ihe art of dyeing, certain colors owe 

 their brilliancy to the ra[)id and high heat of 

 steam, ami they could be produced in no other 

 way. While speaking of this use of steam, we 

 must notice an engine erected in the Astor Hotel. 

 This is a small engine of 5 horse power; its use is 

 to pump water from the dilli-rcnt cisterns to all 

 pans of the house — supply the baths with hot 

 and cold water — clean knives — brush shoes — roast 

 and grind coffee; and ihe steam cooks the various 

 dishes in the kitchen, and also dries the clothes, 

 which by this nuMliod of proceeding, are ready for 

 use with unprecedented despatch. To these and 

 numberless other uses is this engine turned, saving 



an immense number of servants, a great quantity 

 of fuel, and a vast deal of time. 



(The exhaust steam pipe of this enjrine is over 

 300 feet long.) 



One of the greatest advantages of steam pow- 

 er, in many cases, is, that it admits of change of 

 locality, without injury to the machinery, and often 

 with benefit to the employer. 



In this respect again Avery's engine stands 

 pre-eminent. The machinery is bcautifuily com- 

 pact, and consequently portable. An engine of 

 15 horse power is hardly a load for a horse, the 

 whole weighing less than 600 pounds. 



Let us suppose, that a man purchases a piece of 

 timber land, of prime quality, but unfortunate- 

 ly (as is thought) away fi-om any water course. 



Let him procure an Avery's engine; and this, 

 connected with his saw mill, can be placed upon 

 wheels and moved, by the engine itself, if he 

 pleases, to any part of his land. (Mills capable 

 of such an arrangement, and very compact, are 

 now easily to be procured.) 



Let him locate his mill near a spring, and com- 

 mence operations. The waste and rubbish, that 

 in most cases is a drug, is entirely consumed by 

 the engine; the ground is cleared, and nothing is 

 to be removed but the perfectly formed timber. 



Among other useful applications of such an en- 

 gine, in the forest itself j no one can be equal in 

 beauty of operation to the valuable stave machine 

 of Philip Cornell, N. Y. This machine promises 

 to be of great service. With such an arrange- 

 ment as that of the saw mill above mention- 

 ed, nearly if not quite double the usual number of 

 staves can be cut from the timber before transpor- 

 tation, and these are already dressed, and ready for 

 use, either for liquids or solids. 



These are only a ^q\v of the very maily useful 

 applications of this sort of travelling machines. 

 Others will suggest themselves to our readers. 



It must be very evident, that whatever brings 

 into use property of little or no value, enabling the 

 produce of such land to compete successfully with 

 that of much better, must add to the Avealth of 

 the landholder, or timber merchant, a sum equal to 

 the cost of the best land. 



Thus a greater uniformity of value would result, 

 and of consequence a more equal competency to 

 those on or away from great water courses and 

 canals. 



Our object is to draw attention to this question, 

 and we should be much gratified if any of our 

 fi-iends would furnish us with such information on 

 the subject as they may have at their com- 

 mand. 



This information from various quarters when 

 collected, might furnish results equally useful and 

 interesling — and we shall feel most happy in be- 

 coming the medium of their communication to the 

 public. 



From tlic Silk Cullurist. 

 PllICE OF CIIINESK MULBEKRY. 



The great advance in the price of Ihe Chinese 

 mulberry during (he i)ast year, liu-nishcs us wi(h 

 satisliictory evidence of the estimation in which it 

 is held, and of the eagerness with which the peo- 

 ple of this country are embarking in the culture of 

 silk. Last spring we purchased a few, which had 



