FARMERS' REGISTER— REAPING MACHINE— CULTURE OF ONIONS. SOI 



mend all who, wish to venlure in the culture of 

 the grape, to possess themselves of so valuable a 

 prize. 



After selecting the foregoing piece for publication, 

 we met with the following opposite opinion expressed 

 in the American Farmer of Sept. 20th, and which pro- 

 priety requires that we should also insert. The pas- 

 sage is editorial. The grapes on which this judgment 

 is passed were raised in Pennsylvania. 



[Ed. Farm. Reg. 



And lastly, a specimen of Norton's Virginia 

 seedling. In this latter grape we are very much 

 disappointed. We had heard it highly spoken of, 

 and in our last number we copied an article from 

 the Richmond Whig, which extolled it highly, and 

 we therefore deem it incumbent upon us to speak 

 of the grape as we find it. It certainly is very in- 

 ferior to many other native grapes. The berry is 

 round, black, f of an inch diameter. The bunch 

 small, berries loosely set, flavor a brisk but plea- 

 sant acid, not foxy ; slightly pulpy. It does not 

 appear to contain a sufficiency of saccharine mat- 

 ter to authorise its being called either a w ine or table 

 grape of much value. If the specimen before us is 

 a fair one, and if the climate of Pennsylvania 

 where it grew, has not made a wonderful change 

 in it for the worse, we are compelled to say it has 

 been very much overrated. 



REAPING MACHINE. 



From the Lexington Union. 



We have omitted until now to furnish our agri- 

 cultural friends with an account of a machine for 

 cutting grain, invented by one of our mgenious and 

 respectable county-men, Mr. Cyrus II. McCor- 

 mick, and which we witnessed operating in a field 

 of grain during last harvest in the neighborhood of 

 this place. A large crowd of citizens were present 

 at the trial of it, and although the machine (it be- 

 ing the first) was not as perfectly made as the plan is 

 susceptible of, yet we believe it gave general sa- 

 tisfaction. We have been furnished with some 

 certificates from several of our intelligent farmers, 

 which we have appended to the following descrip- 

 tion of the invention. 



This machine is so constructed as to leave a long 

 or a short stubble, to operate alike well on tall or 

 short grain. It is drawn by one horse walking by 

 the side of the grain in shafts — ^just behind is a 

 wheel about 2 feet 3 inches in diameter, which 

 runs on the ground, by which the machinery is 

 operated — having a cog wheel with 40 cogs screw- 

 ed to it. — There is a small wheel (with 9 cogs) 

 working in that, having another on the same shaft 

 with 28, which works another small one, turning 

 a small crank, behind the wheel, and from this 

 crank the knife receives a vibratory motion. It 

 is about 4^ feet long, with an edge somewhat like 

 that of a sickle (having teeth,) straight and pro- 

 jecting into the grain at right angles to the horse. 

 Behind the knife is an apron 5 or .6 feet long-, of 

 thin plank: and this frame connects with, and is 

 made fast to the frame which supports the main 

 wheel — having a slide, or small wheel under it to 

 support it, say about 5 feet from the main wheel. 

 Along side the apron, by the point of the knife, and 

 extending some distance before the knife, is raised 

 a partition of cloth for the purpose of dividing and 

 keeping separate the cut grain from that which is 



left standing. Then is a reel, as it is termed, which 

 is about or 7 feet in diameter, and the same 

 length of the knii'e — This is made by framing arms 

 in each end of a shaft, say 8, the points of which 

 are joined together by pieces, called ribs, parallel 

 to the shafts. — The reel is revolved as the machine 

 advances by a band from the main wheel to one on 

 its shaft, theobject of which is to draw the grain back 

 to the knife, which will be done whether straight or 

 tangled, upright or leaning, unless below an angle 

 of 45°, and lo throw it on the apron. When a suf- 

 ficient quantity shall have been collected for a 

 sheaf, the hand whoattends it, draws it ofi'the apron 

 with a rake. The grain is prevented from slip- 

 ping with the edge of the knife by pieces of wire 

 projecting before it within 1 or 2 inches of each 

 other. 



I certify that, having used one of Mr. McCor- 

 mick's Reaj)ing Machines on my farm, I can as- 

 sert that the Machine performs well on level, and 

 on steep land which is smooth, and that it will cut 

 one acre per hour. arch'd. walker. 



July 18, 1833. 



I certify that Mr. Cyrus McCormick's Reap- 

 ing Machine, with a horse, was employed by me 

 in the late harvest, and though I did not work it 

 much, I was satisfied with its work. I tried it for 

 an hour, and calculated what it would do for a day, 

 and found that it would cut in a day about 12 acres. 

 I done so more than once. The present year was 

 unfavorable for the trial, as the wheat was lodged 

 in the field. I was so satisfied that I bought one. 

 This pre])aiation was necessary : the ground must 

 be clean — free from stumps and large stones. 



jAniEs m'uoavell. 



July 18, 1833, 



I have seen Mr. Cyrus II. McCormick's Grain- 

 cutting Machine in operation for two seasons — it 

 cut for me this season. I think it will perform well, 

 where the ground is clear of rocks and stumps; 

 and will be a great saving of hand labor, and can 

 be so constructed as to cut much wider than at 

 present, and I think it well worth the attention of 

 the public. I think it will cut about twelve acres 

 per day, by being well attended. 



JOHN AVEIR, 



ON THE CULTURE OF ONIONS. 



From the Genesee Farmer. 



I have raised onions for several years in succes- 

 sion on the same bed ; but I have had none so fine 

 as those of the present season. The kind which I 

 have cultivated is called ' the top onion ;' and my 

 former practice was to keep the ' sets' over winter 

 and plant them out in the spring. Last fall I adopt- 

 ed a different method. Instead of stowing them 

 away in the house, I set them out at once, and found 

 them to winter best in the garden. I am satisfied, 

 however, that they ought to be well rooted before 

 the approach of severe weather; and this year, I 

 intend to have them in the ground before this note 

 can appear in the Genesee J armer. 



I have planted ' the top onion' in clumps, and 

 also at different distances. Those that grew close 

 together, have in no case been so fine as those 

 that stood three or four inches apart. The bulbs 

 in the head ought to be always separated before 

 planting. 



