THE AOBICULTURAL JOURNAL. 



783 



shaw is higlily pleased with it. The 

 makers are Messrs. T. Eobiiison & Co., 

 Spottiswood, Melbourne, and the name 

 is "The Federal Combined." When work- 

 ing, it presents to the crop, wheat, oats, 

 barley, etc., a series of flat steel fingers. 

 The straws of the crop slide between them, 

 and as soon as the limit of the fingers 

 is reached, beaters revolving just above 

 knock the corn oK the heads. The corn 

 is then winnowed perfectly — only per- 

 fecfly winnowed can travel up the sec- 

 ond and final elevator — from that eleva- 

 tor it streams into sacks. When at work 

 the noise may be heard for a mile or 

 ^inore." 

 ' ' Potato Eiddlees. 



Of potato riddlers, Mr. Kershaw has a 

 series of different gauges. The screen 

 is about six feet long, and the slats, over 

 which the potatoes travel, are one inch 

 thick and sloped off to half an inch on 

 the lower side, and the distances apart on 

 the cross pieces to which they are nailed 

 vary on the different riddlers from one 

 inch to one and a half inches. The up- 

 per end of the riddler is suspended by a 

 reim about seven feet above the ground, 

 and the lower part rests on the sack 

 stand. Beneath the lower end of the 

 riddler is fixed a bit of wood three inches 

 thick, which serves as a sort of balance, 

 and enables a jigging motion to be given 

 to the screen with very small effort. The 

 screens are home-made, and the making, 

 to anyone handy with tools, should pre- 

 sent no difficulties. With six boys, 200 

 bags can be riddled and sacked with one 

 of these riddlers in a day. 



Forage-Bundle Trimmer. 

 The necessity or desirability of trim- 

 ming, or giving a good butt-end to bun- 

 dles of forage is well known to most. 

 For this object Mr. Kershaw has made 

 himself a cutter which trims oft' as much 

 as desired of the loose ends. It looks 

 something like a carpenter's stool for 

 sawing, but instead of a solid piece of 

 wood for the top there arc two pieces 

 about a quarter of an inch apart. Be- 

 tween them works a "lightning" hay- 

 knife, which has had the handle straight- 

 ened out; the end works on a bolt. A 

 two foot piece of scantling, rising per- 



pendicularly above the stool, guides the 

 knife steadily in its descent. Of these 

 two useful and simply constructed ma- 

 chines, illustrations will prol)ably be 

 given in a future issue. 



Various. 



Among other machinery, etc., I noticed 

 a large stationary thrasher and winnower, 

 cutaway harrows, horse-power gear, bel- 

 lows, and anvil, etc. 



Conclusion. 



It is as a successful potato grower that 

 Mr. Kershaw is best known, and this "in- 

 terview" is practically confined to that 

 subject. - I mu^t add that although Mr. 

 Kershaw speaks with decision on most 

 points in connection with potato cultiva- 

 tion, yet, in all his observations, he rarely 

 if ever omits to point out that other me- 

 thods and other varieties of potatoes may 

 better suit districts other than his. 



Chewing's Fescue 

 Grass and Wheats 



IT should have been stated in the last 

 issue that this seed was kindly sent 

 *through the Cape G-overnment by the 

 Secretary for Agriculture, New Zealand, 

 who also supplied the samples of wheat 

 referred to, which are of the following 

 varieties: — 



Spring Wheat: Zealand, Marshall's No. 

 8, White Tuscan, Bearded Quartzlee, 

 Early Boast, Early Para, Budda Early, 

 Tall Neapolitan. 



Autumn Wheat: Allora Spring, Beard- 

 ed Harrison, Fultz, Improved Fyffe, Sici- 

 lian Square Head, Blountz Lambrig, 

 White Velvet, Tardent's Blue, Pearl 

 Velvet, Darblay's Hungarian. 



Winter Wheat: Tallavcra de Bellevue, 

 Mediah, Mashall's White Chaff, Anglo- 

 Australian, White Essex, Red Clawson. 



A bag of "Danthonia Semiannularis" 

 grass seed has also been forwarded by the 

 New Zealand Government, and samples 

 will be sent to anyone wishing to make 

 trial of them. 



