10 



Report on Trials of Plows. 



having a socket at the upper end, d, into which the fore end 

 of the wooden part is firmly wedged. 



Fig. 6. 



Fig. 7 IS the figure of an East Indian plow now in the Museum 

 of our Society at Albany. Its form has not been altered for cen- 

 luries, and in some portions of India it is the only plow in use. 



The Greeks, who always had a piece of history for every emer- 

 gency, tell us that Ceres, or Demeter, as she was called by them, 

 who was the daughter of Saturn and Ehea, and the mother of 

 Proserpine by Jupiter, was the iuventress and guardian of agri- 

 culture. The story goes, that one day as Proserpine Avas gather- 

 ing flowers in the fields of Enna in Sicily, Pluto came and carried 

 her away, to be the queen of the lower regions. Ceres Avas dis- 

 consolate for the loss of her daughter, and for a long period 

 devoted herself to searching for her over the whole earth. While 

 she thus devoted herself to this search, she neglected the earth, 

 which thus become barren. Jnpiter, and all the gods in succes- 

 sion, besought her to abandon the search and return to Olympus, 

 but she refused, and would not be consoled. At length the gods 

 persuaded Pluto to allow Proserpine to revisit the upper world, 

 remaining with her mother two-thirds of the year, while she was 

 still to return to him for one-third of it. Ceres was appeased by 

 this arrangement, and consented to return to Olympus; but ere 

 she went, she taught to Triptolemus of Eleusis the art of agricul- 

 ture, giving him at tlie same time her cliariot drawn by two 

 dragons, in which, by her command, he traveled over the whole 

 earth, distributing corn to all the inhabitants. Triptolemus, 

 under her inspiration, was the inventor of the plow. 



The Greeks had two festivals in honor of Ceres, which were 

 called Thesmophoria and Eleusvnia. The Romans, who were 

 greatlv devoted to agricultur(\ wore ai'dent worshi[)pers of Ceres, 



