Trials of Threshing Machines at Boncaster. Ixxix 
desirable that circulars should be 
sent bearing the names of those 
who were conditionally binding 
themselves not to exhibit, to the 
whole of the makers of threshing 
machines, and seeing you were not 
present or represented, I was 
directed to write and ask for sanc- 
tion to place your name on the 
circular. 
Kindly let me have your assent 
to my so doing and oblige, — Yours 
truly, 
(Signed) Cooper Corbidge, 
Secretary. 
Messrs. Foster & Sons, Lincoln. 
A letter dated March 31 from Mr. 
Ransonie to the Secretary, drawing 
his attention to an extract from the 
Engineer of March 28 as to the pro- 
posed prizes for threshing machines 
at Doncaster had been read and dis- 
cussed, and it had been moved by 
Mr. Stratton, seconded by the Hon. 
Cecil Parker, and resolved, that the 
following regulation be added to the 
conditions of trial : — 
Should the Judges find any num- 
ber of exhibits to be of practically 
equal merit, they are empowered 
to bracket them as equal, and so 
divide the prize money. 
In presenting this report, Mr. 
Franktsh said that as soon as he 
received the letter which he had 
read he felt at once the great import- 
ance of it. He saw that whatever 
efforts the Society might make, in 
order to have a good competition, 
would be thwarted by the action of 
the Agricultural Engineers' Associa- 
tion, and he thought it his duty, as 
Chairman of the Society's Implement 
Committee, to bring the matter for- 
ward for their consideration : and he 
was sure he was very sorry to have to 
do so. Firstly, it was necessary for 
the public to know that if there was 
a failure in the threshing machine 
trials at Doncaster, it did not rest 
with the Society. (Hear, hear.) 
Secondly, if these great manufac- 
turers did not enter, it might induce 
many ordinary makers to enter on 
the chance of gaining a prize. 
Thirdly, it had been necessary to con- 
sider whether, in the face of this 
opposition, the prizes should be with- 
drawn ; but this idea the Committee 
did not entertain. He might mention 
that although Mr. Ruston's name was 
amongst those in the letter, his firm 
had already made an entry for the 
prizes. 
Mr. Ransome said that before the 
report of the Implement Committee 
was adopted he would like to make a 
few remarks. When the question of 
offering prizes for the ensuing meet- 
ing at Doncaster came before the 
Implement Committee, and the ques- 
tion was raised as to the class of 
machines for which such prizes should 
be given, it was suggested that steam 
threshing machines, amongst others, 
should be tried. Personally he was 
of opinion that there was no satisfac- 
tory reason at all why the Society 
should not have a trial of threshing 
machines at the Doncaster Meeting. 
He, therefore, offered no opposition 
to it, but, on the contrary, at that 
time he personally expected his own 
firm would compete, and he had every 
reason to suppose that, with the 
large sum of money offered for the 
prizes, and with suitable conditions, 
there would be a good competition. 
He, therefore, rendered all the assist- 
ance he could to make the trials 
when they came off as perfectly com- 
plete as possible, and he took rather 
active steps on the Implement Com- 
mittee :n connection therewith. 
However, when the prizes were 
made known, and when they came 
before the manufacturers of steam 
threshing machinery, he found that 
there was a very strong feeling that 
it would not answer their purpose to 
compete for these prizes. The reason 
was this : Most large makers had had 
their machines tested in every county 
in England, Ireland, and Scotland, in 
all parts of the world, on thousands 
of farms with millions of acres of 
grain, and they had established their 
position as first-class makers with a 
great deal of trouble, exertion, and 
expense. So to compete for a prize, 
however important it might be, 
offered by the Royal Agricultural 
Society, and however anxious they 
might be to obtain it, they had to 
consider that out of twenty competi- 
tors only one could be placed at the 
top of the tree, and nineteen must be 
placed as inferior. That was a very 
