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THE ILLINOIS FARMER. 



77' 



their profession will be honored, the govern- 

 ment will respect their interests, empty- 

 headed coxcombs even will know enoagh not 

 to speak contemptaonsly of them as a whole* 

 and the country will be safe. 



Of all the means within the farmer's own 

 control, for elevating his calling and secur- 

 ing for it a just consideration, this self-cnl- 

 ture is the first. The second is like it — the 

 edaeation of his sons for the farm. Of this 

 in a future number. 



Ploughing by Steam. 



Much has been said and written and pub- 

 lished lately on the subject of plowing by 

 steam. The attempt of Mr. Hussey, in 

 Maryland, was partially successful. While 

 we have been talking however, there have 

 been those who have been acting in Eng- 

 land. The first trial there was by a station- 

 ary engine. This did the work well enough 

 on a small field, but it was not what was de- 

 manded. 



A new engine has been introduced in 

 England, lately, which is likely to answer 

 the wants of the farming community to some 

 extent. It is called "Boydell's Traction 

 Engine," with revolving railway. Its oper- 

 ation seems to demonstrate, that the engine 

 will work on even grounds, like those of the 

 prairies of the west. We doubt much whe- 

 ther any locomotive can be made to work on 

 uneven or hilly soil. 



The London Agricultural Gazette, an 

 authority which may be relied upon, gives 

 the following account of some recent exper- 

 iments made in England with "Boydell's 

 Traction Engine:" 



"The trials having been advertised, we 

 attended on Tuesday and Friday, the 16th 

 and I9th inst., and I shall present the read- 

 ers of the Agricultural Gazette with a brief 

 account of what came under our observa- 

 tion. 



"On Tuesday the engine w«w trench- 

 ploughing a small field on Steam Farm, with 

 two of Cotgreaves' trench-ploughs, Mr. 

 Cotgreaves himself superintending them. 

 The work was being done about twelve 

 inches deep, and at the rate of five acres 

 per day, or half an acre per hour. The en- 

 gine, to appearance, would have hauled 



nearly another plough, as it was never 

 working up to its full pressure of steam ; but 

 the two ploughs being all that were at com- 

 mand, we had not an opportunity of bring- 

 ing this to the test of experiment. The 

 quality of the work gave great satisfaction, 

 especially to the market gardeners of the 

 neighborhood, some of whom offered to give 

 30s per acre for land so trenched, assuring 

 Mr. Middleton — who lets out engines — that 

 a large area of market garden grounds of 

 the capital could he had at this rate. 



"The daily expense of the engine and 

 hands was estimated at about SOs., so that 

 the cost per acre would be 6s. ; consequent- 

 ly the profit would be 24s. per acre at the 

 above estimate-— equal to £6 per day, or 

 £36 per week. 



"On Steam Farm there was also a good 

 deal of ploughing done by the engine, In 

 two large fields, with four of Howard's P. 

 P. ploughs, the depth of the furrow being 

 nine inches, and the rate of ploughing from 

 eight to ten acres per day. The quality of 

 the work was superior — fully equal to what 

 could have been done by four horses in each 

 plough. Both fields were well adapted for 

 traction engine work, being comparatively 

 level, and of great length. 



"On Friday the engine was at work In a 

 large field dn Butts' Farm. It was again 

 hauling fonr common ploughs, ploughing 

 nine inches deep, and at the rate of an acre 

 per hour when timed. The field was still 

 better adapted than the former, being near- 

 ly as level, of greater length, and rather 

 lighter in quality of soil. Both fields on 

 Steam Farm, although of a gravelly char- 

 acter, were yet rocky hard in the bottom; 

 but here the soil wias more friable and sandy, 

 consequently the ploughs were more easily 

 held — enabling the ploughmen to make far 

 better work than that done by them with 

 horses in the same field. 



"The steady, equal draught of the 'steam- 

 horse' deserves especial notice, as it differs 

 widely from that of horses. Accustomed 

 to the latter, we think little about the irreg- 

 ularity of their traction force, when holding 

 the plough behind them, but we have only 

 to examine their mechanism and the ever- 

 varying position of the fulcra (footprints on 

 the ground) over which their muscular force 

 acts, and compare them with those (the 

 endless rails) of the traction engine, to per- 

 ceive that the difference is great, and 

 wholly in favor of the latter. In point of 

 fact, Howard's P. P. ploughs, after being 

 entered behind the Bteam-horse, almost went 

 alone, for we saw Mr. Middleton remove his 



