264 Report of the Special Coiimjttee. 



VI. Does the skim-plow consume more or less power than the 



coulter ? 

 VII. What is the elasticity of cliiFerent soils ? 

 VITL. What is the influence of the wheel on draught ? 

 IX. What is the influence of the plowman on draught ? 



We had ascertained by previous trials that one furrow varied 

 very greatly in tenacity from another lying closely contiguous to 

 it, and this difference was so great that it sometimes required a 

 force of three hundred pounds to overcome it. 



It was, therefore, in our judgment, of great importance to 

 obtain a piece of land for the trials as homogeneous as possible 

 in its texture and as free from local obstacles, such as stumps, 

 stones and roots, as could be obtained. In order to guard against 

 interruptions from continuous rainy weather, it was desirable to 

 select land which drained easily and rapidly. The lands on the 

 Connecticut river, near Brattleboro', met these conditions more 

 nearly than any others with which we were acquainted, and the 

 trial was accordingly appointed for that locality. 



The plowing was done on the meadow belonging to the Brattle- 

 boro' Lunatic Asylum, which lies about ten feet above the summer 

 level of the Connecticut river, but w^hich is often entirely covered 

 by the spring floods. The soil is a sandy loam, somewhat stiffer 

 than is usual in that class of lands, and very full of micaceous 

 scales. It has been in sod for twelve years past; the grass, which 

 was chiefly blue grass, poa pixdensis, was very thick upon the 

 ground, and the roots were tough and thick. In some of the 

 furrows there were found thick masses of quack roots {Triticmn 

 repens); in others there was a great deal of hardback (jSpircea 

 tomentosa)] in some others, both kinds of roots were combined. 

 Although the general appearance of the meadow was level, yet it 

 was nevertheless considerably rolling, and it was found that there 

 was considerable difference in the draught of the furrows which 

 were turned so as to fall down hill or up hill. 



As examples of the differences thus caused, we refer to the 

 seventy-second experiment, where the furrow was turned down 

 hill, and the seventy-third, where it was turned up hill; the 

 difference in draught being 76 pounds in favor of the down-hill 

 furrow. The same result is also exhibited in the seventh-sixth 

 and seventy-seventh experiments, where the difference was 96 

 pounds. The difference between the seventy-fourth and seventy- 



