210 



NEW ENGT.AND FARMER. 



J.m. 25, 1828. 



flat, about twelve niches lonff, aiiiJ seven an i one slate, a ul as safe agajiisl fire, iit tlieir first cost 

 half inches wide ; about three eijjhths of an inch I would be much less, the boardinjr would be saved, 

 thick ; the corners are cut off at the lower end, and they would he lai'l much quicker, being tight 

 and there is a knoB underneath in the centre at ayainst the weather, without the assistance of 

 the upper end ; that knob is about thiee inches | either mortar c cen)ent 



long and three quarters of an inch thick. The iih much esteem, I am, yours, &c. 



roof which is to be tiled, has no need to be board- 1 IVeslun, Jan. 22, 1828. J. M. G. 



and leading cause, which has brought many a 

 farmer into debt, into discouragement, and finally 

 to exile himself and family to distant regions, sel 

 dom to realue his hopes, and generally to the 

 great loss ol the community of which he was a 

 member. I am further led to the persuasion, that 

 agriculture will never reach amongst us to the 

 state of perfection, of which it is capable, until 

 our buildings shall be substantial and lasting, so 

 that they may be esteemed, as steady habitations, 

 for many generations ; and not, until then, will 

 landed estate be esteemed as it ought to be, and 

 reach its real value. The attachment of a people 

 to the spot of their abode, is in some considerable 

 measure, influenced by the more or less stability 

 of the buildings. The Arab lives nn 'er a tent, he 

 attempts no cultivation, and is always ready to 

 move ; the house and the barn of tlie Swiss are 

 substantially built ot stone, he cultivates- his hard 

 soil to a garden, where the soil is deep, he re- 

 moves part of it to a barren place to e.vtend his 

 cultivation, and many years often will pass away, 

 before a landed estate is offered for sale. I shall 

 close these remarks by observing that it is much 

 with our buildings, as it is with soire things of 

 the human kind, the top is the failing point, and 

 it is from thence that the general ruir proceeds ; 

 the leakage of a roof will at first settle on the 

 plates, then circulate down the posts to the cills, 

 and it is so that most of the barns go to destruc- 

 tion ; the shingling of a lar<;e roof, is a great, a 

 troublesome, and e.\pensive job, of course it is put 

 off, and delayed always too long. 



A full investig ition of the subject, which I have 

 attempted to sketch in this conimuniiation, will, 

 perhaps, convince many friends to the progress of 

 agriculture, that it would be proper, and expedi- 

 ent, for the agricultural societies, to offer premi 

 urns, and marks of distinction, to every farmer, 

 who should attempt to erect stone buildings. — 

 This great revolution in the manner of building, 

 must certainly tpke place in time, not only from 

 the propriety o.' the change itself, but certainly 

 from the nece<ssity of the case. Timber is wear- 

 ing away fa«t, the little that remains is oftentimeri 

 converted into firewood and other waste; the 

 timber es the first rate, in the eastern country, is 

 receding more and more from the water courses, 

 and from the sea shore, and old trees which were 

 considered a few years since, as refuse, now find 

 their way to the saw mills ; why then, not en- 

 deavor to accelerate the great revolution? It 

 would be as proper, and profitable, to give premi- 

 ums to assist to save the remnant of our timber, 

 by building with stone, as it is to give them for [ 

 planting forest trees, both measures would strike | 

 to the same point, and save the country from get- 

 ting unprovided v.-ith tho materials, which ship ; 

 building and various mechanical purposes require, i 

 The rapid erection of manufactories, all over the 

 commonwealth, has increased the necessity of! 

 saving what timber remains, since their water 

 works and machinery make a prodigious require- 

 ment, and for the first quality. The slow growth 

 of a white oak to its maturity, warns us of tho 

 necessity to look to it in time. 



Another measure which might assist to save 

 timber, would be to favour the introduction of 

 tiled roofs. We have abundance of clay, and it 

 woold be as easy to convert it into tiles, as it is 

 to convert pine, cedar, or perishable spruce into 

 shingles ; and it surely would be in the end more 

 profitabls. Tho kind of tiles hero alluded to are 



ed, but slats ma<le of common boards, about one; 

 inch and a half wide, are n lied on the rafters, at i 

 the proper distance ; on these slats the tiles are 

 laid, resting the knobs on the slats, which prevent 

 them from sliiiin;;, the courses t'len are laid, in the 

 same fashion as shingles, each ascending course 

 covering the joints of the precedinu ; their com- 1 



[To ihe Ediior oJ'the American F'armer.] 



POPE'S HAND THRESHING MACHINE— 



RRMARKS ON L A BOU R- S .\V I \ (J MACHI.\ES 

 AND PATKNT LAWS. 



