47 



jection to the ball and socket system of forming a joint ; in 

 its easy and varied motion it cannot be surpassed, — but 

 when made of a soft material, the ball, after rather a 

 limited use, works its way out of the socket, as it has in my 

 experience, in two instances, in this class of harrows (my 

 harrows have but little rest), then my pocket-book, at the 

 next purchase, pays for another style of joint, — and this I 

 found in the Climax, which thus far has proved itself to he 

 an excellent implement. 



Blake's Improved Danvers seed drill, when used with 

 care, no doubt is a good implement with which to plant 

 onions and such other seed as do not tend to pack togethe'*, 

 from the jarring caused by the movement of the machine 

 while planting ; but for use for many varieties of seed, it is 

 defective, having only a shaking motion. This is not suf- 

 ficient to keep some varieties of seed, carrot, for instance, 

 if it is not perfectly cleaned, from packing together over 

 the drop hole, and so clogging it. 



One must have either the force feed or those machines 

 which have a finger motion acting just over the drop hole, 

 and by keeping the seed continually stirred, keeps them 

 from clogging. The force feed implements are those which 

 carry the seed in sunken depressions (which can be made 

 more or less capacious by turning the screws which are at 

 the bottom of them), around the circumference of a wheel, 

 to a brush of bristle so arranged as to force them out. 



The Sargent machine, used largely in the vicinity of 

 Newbury, and the Willis machine, used in Arlington and 

 vicinity, are good illustrations of this class. The Mathews 

 seed drill is a good illustration of the agitator class. The 

 latter I have used for small seed for many years, and am 

 well satisfied with it. 



It must be borne in mind, when using any implement, no 

 matter how great its artistic excellencies may be, that a 

 machine is but a machine, and its success or failure will 

 always depend largely upon how much of brains the man 

 who uses it presents it with. I have two men planting 

 onion seed, side by side, and I can usually see plainly, 

 throughout the season, the difference in the result. 



