1861.] 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
367 
tunately, the sickness of his chief engineer 
or plowman, has deprived us of the opportunity 
thus far. The approach of freezing weather 
may prevent much being done this year, but 
during our next volume we shall be able to 
furnish full and definite information upon the 
whole subject. 
The accompanying illustration will give the 
reader a general understanding of the operation 
of Fowler’s Steam plow. The main features are: 
the Portable Steam Engine on the left; the plows 
in the center; and the anchor at the right. We 
reserve a particular description of seperate parts 
for future illustration on a larger scale. The 
Engine is placed on wheels and moves along the 
head-land, propelled by its own power, at the 
will of the operator. The guide wheels enable 
the operator to move the engine in any desired 
direction. From a drum driven by the engine, 
one wire rope extends to the plow and one to 
the anchor on the other side of the field. The 
ropes coil around opposite sides of the drum, so 
that by reversing the motion of the drum the 
ropes may be alternately let out and drawn in. 
The Anchor is a loaded box on sharp edged 
wheels which cut into the soil. The rope pulley 
is connected with wheel work so as to move the 
anchor forward at each reversal of the plows. 
The Plows are arranged in two gangs, 3 or 4 in 
each, the mold-boards being half right and half 
left hand. The gangs are joined to an axle sup¬ 
ported on wheels, and so arranged that the plow¬ 
man by changing his position can elevate or 
depress either set of plows. If the field be wide 
so as to require long ropes, they are supported 
by parters to prevent dragging on the ground. 
Two of these are shown, one on the right, and 
one on the left of the plow. When used, boys 
are required to shift their positions as needed. 
The plows are set to cut furrows of any required 
depth. The engines are usually of 12-liorse 
power, and the four plows can be moved some¬ 
what rapidly backward and forward, even 
through heavy soil, the power being equal to 
three horses for each of four plows, or four 
horses for each of three plows. The engine, of 
course, does not tire out and require resting, nor 
is it affected by hot weather.—This general de¬ 
scription is all that we have room for in this 
paper. 
Keeping Apples—New Method. 
Mr. M. R. Thompson of Mifflin Co., Pa., in a 
letter to the American Agriculturist , describes his 
method of keeping choice apples which appears 
to be worth noticing. He packs them in bar¬ 
rels or large boxes, surrounding each apple with 
common dry ground gypsum (plaster of Paris). 
This is readily done thus: Put into the bot¬ 
tom of the barrel, or box, an inch of the plaster 
and then a layer of apples, keeping them from 
contact with each other, and an inch from the 
side all round. Sift in more plaster to fill up 
* the spaces and cover the whole nearly an inch. 
Then add another layer of apples and more 
plaster, and so on to the top. The plaster em¬ 
ployed is, we suppose, the common ground plas¬ 
ter for fertilizing—not the calcined used for mak¬ 
ing casts,models, etc. The former is cheap in most 
parts of the country, costing from $3 to $10 a 
tuu, according to the locality, distance from the 
quarries or seaboard. The present retail price 
in this City is about $10 per tun. Of course the 
plaster is just as good for application to the 
field after being used during Winter for pack¬ 
ing apples. The plan is worthy of trial at least, 
for it would appear reasonable that the fruit 
i 
thus surrounded with a compact mass of dry 
powder, should keep almost as well as if hermet¬ 
ically sealed. Mr. T. says he keeps pound pip¬ 
pins thus packed, in good order until the follow¬ 
ing June. We judge from a remark in his let¬ 
ter, that he does not store them in a cellar, but 
in any cool room of the dwelling or out-house. 
We are not certain whether the dry plaster 
would be a sufficient non-conductor to keep frost 
out, if exposed to severe cold—especially from 
the fruit near the outside of barrels. 
An Unpatented Eruit Gatherer. 
We have at our office a pretty fruit-gather¬ 
er made by Mr. A. M. Halstead, of Westchester 
Co., N. Y., who manufactures for such of his 
neighbors as desire them, but he disclaims any 
patent right, and offers to all the readers of the 
American Agricul¬ 
turist the free 
privilege of mak¬ 
ing and using as 
many as they 
choose. Our ar¬ 
tist has sketched 
the apparatus so 
plainly that little 
further descrip¬ 
tion is needed. 
The staff is made 
i n sections o r 
joints. Two of 
the sections, s, s, 
are shown. They 
join together at 
a, a. The pick¬ 
ing is done by two 
sets of fingers, f 
which open and 
close up, like the 
clasping of the 
right and left 
hand. The motion is given by the handle 7i, 
which draws down the wire,w, that extends to the 
sliding block b. A spiral spring pushes the block 
upward which closes the fingers to grasp the 
fruit, and when pulled oil it drops into the net 
work bag. The implement costs about $1.75 
when the fingers are made of iron, and $2.50 if 
made of brass, as in the sample before us. 
