336 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST 
‘[September, 
upon his dairy, and that he intends to conduct his 
operations in the manner which gives him the 
largest profit; that, hoping to profit by the criti¬ 
cism and experience of others, he has watched ea¬ 
gerly to have the errors of his system pointed out; 
he has utterly failed to find anything in the com¬ 
ments to which deep-setting has been subjected 
that in any way shakes his faith in its merits. 
The editor of the Agriculturist forwards to me the 
following letter, from “ C. J. B.,” Rensselaer, Iud. 
“ Having a little milk to .handle, I was much 
troubled to decide how to do it, but from reading 
the Agriculturist, and especially Walks and Talks 
on the Farm, I decided to try the deep-can system, 
and am thus far well pleased with the (to me) ex¬ 
periment. I have a vat 22 inches wide, 20 inches 
deep, and 10 feet long, set near the well ; have a 
wind pump, and the water runs from the pump to 
the box, and from that to a tank for stock. The 
vat is protected from the sun by a cheap shed, all 
temporary, but answering a good purpose. Have 
kept milk sixty hours, perfectly sweet, in very un¬ 
favorable weather. My vat will hold the milk and 
cream from twenty cows. I get, on an average, 
about 2i inches of cream to the can, and some of 
my cows are very poor for butter. I consider over 
one-half of the labor of handling milk is saved. 
“ I had thought of trying the ‘ Jennings ’ pan, 
but the patent right for the privilege, (one dollar 
per cow), would cost me as much as all ourpresent 
fixings and cans. I find a great advantage in the 
milk being kept sweet for both pigs and calves, 
especially for the latter.”—Readers will please not 
charge my friend of “ Walks and Talks ” with be¬ 
ing engaged in this humbug. 
Referring to the last number of these papers, I 
have to say that further consideration has modified 
my plan for using our liquid manure. I find that 
the drain from the bottom of the cellar delivers so 
far down the hill as to reach considerably less land 
than if it flowed from the surface of the ground 
adjoining the barn. I have consequently arranged 
to build a stone tank, holding about five thousand 
gallons, under a shed at the rear of the barn, some 
seven feet higher than the present drain. This will 
enable us to irrigate about twenty acres more land, 
an advantage that will well repay for the extra 
work of lifting the liquid seven feet higher. An¬ 
other modification is in connection with the use of 
fho tiltinc-box illustrated lnsf mouth, which is now 
so arranged that this shall be brought into opera¬ 
tion only when needed to throw in the extra vol¬ 
ume of water required to start the siphon. The 
accompanying illustrations show how it is proposed 
to arrange this. The trough, b, will ordinarily de¬ 
liver its flow directly into the tank, but when the 
water rises high enough to float the cask,/, the rising 
of this will tend to push 
the mouth of the trough 
sidewise to a, so that 
it shall deliver into the 
tilting-box, e. The solid 
lines show the position 
to which the float falls 
as the liquid is lower¬ 
ed by the action of the 
siphon, and the man¬ 
ner in which this falling 
draws the spout back so 
that its delivery shall 
be no longer into the 
tiiting-box. The dotted 
lines show how the rising water raises the float and 
moves the spout, so as to deliver into the tilter. The 
spout, being hinged at one end and hung from the 
ceiling at the other, will swing easily. This arrange¬ 
ment will prevent the useless working of the tilter 
during the filling of the tank, so that it will remain 
much longer in order for its legitimate work. This 
improvement is now being put in hand and the re¬ 
sult will be reported after 
we have had sufficient ex¬ 
perience to indicate what 
changes may be necessary. 
This method of raising 
liquid manure, or a small 
or irregular supply of 
water, and accumulating 
it in sufficient quantity 
for satisfactory use in 
irrigation, is applicable 
to a number of circum¬ 
stances. Frequently the 
power of a running stream 
might be used in the 
place of a windmill for 
the lifting, and in very 
many cases there is sufficient natural fall between 
the barn cellar or a liquid manure vat in the barn¬ 
yard for a siphon tank to be filled by natural flow. 
