The Express.
London, England, 1863-12-10 00:00:00

[St.mp•d, id. Add k=lj

STEAM PLOUGHING.

A public meeting was held yesterday, at St.
Jamas-ball, for the purpose of comedering the bast made of
exteeding the application of steam-power to the cultivation
of the sod. Amongst those present wen Mr. E. Holland,
ILP., Lord Bobt. Rootage, Sir tied. Jankinsoo, Bart., Sir
Hoary VIITILIOOT, Bart., the Earl of Suffolk and Berkshire,
Lord Bonen, Dr. Welcher Mews. J. Williams, H. Wil.
Bans, T. Hareem, OA, B:Hutchinson, J. Olathe, J. A.
Ceske, Howard Reed, end Jamb Wile"
Mr. Hour," on taking the *hair, said they all ken,
what the difficulties were et starting steam cultivation
upon a far" but after it was once started, end deer the
lead had been for two yens under iamb • system, they
all knew low they wen repaid for the capital employed
la the machinery osaresery for the purpose, and for the
trouble sad labour war had gees through. (Hear.) In
steam cultivation they meet sot commethe without baying
t= hly drained the lead, sad after they had once can-
operation they gained, more especially in heavy
clay laid, pest advantages from the absence of the pressure
of bases. Under the old system, in consequence of that
preen" the subsoil was so oestatmally made into a speeds
of brink beseeth the appirenily well tilled mien that the
roots and mops bed no then" sod the homes did almost as
ninth upon the heavy clay leads to the detriment of the col.
tines as they did I. his edvantege. With regard to the
number of hones employed, he had in his owe ease at ale
time 20 working bones under the old system,sod he bad now
reduced that number to 12, after four years' cultivate= by
steam. (Ham beer.) He did not mean to say that say
one Oft over his fain maid not fled as Pithy
banes epos it now as formerly but be would lad young
hones katead of old owes. The young hams bad male in
for the lighter work. whisk the seem bed lift ho be eases
and they had always • marketable value, like sheep, or
stock, or anything sold from the form Bat simony& other
great advantages arising from steno cultivation we this,
that it ambled them to effect is • week or • fortadele,
the autumn, that which under the bone system would have
taken six weeks to perform. (Hear, hen.) T'be ocasemnenes
was that they olasined really • command over the season,
and this was an advantage which, in heavy easy leads,
would ropy the cost of stoma ploughing. In clay loath,
in abrt, • complete revolution had been Waned through
the rieblishment of the new system, and whereas before,
land was unproductive because it could not be
cultivated deep enough, mid berths did so meek damp
epos it. now wider the steam ouldvation, that which
bed only been send.productin, was becoming •
kitchen garden. And these advents."' were not °Maned
at a heavy cook for in many eases the expense was Mooed
by one-haft. Where they used to plough with four hones
at soon of 20a. per sore, they now ploughed by steam at •
oat, including wear sad tear of machinery, of 10s. an sere,
tad cultivated by steam at • oast of ss. or 6s. en sere. After
having had the system in operation for four years, his expe-
rience was that the additional produce per aces under the
influence of stem ploughing versus horse labour was about
on quarter, or eight -bushels. (Hear.) If that were the
case, taking wheat at be. • bushel even, they had the rent of
the hied at V. per acre paid entirely by the use of steam
ploughs. With Others great 'Wyman's" arising from the
system, how 'nit, then, that it had not been more
generally adopted over the country? One reason was that
the landlords were not yet satisfied se to the merits of
steam ploughing, and, consequently, would still keep their
small fields, and would not allow the numerous hedgerows
to be removed. Another objection was to the smoust of
capital to start steam ploughs. The amount of capital ex-
panded in his own case was 1,0001., and though • cheaper
process might be employed the farmer would still have to
invest several bundling., It was not generally the are
Wad the twist fernier had such a sum in hand to speed in
an improvement of the hied, and attempts had lima made
in different way to overcame this difficulty. in some cases,
etherprisiog farmers, whose lands were contiguous to on
another, bad joined together and started • steam plough
between them, but the disednateges of this plan wen that
both desired to have the operaticss performed at the same
time, and each employing his own men the machinery was
not always managed by competent persons, and the
d
dose to the machinery and sometimes to the ploughe=
the proems • very expensive on. Another course had
been to form • "emptily for the purpose of
letting oat ploughs. This was all well and good
if the companies were placed under the care
of engineers or persons connected with engineering esteb-
llamas" bawls' then men, who during the Omitting
season were at work in steuseultivation, went back when
the ploughing season was at an sod to the engineers office,
and were kept at work in another department, instead of
being at all times supported by • pore steam plough
company. Neither of three plans answering the purpose it
had been considered that it wbuld be of advantage to start
• steam ploughing cultivation company, for the sake of sup-
plying ploughs, engines, and other agricultural imple-
ments to tenant farmers, and it was for the purpose of
ascertaining what the opinions of the agricultural world
were on this subject that the present meeting was called to-
gether. It was proposed to purchase the moat improved
steam cultivaton and sell theca to mriculturiste upon the
principle of a mortgage of the mar.nery, to be paid off
by instalments ; and whether this company was socensfal
or sot he was minis that its existence must prove • great
advantage to the agricultural world. (Hear, hoar).
Lord It. MONTAGU, who stated that he had only recently
and in cooesquenos of witoessiag the performance of steam
ploughing this year in the neighbourhood of Huntingdon,
become an advocate of steam cultivation, proposed the first
resolution. It appeared to him that the advantage of the
system would be just that of • good harvest every year, and
the 20,000,0001., which he understood was the pin from
the harvest of this year. would go every year into the
pockets of the British farmer, instead of being paid to
Americans or Germain. The foreign competitor who could
now cultivate so cheaply that after paying the cost of ex-
porting his produce he could still undersell the British
fanner, could be driven out of the market by the aid of
this economical system, and the consequence would be that
• greater acreage would be brought under cultivation. The
experience of those who had tested the merits of steers
cultivation was that it could be performed at about half
the cost of the old system, and with en increase of one half
In the produce. He moved—" That the cultivation of the
land by steam is now proved to be an advantageous and
highly economical process, and that the machinery now
need for this purpose is of • character sufficiently perfect to
be recommended for the use of practical farmers."
Mr. Jeans Witue.ma, of North-court, Abingdon, OF
aoudad the resolution, end pointed out the adveutage of
steam ploughing in the capability of the machine to work
continuously for any number of hours. The Agricultural
Societies throughout the country had done much to remove
the prejudice of farmers in favour of old systems, and he
believed that with a joist stock company to overcome the
first difficulty of finding capital for the necessary machinery,
steam cultivation would in a few years become as postal
as the employment of steam in the threshing of cora.
A °INTL/MAN inquired what was the smallest field, irre-
spective of the size of the farm, in which steam cultivation
could be carried on with profit-

