Annual Cultivation of the Soil. 219 



Still we must not shut our eyes to the improvements of 

 others, and Americans are not blind to their own interests, 

 anc^ are not slow to adopt what is really valuable ; so it cannot 

 be doubted that many important suggestions will be made, by 

 coming in contact with the display of the inventions and ap- 

 pliances of other countries, nor that those who visit Paris may 

 bring back with them very much that will prove advantageous 

 to their fellow-countrymen, in this, as in other departments 

 of industry. 



The arrangement of a guard in the handles of Mr. Messa- 

 ger's plow, affords a protection to the workman, the value of 

 which will be appreciated by the vigneron and nurseryman. 

 The regulation of the side-draft is better arranged by our 

 lateral clevis, than by his changeable shafts.] 



The first attempts which were made to substitute the 

 plow for implements worked by hand, led, in some dis- 

 tricts, and more especially in the South, to unfortunate 

 results. The vine has been observed to fail. This 

 has been noticed wherever the plow was substituted for 

 hand-labor which had been executed too lightly. The 

 principal roots of the plants, having, in consequence of 

 such light workings, spread themselves out near the sur- 

 face, the plow has mangled a great number of them. 

 To avoid this misfortune, it will be advisable, with re- 

 gard to vines formerly cultivated by hand, to make the 

 plowings very shallow at first, and then to increase their 

 depth, year by year, until they have reached a suitable 

 depth. The plants will thus be compelled gradually to 

 form new roots below that depth. This precaution will 

 be the more necessary with the older vines. 



Comparison between the Cost of Working by Hand and 

 Working with the Plow. — We have already seen the 