Improved Eruit Cellar. 
A fruit cellar, owned by Mr. Andrew Camp¬ 
bell, of Monroe Co., N. Y., is described in the 
Country Gentleman by S. E. Todd, who recent¬ 
ly visited it, as follows: A neat cellar, with wa¬ 
ter-lime bottom was first made; then it was ceil¬ 
ed up neatly and tight, on every side, and above 
and beneath also. A space of about six inches 
was left on the sides and bottom, between the 
ceiling and the stone walls and over the water- 
lime bottom, so that the air could circulate freely 
all around. Between the ceiling over-head, and 
the carriage floor, the space is filled with grout¬ 
ing or lime mortar. The windows to the cellar 
are double, that is one window in the wall, 
and one window in the ceiling; and either of 
them can be opened at pleasure, or the inside 
window can be closed, and the outside one 
opened; and thus a current of fresh air can 
pass entirely round bet ween the walls. Tlieen- 
trance.also, is secured by double doors,one neatly 
fitted on each side of the jamb casings. The fruit 
is placed in shallow bins, one above the other, 
on each side of the cellar. By this arrangement, 
all dampness is excluded, and fruit will keep 
much longer and better than in ordinary cellars. 
For the American Agriculturist. 
Grape Notes. 
The Logan. —In response to inquiries about this 
new grape, the writer will state his experience 
with it the past two years at Clinton, Oneida Co., 
N. Y., a few miles from Utica. The vines have a 
western exposure, and do not get the sun’s rays 
until one o’clock. They have blossomed and set 
their fruit well. The berries color about the 
same time with the Concords which have a bet¬ 
ter aspect. But when the Concords had become 
fully ripe, the Logans were not yet sweet; 
and to the last, they had a certain tang peculiar 
to an unripe grape. In short, to the taste of 
the writer, they were not quite equal to the 
Concord. Let it be remembered, however, that 
the Logans have an unfavorable situation, and 
that the above experience is that of only two 
seasons. They may prove better elsewhere. 
Garrigues. —Not an inferior grape, by any 
means, though not entitled to the first rank. It 
looks like the Isabella, only the bunches are 
smaller. It ripens a week or so earlier. Who¬ 
ever has but little room to spare, had better 
wait a little longer for something better. 
Northern Muscadine. —This is too good to be 
discarded from the second class of grapes. Hardy, 
ripens with the Concord, is sweeter than that, 
and the amber-colored bunches, when thinned 
out, are quite handsome. 
To Kalon. —From three years’ experience with 
this, in the latitude of Albany, we are not in¬ 
clined to speak very highly of it. Under com¬ 
mon management, it bears but a moderate crop, 
and ripens its fruit no earlier than the Isabella. 
Yet what we do get, are first-rate. Bunches and 
berries large, nearly black, very sweet, buttery, 
luscious, tender. For southern N. Y., and the 
latitude of Pennsylvania and Ohio, we should 
think it would prove a valuable grape. 
Rebecca. —It rises in our estimation every year. 
Here in Oneida Co., N. Y., it does not mildew 
at all, or at least, no more than the Isabella and 
Diana. One vine is on an open trellis in the gar¬ 
den, running north and south; another is on 
the south side of the dwelling, where it receives 
the direct rays of the sun. In both cases, the 
foliage remains fresh and green all Summer. It 
is hardy enough, when protected as all vines 
should be in Winter. It grows fast enough 
when once established; it bears abundantly; 
the berries are sufficiently large; they ripen be¬ 
fore the Isabella, and when ripe, are not inferi¬ 
or to any grape grown in the open air—the Del¬ 
aware not excepted. And the fruit has one oth¬ 
er excellence: it is greenish white, and so de¬ 
ceives the birds and boys, while the Delawares 
and Concords close at hand will be stolen. It 
is an excellent keeper in Winter, in this respect 
excelling the Delaware. [As to the quality we 
quite agree with our associate, but after six 
years’ trial here, we give up the Rebecca as a 
grape that we can not grow. We could sooner 
raise bearing standard pear trees, than large 
fruitful Rebecca grape vines.—O. J.] 
The Cuyahoga. —All the plants of this late com¬ 
er sent out last Spring, so far as we have seen or 
heard, were quite small, and so feeble that many 
of them died in the process of transplanting. 
Of the fruit we have not yet tasted, but it is 
spoken of in the highest terms. We should 
judge, from the accounts given, it would al¬ 
most rival the Rebecca and Delaware. 