In such cases we have only to provide in some 
way, either by the turning of rain-water into the 
cellar, or by diverting a natural stream so as to 
fill it, to increase the quantity of liquid manure, 
and become able in this way to manure a consider¬ 
able area. It is hardly worth while at this stage 
of public opinion on the subject of irrigation to 
advance any arguments 
in its favor, for it is 
well known by all who 
have given attention 
to the question, that 
the regulated flooding, 
especially of grass land, 
by even pure water, is 
one of the best means 
by which art attempts 
to increase the produc¬ 
tiveness of the natural 
soil; that there is no 
easier or safer means 
for spreading manure 
than its distribution and 
dilution in water ; and 
that while pure water 
is very valuable, up 
to a certain point, the 
more manure it con¬ 
tains the better is its 
effect. It is only necessary to have a natural or 
artificial source of water so arranged that it can be 
brought into the cellar or other receptacle of the 
manure, and that, after it has dissolved more or 
less of the fertilizing contents of the deposit, it 
may be made to flow, periodically, in such volumes 
as will carry it to the desired point without much 
loss from soakage by the way. The chief point of 
ynlue of yvliat, has beep said in this article and the [ 
preceding one is the description of the use of the 
siphon tank, which operates automatically, and is 
not dependent on the memory and attention of 
man to secure its proper action. 
- -» ■ — 81 —-- —- 
Flat Plowing. — The Higganum Plow. 
The general use of mowing and reaping ma¬ 
chines, renders it necessary that the surface of a 
field sowed in grain or laid down to grass, should 
present an even level, without ridges or open fur¬ 
rows. It is impossible to do this with the common 
plow, without much loss of time, or without plow¬ 
ing around the field, which is both difficult and 
objectionable. To meet this want, the principle of 
a swinging mold-board and share, which has long 
been used upon the “ side-hill ” plows, has been 
adapted to plow's for level laud. These have been 
called swivel or reversible plows ; the latter name 
being the most appropriate. Various kinds of 
these plows have been already mentioned and de¬ 
scribed in the Agriculturist, and we now illustrate 
an improved plow of this kind, made by the Higga¬ 
num Manufacturing Company, of Higganum, Ct. 
This plow has some special advantages. One of 
the difficulties heretofore experienced in using a 
plow of this kind, has been that in plowing sod, the 
coulter could not be brought into the proper posi¬ 
tion with regard to the point of the share, without 
adjusting it at each “ bout.” In this plow this 
trouble is obviated by means of the swivel-angle, 
upon which the share swings, being less than a 
right angle. This causes the point of the share to 
coincide with the point of the coulter, upon which¬ 
ever side of the beam the share may be. Another 
improvement in the form of the mold-board, ena¬ 
bles the plow to run deep or shallow, and do equally 
good work in either case. The plow may also be 
adjusted to different widths of furrows, and is pro¬ 
vided with an elastic and adjustable draft-rod, 
which, when obstructions are met with, prevents 
breakage. In using these plows, the necessary 
extra weight of the mold-board and standard, adds 
but little to the draft, and is compensated many 
times over in the saving of time and the distance 
traveled in going about the head-lands in ordinary 
plowing. Our method of using these plows, is to 
find the center of the field, or to divide the field 
into a few or several wide lands of even width from 
end to end. Then in the center of the field or the 
land, we turn a very light furrow', flat; and passing 
back through the same furrow, cover the sod with 
some loose soil, we then proceed back and forth 
until half the field or land is plowed, when the 
other half is finished. Another w'ay is to com¬ 
mence at one side of the field, and throw a light 
furrow towards the fence, and gradually deepen 
the next furrows, until the full depth is reached. 
Then plow back and forth until the whole field is 
plowed. The horses walk alternately in the furrow 
and on the land, thus resting the team. As a por¬ 
tion of the field is plowed, it may be harrowed and 
sown while the ground is fresh and mellow, which 
frequently makes a great difference in the after con¬ 
dition of the crop. For stubble plowing exactly 
the same methods are used. We have found the 
soil to be left in an excellent condition after these 
plows, so much so, that it is fit to be sown or 
planted without previous harrowing, 
— — --- 
Fig. 2.— PLAN OF TANK SHOWN IN FIG. 1. 
