and Miscellaneous Implements at Hull. 
G17 
keeping- tlie curve of the slack chain midway between the upper 
and lower wheels, even when the trough is raised to its full height. 
In other machines, it is endeavoured to overcome the difificulty 
by screws, which keep the chain well stretched, but it must in this 
way be subject to a considerable strain to prevent any slackening 
in its return journey. The other varieties of chains and wheels 
were each of a different pattern, and will therefore be best described 
in treating of the separate construction of each machine. 
In the three columns, 11, 12, and 13, that describe the travel- 
ling wheels, it may be noticed that a large proportion are of cast 
iron, and of small diameter ; such wheels may suffice for moving 
a machine about the rickyard, but are not fitted for one that is 
intended to be frequently drawn from one farm to another over 
rough roads. All the wooden wheels may be reported as good, 
and among the iron ones three with wrought-iron spokes, viz. 
Holmes' (No. 4392), Ashby & Co.'s (No. 4676), and Taskers' (No. 
4839) are very good ; while among the cast-iron wheels Taskers' 
(No. 4841), protected by a half-inch wrought-iron tire, is by far 
the best. 
The great distance between the fore- and hind-wheels that in 
some cases will be noticed as registered in column 13 must 
make those machines awkward to turn, but where the horse 
walks beneath the trough and between the fore- and hind-frames, 
as in the two machines at the head of this list, this distance 
cannot well be avoided. 
Column 14 gives us the size of each machine when packed for 
travelling, or for putting away in a shed. The first dimension, 
that of height, was regarded as the one of most importance. A 
machine exceeding 9 feet in height cannot be put under an 
ordinary cart-shed. It is satisfactory to find a considerable im- 
provement in the compactness of these machines since they were 
first introduced. 
A very small breadth, on the other hand, cannot be considered 
good ; when a strong side wind is blowing, a narrow machine 
working at the height attained by the one first on the list has an 
unpleasant appearance of instability. 
Column 15 brings before us the important and much-debated 
question whether it is better to make the horse-power separate, 
or a fixed part of the machine working below the trough. 
Among the advantages claimed for the latter arrangement is 
that it takes less time to prepare one than two machines for 
work, and it will be observed that in the trial a machine with 
horse-gear attached (No. 4391) took less time than any other 
(eight minutes) to adjust ; but it should be also noticed that the 
four machines that took the next shortest time to ad just all had 
their horse-gears independent, while the machine tiiat took far 
