PREPARATION OF, FOR FEEDING PURPOSES. 197 



The mode of using gorse for food is either to cut it 

 into small lengths with the chaff-cutter, or to bruise or 

 grind it, by submitting it to some kind of crushing 

 power; as without some preparation of this kind cattle 

 will very rarely face it. There have been from time to 

 time several "crushing machines" introduced for the pur- 

 pose by our leading firms, simple in construction, and 

 very efficient in operation; they all, however, require a 

 certain amount of power to work them, and are gene- 

 rally rather higher in price, owing to their necessarily 

 powerful construction, than other machines for ordinary 

 farm purposes. The accompanying woodcut will illus- 

 trate the general principle upon which the most approved 

 machines are made, and the arrangement of the different 

 parts of the machine for effecting the purpose desired. 



The " gorse-crushing machine/' of which a sectional 

 view is given, is fed in the same manner as a chaff-cutter, 

 the gorse being taken from the feeding -trough by the 

 toothed feed-rollers (a and 6), the upper of which is kept 

 pressed upon the under by a lever weighted in the ordinary 

 manner. As the gorse is drawn in by the feed-rollers, it 

 is brought in contact with the cylinder (c), which, being 

 armed with knives, and driven with great velocity, cuts it 



