AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
141 
of seeding, which leaves $120, or $9 25 per 
acre—a very fair remuneration, though not more 
so than many other crops often give. 
Top Dressing Grass Land. 
A YANKEE IMPLEMENT. 
In the grazing districts, where butter and cheese 
are the leading products, farmers often find it in¬ 
convenient to take up sward land as often as de¬ 
sirable. It is considered a debatable question 
w hether lands naturally adapted to grass, may not 
better be kept in good heart by top dressing, than 
by plowing and reseeding. Some very intelligent 
farmers claim that it takes many years to make a 
perfect sod well seeded with the best variety of 
grasses for the dairy, and that when this sod is 
once formed it should not be broken up—Of course 
they do not discard manuring, but apply it in the 
shape of top-dressing, as often as the land gives 
any indication of a decreasing yield of hay. They 
also accompany the dressing with sowing grass 
seed, where the sward is not sufficiently thick. 
In Litchfield County, Ct., they have a very in¬ 
genious and simple contrivance, combining the ad¬ 
vantages of roller and harrow, to aid in the work 
of top dressing. It is claimed that the manure 
benefits the land, just as it is made fine and avail¬ 
able for theroots of the grasses. To accomplish 
this comminution of stable manure, they spread 
t upon the surface of the meadow, and go over 
it repeatedly with this peculiar implement—The 
framework is simply two large planks, such as 
are used for making stone boats or drags. The 
plank should be of the best white oak timber, two 
or more inches thick, two feet wide, and five or 
six long. Two of these are framed together in 
the usual way, and then the bottom is bored for 
harrow teeth—The teeth are made of steel, four 
inches long, and about an inch square. They are 
arianged In triangular shape, three triangles shut¬ 
ting into each other, and no tooth following its 
neighbor. It takes about forty teeth for a com¬ 
plete implement. 
This breaks all lumps in the manure very finely, 
and makes small furrows among the grass roots, 
into which the manure is pressed by the drag as 
it passes along. It leaves the surface much less 
even than the harrow, and breaks the lumps bet¬ 
ter than the roller. Grass seed is put in with this 
implement in the best manner. By occasional top 
dressings, and scarifyings old meadows are kept 
in flourishing condition, and there is no loss of the 
grass crop, even for a single season. 
We have never met with this Yankee contriv¬ 
ance in any other locality—It is considered by 
those acquainted with it, as better adapted to 
scarifying and smoothing the surface of grass 
land, than any other implement. It is not patent¬ 
ed, and there is nothing to prevent any cultivator 
who chooses, from availing himself of its ad¬ 
vantages. 
-«-■ o xfre—--- 
Removing Ergot from Rye. 
To the Editor of the American Agriculturist: 
Two years ago I had a small piece of rye, and 
from causes not known it contained a great deal 
of black rye, ( segede cornutum,) Black rye or 
ergot is a poison, and my grain contained so much 
of it that I could not feed it. By accident a very 
fine hog was destroyed by eating it. I have met 
with no mill or screen that will separate it, as 
much of it is as slender as the true grain. After 
various failures, I discovered that brine would se¬ 
parate it. the rye sinking and the ergot floating on 
the surface. This might,-in some instances, he 
turned to profit, as the ergot is bought by drug¬ 
gists and is worth much more than the rye itself. 
The salt should be immediately washed out and 
both carefully dried. Geo. Hill. 
Ashmeadow Farm, Lycom. Co., Pa. 
Vetch —(Vicia saliva). 
In response to various queries relative to 
the vetch, or tare, we introduce the above cut 
showing the general appearance of a branch as 
growing in the field. The vicia is a somewhat 
extensive class of plants, only one variety of 
which, the saliva (vetch), is cultivated, and even 
this is but little grown in this country. In Eng¬ 
land it is cultivated to considerable extent to feed 
out green as a soiling crop, and sometimes for 
pasture feeding. There is a Spring and Winter 
variety, both of which may be sown broadcast or 
in drills. The seed resembles small peas of a 
dark color, and the plant has somewhat the habit 
of pea vines, with papilionaceous (pea like, or 
butterfly shaped) flowers, which produce seed 
pods. About one bushel of seed is required for 
an acre if drilled in beds, or H to 2 bushels if sown 
broadcast, it can be had at most seed stores for 
about $3 50 per bushel. It is gaining favor with 
some in this country, as an annual forage or soil¬ 
ing crop, like millet. Cattle and horses are fond of 
it, and appear to thrive well while fed with it. It 
prefers a clayey loam, hut does well on any good 
soil not too sandy or dry. 
-— «——— - 
Reapers and Mowers, &c.IV. 
FIELD TRIAL OF IMPLEMENTS BY THE UNITED 
STATES AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY, JULY, 1857. 
[Continued from page 103.] 
To the Editor of the American Agriculturist. 
I now quote a few of the blunders noted by Mr. 
Soper: 
“ The Sub-Corn, evidently made a mistake of 
nearly one hundred pounds in the weight of 
Ketchum’s Reaper, hy error in suhtraction, and 
in not deducting the weight of the plank twice, as 
two drafts were taken. 
