Putting Alcohol to Work on the Farm 



The stuff that destroys brawn and brain prom- 

 ises to be the inexhaustible fuel of the future 



PROMISING to be on land what our 

 great fleet of new steel ships will be to 

 England on the seas, the Ford farm 

 tractor shown in the accompanying illustra- 

 tion has been presented to the British 



cendency of machinery over manual labor. 

 Besides the light weight and cheapness of 

 the Ford tractor, its main characteristic 

 is its ability to burn alcohol and kerosene 

 with the same ease as gasoline. The supply 



Drivinqaxle 



The tractor which is run by alcohol. The motor is exactly similar to that used on the Ford 

 automobile, except that it is larger and heavier. Kerosene can also be used as fuel 



government for use in raising England's 

 crops during the coming season, even before 

 a single one has been sold in this country. 

 Shortly after America's entrance into the 

 war, Mr. Ford cabled the complete specifi- 

 cations to the British government and 

 offered to build the parts for a thousand 

 such tractors in a new plant in Cork, 

 Ireland. Although this raised a storm of 

 protest on the part of British agricultural 

 machinery makers who were afraid that 

 America would obtain a firm foothold in the 

 British market, the plan is proceeding 

 rapidly. It is expected that the simplicity 

 and cheapness of the Ford Agrimotor will 

 make it possible for this year's crop in 

 England to be harvested more expedi- 

 tiously than ever before, because of the as- 



of alcohol is as limitless and inexhaustible 

 as the air and water, while the supply of 

 gasoline and kerosene is growing smaller 

 and smaller every year with no natural 

 process of replacement that scientists can 

 discover. Thus it may be that the havoc 

 which alcohol has wrought in the past may 

 be offset by the good it will accomplish 

 when utilized as a fuel not only for farm 

 tractors but for all forms of vehicles with 

 internal-combustion engines. When that 

 day dawns breweries will still be making 

 alcohol but not for drink, and there will be 

 motor cars in numbers beyond present belief. 

 The motor used on the tractor is exactly 

 similar to that used on the present Ford 

 passenger automobile, except that it is 

 considerably larger and heavier. 



229 



