Hay and Straiu Presses at Nottingham. 
595 
has been effected, by counterweigbts. The platten is guided in its descent 
by two rollers, one on eacli side of the machine ; an arrangement which, leaving 
the platten free to accommodate itself to the surface of the bale, avoids the 
friction common to guides, which keep it horizontal. The floor of the press 
slides out laterally for taking a charge of hay. It is then pushed back, the 
platten being, meanwhile, at its greatest height. 
Three men tended this press, which worked rapidly and well, 
turning out bales of the requisite density, and without at all 
distressing the men, who could undoubtedly go on all day at 
the work. The ratio of movement between the hand-lever and 
the platten at the moment of greatest pressure is 36 to 1, and 
the two men employed in pressing were ascertained to weigh 
together 298 lbs., which equals a pressure of 4'8 tons on the 
platten. 
It will be noticed that these exhibitors do not aim at giving 
the hea\'y pressures which many others do to the bale, but, in 
view of the fact that the press accomplishes its object, viz., 
loading 50 cwt. into 25 cubic yards, a clear gain in speed and 
cost is obtained by this policy. The same thing is true of the 
Bamber screw-press, wherein sufficient pressure is given with- 
out a second motion, while hand-presses, furnished with gears, 
appear merely to " butter bacon " at the expense of output 
and economy. 
Article 3817, exhibited by R. Ladcl & Co., of Queen Vic- 
toria Street, London, would have made a better showing but for 
the obvious fact that it had only recently been finished, appar- 
ently for the purpose of competition, and that it embodied 
certain crudities of detail, such as are inseparable from " first- 
machines." The floor of the press supports two vertical wrought- 
iron racks, while the platten is furnished with a winch operating 
a gear having two movements. Winch and platten descend 
together, so that the operator, who begins by turning a handle 
about as high as his head, finds this, at last, when the pressure 
is being put on, at a convenient height for exerting all his 
power. After pressing, the winch is slid out of gear, and the 
platten returned quickly by means of a temjoorary handle 
slipped into a socket in the first motion-wheel. The ratio of 
movement between winch and platten at the moment of maxi- 
mum pressure is 205 to 1, or with one man, exercising 50 lbs. 
l^ressure on the handle, about 4-5 tons total pressure on the 
platten ; with two men, 9 tons. The machine did not obtain 
the required density, and was excused from a second trial. 
_ Article 522 (Fig. 10, p. 608), exhibited by Mton Scott, of 
. High Street, Lincoln, was next tried. 
Scott's I'ress is cart-like in appearance, and is set to work 
by removing a pair of travelling wheels and up-ending the 
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