Mr Editor, — I lately had an opportunity of 

 billed' w'ei'.^hVand"'adhesion7makuig' of the whole yawing an operation of Ihrt hi„^ rice with Pope's 

 cover a firm sheet, which nothing but a great »"'^'-'""''' machine— tUe exhibmon of which was 

 hurricane, like the September blow, would be toi-t-iilous ; but tlie result may b.- interesling to 

 likely to disturb ; in such a case it requires mere- ' "'"^ ''^"therii brethren « ho cultivau; that important 

 ly to lift the upper tile, to sli.ie under it a new staple; and being desirous to contribute my feeble 

 one, where it IS wanted, and rest the knob on the ' '^""'^^ towards promotini; the prosperity of our 

 g|ji, Wiiole country, the following stiteiiient and re- 



To introduce tiles to your acqu intance, better I ""' '^^ "^ suhmit-ed to your dis^,osal-to pass for 

 than by mere description, I had devised in u,y I w'at they may be worth. 



mind to have had'a number of them made, and to' About a year since, 1 was reque.-ied by Mr. Dab- 

 have requested of you, Sir, to have taken the I "'y' '''^ United States Consul tor the .f/zom, to 

 trouble of holding them at the disposal of such ' P''*""' O'"' "^ ''»/'«'« '"""' thr,s/,iag machines 



to,- a friend, who <-ultlvated wheal e.vtensively in 

 the wl ind of Terceira ; but as nn iscretion was 



gentlemen, as might feel an interest in 'he intro 

 duction (if ti.is mode of covering. Out I have found 

 a greater difliculty to get them made, than I was 

 aware of; the difliculty was, that in baking they 

 got vvarped, and after several trials during ,he 

 last summer, all I could get, that were straight, 

 are the lew which I take the liberty to send you 

 herewith, for distribution as above. They were 

 baked with other ware, such as pans and pots, 

 and had of course to take their chance among the 

 rest, without an adequate provision for their par- 

 ticular shape and e.'iigencios. Should any person 

 attempt to make a business of tile niakinr, he 

 would of course be prepared with suitable ar- 

 rangements, and surely would meet with no great 



relied on, F delayed a compliance liU within a few 

 wteks, when one of an improved construction ivas 

 pi?sented. With its performances on ri/f I was 

 fuly satisfied — the straw being completely clear- 

 edef gram with astonishing e.xpeilition, coiisider- 

 in; the small size of the m.ichine, aiiJ that the 

 iioving power was only one man. '1 here being 

 to wheat within a reasonable distance of Boston, 

 and the vessel that was to tie o'lt the machine 

 on the point of sailing, I told Mr. Pope that if it 

 would perform well on /ire, of which he had a 

 small parcel, procured from the south for the 

 purpose of 'esting his macnine, I would dispense 



difficulty, tile makinir in Europe being considered | ^^"'i ''^ action on wheat—ieeling confident from 

 as requiring no e.xtra ingenuity. In some parts of' "'^ ^^'^'^^ O" "J'^- that all reasonable expectations 

 England they use tile which have no knobs, but ! '^""''l ^e realized. 



one hole in the centre at the upper end, through . ^''^ the labour of one man to turn, and another 

 which they drive a small oak piii. These would to teed, this machine threshed ^Arce sAcauei, thirty 

 be very suitable for old barns in want of a new inches in length, in something less than a minute, 

 covering, because they might be fastened on the l^ffo'"'^'"? a peck of clean rice. It appeared that 

 boards ; upon new buildings, tiles with knobs '''e feeder was not more than half supplied with 

 should have the preference, because the boarding '"''terial, and that the same power would have 

 would be saved, and the tiles would be laid quick- acted on double the quantity within the time. I 

 er, and without risk, the repairs in case of need ' ""^t confess, that I was not prepared to witness 

 would also be easier. The rafters of a roof, in- so complete an operation. Considering the form 

 tended to be tiled, should be braced in proportion ;°f a panicle of rice, so essentially different from 

 to their weight. Tiles of a good quality, may be *" ear of wheat or rye,. I was apprehensive that a 

 said to last almost forever, and with an ouk frame POf'""" °^ '^c peduncles or foot stalks would 

 under them, a building might have a good chance '^''eak off and escape the beaters, or pass through 

 to last anu keep in repairs. If tile making should ; attached singly to the grain. But this was not 

 get into fa>hion, and the article offered at a fair | 'he case. Indeed it does not appear possible to 

 price, there can be no doubt, I believe, but such I 'hresh rice more completely wi'h flails, in the 

 covering would cost less than shingles, because I "sual way, than was demonstrated in this instance ; 

 the boards and the nails would be saved, and the ""'' 'f ^^^ may judge from the result of an exper- 

 knob tiles laid in a quarter part of the time requir- '"'•ent so limited, I think it may be safely estimat- 

 ed for shingling ; to these advantages you may ^^ that such a machine, with the labor of three 

 add their security against fire, which makes them '"en and a boy, will thresh from l.">0 to 200 bush- 

 a very desirable covering for all buildings in the ^s of rice in a day— and with the increased velo- 

 city, as in the country, and an object deserving i city which maybe attained by ti.e application of 

 great consideration with gentlemen engaged in j animal power, an ordinary mule for instance, dou- 

 ihe erection of factories. Wherever clay can be hie that quantity may be turned out. 

 procured, there they can bo made. Men used to Tho numerous threshing machines, and specious 

 work that article, as potters and brick makers, models of, them, that were exhibited to the Trus- 

 could soon initiate themselves into the art and tees of the Massachusetts Society for Promotion 

 mystery of tile making. They are as lasting as |of Agriculture, during a long period that I had the 



