803] Historical Survey 5 



One plow, in particular, is deserving of notice. It is 

 the plow which Daniel Webster, in the year 1836, de- 

 signed and helped to make for the especial purpose of 

 clearing up a certain field on his farm at Marshfield, 

 Massachusetts. 1 It was designed to cut a furrow from 

 12 to 14 inches deep and has been described as being 

 " 12 feet long from the bridle (i. e. } clevis) to the tip of 

 the handles ; the landside is 4 feet long ; the bar and 

 share are forged together ; the mould board is of wood 

 with straps of iron ; breadth at heel of mould board to 

 landside, 18 inches; the spread of the mould board was 

 27 inches ; the lower edge of the beam was 2 feet 4 

 inches above the sole ; width of share 15 inches." With 

 oxen to draw the plow and several men to help him, 

 Webster held the handles and cleared his stump x )atch. 

 Speaking of his work with this plow, Webster is reported 

 to have said : " When I have hold of the handles of my 

 big plow in such a field as this, with four yoke of oxen 

 to pull it through and hear the roots crack and see the 

 stumps all go under the furrow, out of sight, and observe 

 the clean mellow surface of the plowed land, I feel me 

 enthusiasm over my achievement than c .ies from i. 

 encounters in public life at Washington." 2 



Webster's plow, although no doubt somewhat excep- 

 tional by reason of its massiveness, as became the man, 

 is in fact, only an illustration of what was an every-day 

 affair. For, the blacksmith shops were the plow fac- 

 tories of that time, and farmers were accustomed to 

 having their plows made to order. 



It must not be supposed, however, that inventors of 

 the regular type were unmindful of the needs of the 



1 A picture of this plow is given in Roberts : Fertility of the land, 

 page 49. 



a N. Y. Agr. Report, 1867, p. 484. 



