484 
Report  on  the  Exhibition  of  Implements 
power  to  drive  it  under  the  same  conditions,  and  did  its  work 
very  well  ; and  it  will  be  seen,  by  referring  to  the  tabular  state- 
ment in  the  Judges’  report,  that  it  was  entered  as  a four-horse 
machine,  and  that  it  took  no  more  than  4*73,  or  rather  less  than 
4 1 horses  to  work  it  under  trial.  The  merit  of  this  machine  will 
be  more  clearly  shown  by  contrasting  it  with  one  exhibited  by 
Mackelcan,  which  was  also  entered  as  a four-horse  machine,  and 
took  2 34  horses’  power  to  work  it  empty,  nearly  eleven  horses’ 
power  to  drive  it  under  trial,  and  13  seconds  longer  time  to  thresh 
100  sheaves  of  wheat. 
It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  exhibitors  generally,  when  on  trial, 
are  anxious  to  do  their  work  in  the  shortest  possible  time.  Were 
they  to  feed  and  work  their  machines  as  they  would  in  the  farm- 
yard, the  results  obtained  would  be  more  in  their  favour,  and  the 
advantages  possessed  by  the  machine  more  clearly  developed. 
This  remark  applies  to  all  machines  that  are  tested. 
The  chaff-cutting  machines  worked  well,  and  the  last  improve- 
ment of  Mr.  Cornes  is  a very  judicious  one. 
The  dressing-machines  generally  are  improved. 
The  tile-machines  had  undoubtedly  the  most  searching  trial 
they  have  ever  been  subjected  to,  and  the  results  are  given  in  the 
foregoing  report  of  the  Judges.  The  manufacturers  of  these 
machines  should  endeavour  to  form  their  boxes  in  such  a manner 
that  the  size  of  the  pistons  should  approach  as  nearly  as  possible 
to  the  total  area  of  the  openings  of  the  dies  when  making  the  most 
useful  sizes  of  pipes. 
In  testing  the  implements  at  these  meetings,  the  three  points 
most  important  to  be  attended  to  are  the  quantity  and  quality  of 
the  work  that  the  machine  will  perform,  and  the  power  required 
to  work  it ; and  great  care  must  be  taken  to  keep  a proper  balance 
between  these  three  principal  requisites  ; for  it  may  happen  that, 
of  two  machines  competing  with  each  other,  one  of  them  may 
do  its  work  a little  better,  and  turn  out  more  in  quantity,  while 
the  second  requires  considerably  less  power  to  work  it.  In  such 
a case,  it  by  no  means  follows  that  the  second  machine  is  entitled 
to  the  prize,  even  though  on  calculation  its  economy  of  power 
more  than  made  up  for  its  smaller  production:  for  if  the  power 
required  by  the  first  machine  were  not  more  than  the  man  or  the 
horse  were  reasonably  expected  to  exert,  no  material  advantage 
would  be  gained  by  reducing  the  power  below  that  point ; and  it 
would  be  right  to  award  the  prize  to  that  machine  (notwithstanding 
its  greater  strength  required  to  work  it)  that  is  found  to  turn  out 
the  greatest  amount  of  work,  of  the  best  quality,  in  the  day. 
I cannot  close  this  report  without  observing  how  much  the 
Society,  and  especially  all  those  who  have  to  do  with  the  executive 
business  of  the  show,  are  indebted  to  the  untiring  zeal  and 