“With respect to the draft of the Ketchum 
machine, he admits there is a mistake of one 
inch—a small matter, but a good deal upon ‘a 
man’s nose,’ or in testing the draft of a machine. 
With this correction the Xetchum machine was 
69 pounds lighter draft than any other upon the 
ground, and for a day’s work of ten hours, (ac 
cording to the rule laid down in the Report, on 
page 51), the team would have to draw two mil¬ 
lions four hundred and eighty-four thousand 
pounds less than the one of the lightest draft. In 
the language of the Report, is this ‘ a mere 
bagatelle!.... 
•‘In table F, on page 77, it is stated that the 
Ketchum machine advances six inches to one 
vibration of the knife. The diameter of the 
driving-wheel is correctly given—36 inches, and 
36 vibrations of the knife to one revolution of the 
wheel, and, for a wonder, these are correct. Now, 
ask any school-boy how far the wheel or ma¬ 
chine will have advanced to one vibration of the 
knife.” 
Mr. Allen’s Protest shows up such a continuous 
series of tricks, blunders and final injustice, one 
lapping directly on to another, and each forming 
so close a part of the whole as to make it ex¬ 
tremely difficult for me to quote from it. In fact, 
the entire Protest ought to be read from begin 
ning to end; and, as it is printed for general dis¬ 
tribution, I presume Mr. A. will be happy to send 
it to any applicant who may desire to see it. 
The Judges praise Mr. Allen’s machine more 
frequently and more highly than any other 
throughout their Report; and yet will it be 
believed that they give him only seven out of the 
one hundred merit marks adopted by them for the 
Trial! Perhaps they wanted to let him down 
“aisy,” as an Irishman would say. The Judges 
say in their Report that— 
“ R. L. Allen’s machine is one of excellent 
character—much better than appears from Table 
H, as will be seen from a comparison with 
other tables.”._‘‘It is very strongly built, the 
strength of material judiciously distributed, the 
workmanship is of the very best character, and 
the materials of the first quality. The seat of the 
driver is more convenient and comfortable than 
any other.”._“The journal boxes are of com¬ 
position metal, and it runs with very little noise.” 
__“On the whole we consider ibis machine to 
be one of a very high character, light of direct 
draft, and totally free from side draft." [Seepage 
40 ]_“The guards in Allen’s machine seemed 
of a very excellent quality.”....“ We think, too, 
that Allen’s concave knife is a step in the right 
direction for reducing friction, and for diminishing 
the weight of the knife without lessening its 
strength.” ...“ [See page 52.].... “To It. L. 
Allen—A diploma for his concave knife blade, and 
general excellence of material and superior work¬ 
manship ” [See page 68 ]....“This machine 
runs with very little noise, showing that the gear¬ 
ing is well made, and the momentum very equal¬ 
ly distributed throughout the machine. In most 
respects a first-class Mower.” [See page 78.] 
The italics are my own. Contrast the above 
with what the Judges say of the price, weight, 
complexity, clogging, uneven cutting, dragging, 
breaking down or not working on the most im 
portant day’s trial of the First Prize machine, to 
which they awarded the Gold Medal,—and inform 
us, reader, if you can, how such decisions are 
brought about in this enlightened day. Mr. Allen 
winds up by the following spirited challenge : 
“ A fair test requires the working of machines 
throughout an entire season, in every kind of 
soil—whether sand, clay, or wet marsh ; of sur¬ 
face—whether soft or hard, rough or smooth, 
stony, hillsides, deep and frequent water-furrows, 
and the like ; in all kinds of forage—early and 
late ; soft, fine, and wet grass : lodged and stand¬ 
ing clover, &c., &c.; and the machine should 
sometimes be drawn by weak or ill-trained 
horses, half broken oxen or steers; driven by 
boys or unskilful drivers—under all the discour¬ 
aging circumstances and disadvantages occasion¬ 
ally to be met with by farmers. Such a trial as 
this—for twenty or thirty consecutive days, cut¬ 
ting 10 or 12 acres each day, with a str ct ac¬ 
count of breakages and repairs, with an ordinarily 
constructed machine, the type of its kind—in ail 
respects like those usually sold to customers— 
such is the test, if carefully noted by intelligent, 
practical and impartial men, I should deem con¬ 
clusive as to the absolute as well as the com¬ 
parative merits of rival machines; and to such, 
if it could be secured, I would fearlessly offer the 
Allen Mower.” 
The public had scarcely got over the ignorant, 
unjust decision of the Judges of the Massachu¬ 
setts Agricultural Society’s Trial the preceding 
year, when this of the United States follows 
rapidly in its footsteps. Had I an enemy whom 
I wished to injure deeply, and hold up to unmiti¬ 
gated contempt, I would contrive to get him ap¬ 
pointed a Judge on the next “ Grand Trial of 
Harvestersand then further induce him to 
assist in prepa r ing a Report of the same. “ Oh 
that mine adversary had written a book,” cried in 
his smitten anguish the sorely afflicted Job 5 
