and Miscellaneous Implements at Bristol. 
99 
ington's Twister the parts were not completely put together, and 
we were encouraged to hope that, later on, it would come out, 
but soon after the work actually commenced we were informed 
that a worm-wheel had broken, which precluded the possibility 
of its working. On a suggestion being made by Mr. Sanday, 
that a telegram should be sent to the works at Manchester for a 
duplicate, the ingenious representative expressed his regret that, 
being a Bank holiday, the works were closed. I should be sorry 
to do him an injustice, but the so-called accident looked very 
much like a scheme, to get out of the difficulty of having to ex- 
hibit a machine which, whatever its merit, and I have already 
alluded to its great ingenuity, was not capable in its present 
state of making a successful trial. King was, we heard, on the 
road with a machine which might arrive on the following 
morning ; and Osborne and Co., who had the same machine 
they exhibited in the Showyard, and which was identical with 
that tried last year, were hoping that their new machine, tele- 
graphed for from Paris, would arrive at the same time. Such 
was the state of affairs at the commencement of the trials, and 
it must be allowed that it was sufficiently disappointing, after all 
the expectations that had been formed as to the competition 
that would take place between our own makers and our American 
friends. 
It is evident that the production of an efficient machine is 
more difficult than some have supposed ; the backwardness of 
English makers is, after all, only what might be expected when 
the comparatively short time the subject has engaged their 
attention is taken into account. As has been already mentioned, 
Messrs. Howard's machine could not be made to work properly. 
The corn was not delivered far enough on to the platform, and 
therefore could not be elevated with sufficient regularity. The 
reel, not being capable of adjustment, may have had something 
to do with this, but it struck the Judges that the motion of the 
elevator was not right. When once the corn reached the bind- 
ing platform, the tying mechanism appeared to work well. 
After several attempts, the attendants withdrew from further 
competition. The McCormick and Wood's machines were the 
only ones to take up the lots they had drawn ; the former 
having Plot No. 3, more oblong in form, and therefore necessi- 
tating fewer turns than Lot 6, drawn by Wood, which was nearly 
square. The latter was the first to start, a fact that should be 
noted, inasmuch as the corn was less dry than afterwards. The 
total time occupied in cutting half an acre was 32^ minutes, of 
which 4 minutes were consumed in repairing wire, which broke 
four times. The driver was provided with a rod, shod with 
iron at the end, with which he dexterously assisted the arrange- 
H 2 
