TURNIP-SLICER. 
obtained the name of turnip-seed weevils; and 
one of the two also destroys young turnips by 
puncturing the leaves, and has occasionally been 
found almost as mischievous as the /aliica ne- 
morum. ‘This latter, called Curculio contractus or 
Ceutorhynchus contractus, makes its attacks on the 
leaves in its imago state; and is from ? of a line 
| to 1 line long, and of a black colour, with a cop- 
pery tinge,—the head and thorax coarsely punc- 
tured,—and the elytra generally green, some- 
times inclining to blue, and rarely blackish. The 
other, called Curculio obstrictus or Ceutorhynchus 
assimilis, is similar in appearance, but about 
twice as long; and both make their devastations 
upon the seed-pods and the seeds in their maggot 
state. Both also, in their imago state, are so sen- 
sitive that they fall down, if only approached 
suddenly, from the flowers or leaves on which 
they are feeding; and may be easily collected, 
when they abound in the turnip-flowers left for 
seed, by shaking the stalks over a large net or 
cloth. But as they immediately unfold their legs 
and begin to run away after the shock is over, 
the contents thus collected must be swept into a 
pail of lime and water or urine until they can be 
removed and destroyed by pouring boiling water 
over them; for as their horny jackets are very 
hard, they are not easily killed by being merely 
trampled on or beaten. 
TURNIP SAW-FLY. See Saw-Frres. 
TURNIP-SEED FLY. See Turnip Fry. — 
TURNIP-SLICER. An implement for cutting 
_ turnips into pieces, for the use of sheep and cat- 
tle. It is very widely various in structure; and 
comprises the three kinds of form,—the turnip- 
chopper, the turnip-slicer proper, and the turnip 
cutting cart; and each of the two latter kinds 
also comprises widely different varieties. 
The turnip-chopper consists of a handle and 
two iron blades resembling common garden hoes, 
—the blades placed perpendicularly upon the 
end of the handle, and at a right angle to each 
other, so as to form a cross; and, by a single 
stroke upon a turnip bulb, lying either where 
it grew or elsewhere on the ground or in a trough, 
it cuts the bulb into four parts; and may, when 
necessary, be used to subdivide any or each of 
them into four other parts. It is an efficient 
tool in the hand of an expert man; but, when 
the quantity of turnips to be cut is large, it re- 
quires great strength of arm for maintaining the 
prolonged exertion. An old variety of it has on 
the reverse end of the handle a two-pronged fork 
for giving additional weight to the stroke, and 
for picking entangled or deep-seated roots out of 
the ground. But a separate implement, bearing 
the name of a turnip-picker, is now commonly 
used for the latter purpose; and is sometimes so 
modified, with a curved blade instead of a fork 
for its head, as to be serviceable for either chop- 
- ping away the body of the bulb from the tap- 
root, or picking out the shell or bottom of an 
eaten bulb. The turnip-chopper, in any of its 
535 | 
varieties, is better suited for the field than for 
the farm-yard ; and cuts the turnip-bulb into a 
form of section which is found very manageable 
for the mouth of most sheep and cattle. 
The revolving turnip-slicer, is one of the best 
of its old forms; and in a shape which serves as 
the type or groundwork of some of the best im- 
proved varieties of the present day, consists prin- 
cipally of a hopper and a fly-wheel or disc set upon 
a standard or frame. “The area of the fly-wheel 
is covered with wood; and there are two cut- 
ting-knives, each nearly the length between the 
rim and the centre, placed in it at equal dis- 
tances from each other, that is, one on each side 
of the centre, straight in a line dividing the cir-: 
cle into two semicircles, The hopper is placed: 
up in such a position as that the turnips put 
into it shall always at its under side press 
against the side of the wheel. This under, mouth 
of the hopper is made of the same breadth as the 
length of the cutting-knives, that is, somewhat 
less than the radius of the wheel. The wheel is 
made to revolve, so as that the knives shall cut 
when passing down by the under mouth of the 
hopper. At the face of each cutting knife there 
is a space left, by which the slice cut off falls 
down at the opposite side of ‘the wheel to that 
at which the hopper is‘attached; and by every 
revolution of the fly-wheel, each of the knives 
passes the hopper and cuts a slice off all the tur- 
nips which are at the time passing against the 
wheel.” A variety of this implement, invented 
by Mr. Baird of Shotts, has a circular cast-iron 
plate instead of the wooden disc, and is provided 
with transverse cutters for dissecting each slice 
of turnip into smaller pieces, and, with the ex- 
ception of the knives and cutters, is made en- 
tirely of cast-iron. The plate is cast a broad 
rim or thickened edge which gives it, when in 
motion, the centrifugal power of a true fly-wheel ; 
the thickness of the slices is regulated by the dis- 
tance of the knives from the face of the plate; 
and each knife is preceded by three or more 
lancet-pointed studs which by slitting the tur- 
nips in passing, prepare the slices for falling in 
pieces when they are detached from the knives 
at each revolution of the plate.—Most of the re- 
cent and improved revolving disced turnip-slicers, 
as well as Mr. Baird’s, are provided with a con- 
trivance for dissecting the slices into pieces; and — 
many have this contrivance in the form of small 
knives, standing crosswise before the edge of the 
slicing knife, and fixed upon a small plate which 
may be inserted or removed at pleasure; so that 
when this plate is absent the turnips are cut 
merely into slices,—and when it is present, they 
are dissected also into small pieces. Some of the 
machines, likewise, are mounted on mere quadru- 
pedal frames, while others are mounted on wheel- 
barrow-formed frames; and the latter are conve- . 
nient either for travelling along a field, or for 
depositing supplies of the sliced turnips in a 
series of troughs.—Mere slices are sufficiently 
