1862. 



NEW ENGLAND FARRIER. 



411 



ing competition better than in the distribution of; 

 these books. Indeed, I have heard half-a-dozen | 

 saj', already, that "that's the kind of premium they 

 would like." Its pecuniar}' value to trade upon j 

 would not, of course, be as great as that of a ten j 

 or twenty dollar gold piece. It is not the object i 

 of these societies to increase one's financial funds ; 

 in the amount of their prizes, but rather, to bestow I 

 memorials of merit — heir-looms, in whose web fu- j 

 ture generations may see the results of ancestral j 

 enterprise ; dead capital laid up to look at and 

 used only on holidays. Such a book is a noble 

 rewai'd for successful effort — a cruse of oil from 

 which any quantity may be taken daily, yet none 

 the less remains, and the book and its teachings 

 go down to posterity a beautiful legacy to the 

 worth of those who acquired it. W. Bacon. 

 Richmond, 18G2. 



AGEICULTUIIAI. IMPLEMENTS AHD 

 MACHIISrEBY. 



There are many farmers now in the dally use of 

 approved agricultural implements and machiner}', 

 who began their business with the use of the most 

 limited, heavy and awkward tools. 



The shoveh were made of wood, with the ex- 

 ception of a strip of iron across the bottom, split, 

 80 as to admit the thin, wedge-like wood, and then 

 the iron hammered down and fastened. The ex- 

 tra labor required to use them must have been 

 equal to one-third of the effort necessary to ac- 

 complish a fair day's work. When the material 

 to be removed was wet, it would cling to the 

 wooden blade with such tenacity as to make the 

 work of separating it a heavy and laborious task, 

 and frequently would entirely prevent the oj)erator 

 from separating it from the shovel. In conse- 

 quence of this, he was not able to throw the loam 

 or manure several feet into a cart or upon a bank, 

 as he can with one of the smooth and light steel 

 shovels of the present day. 



The iron-tooth rakes were made by the village 

 blacksmith, and were cumbersome and unwieldy 

 things, rather better calculated for harrowing, 

 than for raking. 



The pitcliforks were made at the same forge ; 

 they had two tines, with material enough in them 

 for four — were w^ithout proper pitch or symmetry, 

 and did not impart that cheerfulness and elastici- 

 ty to the mind, which a light, well-balanced im- 

 plement never fails to do, in the hands of an am- 

 bitious workman. The handles to both rake and 

 foi-k were wrought out at the wheelwright's shop, 

 or on the farm itself, and in their proportions cor- 

 responded with the iron parts. 



The koe, also, was many ounces too heavy, was 

 uncouth in form and pitch, and so rough as to 

 cause the soil always to cling to it when wet. 

 This implement was also made at the village forge. 

 The blade was formed, and then the eye ham- 

 mered out on the horn of the anvil — instead of be- 

 *""• ",Toc=.afi jr, a "die," as we believe is now done 



— and then welded to the blade. The work was 

 probalily as well done as ought to be expected un- 

 der the circumstances. But when done the best, 

 the implement was anything but a convenient and 

 pleasant tool. Its great objection, however, was 

 its weight. A middling sized hoe, made of light 

 and tough materials, will weigh two and a half 

 pounds, handle and all ; and such a hoe has all 

 the strength that is necessary for use on common 

 soils. On stony, clayey and compact land, a half 

 pound, or even a pound more weight might be re- 

 quired. 



Now suppose that two ounces extra be added 

 to the two and a half pound hoe, and the person 

 using it works twelve hours a day. Standing by 

 a man hoeing on old land, we found that he aver- 

 aged 50 strokes per minute, where there were no 

 v\eeds to be taken out by hand. That would give 

 3000 strokes per hour, and 36,000 in a day of 12 

 hours, making an aggregate of 72,000 ounces 

 moved during the time. Dividing this by 16 — 

 the number of ounces in a pound — we find that 

 the man using the hoe that weighs two ounces too 

 much, that is, more than is necessary, raises about 

 18 inches from the ground four thousand and Jive 

 hundred pounds, or two and one-quarter tons per 

 day! 



It may be said that the superior weight, when 

 once raised, will fall with more power, and cause 

 the hoe to penetrate the soil more than if it were 

 lighter. This may be so, but it requires greater 

 care and strength to direct the motions of a heavy 

 body, than a light one, and this will offset this 

 claim. To test the advantage of having a hoe 

 possess just the weight and strength to perform 

 the work required of it, let the operator attach a 

 piece of iron to his hoe, weighing two ounces, and 

 work with it one day. Before night, he will prob- 

 ably feel it affecting him as does the grasshopper 

 the tottering steps of the aged and infirm. 



And so it is with all other agricultural imple- 

 ments and machinery. Great advances have been 

 made in this particular. The mechanic has been 

 into the field and tested his work there, and as- 

 certained what was lacking and what redundant. 

 In this way we now, undoubtedly, have the best 

 farm implements and machinery that can be found 

 in any nation of the world. They have so com- 

 mended themselves, by their own excellence, as to 

 break down the stern prejudices of the most ex- 

 acting and fastidious. We have spoken of the 

 hoe, only to illustrate our views of the matter ; 

 what we have said applies equally to other imple- 

 ments, and to machinery. 



Several others among the smaller tools might 

 be mentioned, if enough had not already been said, 

 to show the great contrast between those used by 

 our fathers, and those which we handle with so 

 much pleasure and alacrity at the present time. 