Mr. WILLIAM replied that none were too email for the
purpose. A field of four acres, if square, could be cultivated
profitably by steam.
The resolution was unanimously carried.
Mr. BROOKS was not satisfied with regard to the economy
of steam cultivation. It was no doubt a great benefit to
save the lend from being trodden by the horses, but they
might be buying that advantage too dear. lie was a laad.
owner in Suffolk, and be had tried the application of steam
to thrashing, but bad found the expeaee greater than the
receipts to defray those expenses. If the steam cultivator
broke down it had perhaps to be carried a long way to be
repaired, and then a mood% might be lost while it was at the
machine maker's. Except upon very large farms be did not
think that horse labour could be superseded by steam.
A GICIFILKIIAIt from the North of Ireland expressed his
hope that a movement of such national importance
would succeed in spite of some minor objections and first
failures. _ _

TieFarl of SUFFOLK moved the next resolution, to the
effeot—" That one great obstacle to the progress of steam
culture is the inability of the generality of tenant farmers
to purthsae the expensive machinery now used to break up
sad prepare thermal."
Bir H. VAVanoui wooded the resolution. _ _

Mr. Bum, a Gloucester tenant farmer, believed th►t a
great deal was to be accomplished from the employment of
steam tackle for ploughing, and he doubted whether farmers,
though an isolated class, were more backward than mean-
lecturers in adopting anything that was for the good of
their pockets. (Laughter.) He should be glad himself to
have the opportusity of hiring a steam plough, if it would
do the work at 10s. an acre.

In reply to s question,
The CHAIRMAN said the steam plough could be employed
upon hilly sod undulating ground without soy difficulty
whatever.

The resolution having bees carried,
Mr. Hamill:os proposed :—" That 000siderable ad-
vantage would arise to tomtit farmers and others from the
establishment of • joint-stock oompany for the purpose of
supplying steam apparatus to applicants, allowing them to
repay the eat price by instalments extendiog over • certain
somber of years, on the principle of • rolling stock coml-
.^ In his opinion the purchase should be made by the
Lsdlad and taunt in CODjUOCtiOII, the company taking a
hood from the laadlord for the payment of the money.
D. VaLCIENB, in seconding the resolution, expressed hie
belief that if the company were formed sod practically
worked it would lied to the establishment of • number of
similaroompaafr throughout the oouotry. By steam col-
tivation they could get from mloy soils an inmate* quan-
tity of manor*, and thus save • great deal of mussy In the
purchase of artificial or the production of home-made manure;
and there were many soils to this country which were not fa
a fit condition to metre the mature, if the farmer had a
willingness to purchase guano, superphosphate of limo, or
to apply his uwo farmyard manure to the land.
A Glarruttnn, the owner of sugar catalog in the Wont

rit l'Elt
ir
IA
%-1441474*
• IFPI
I ' (

[TWI

~~~

taw, spoke at the meows with which steam adtiestion
bed ban istrodated into 'samara, Barham, sad
Aibut urged that attend*. should be turned to
INlCiliDely, sad thus reducing its oast.
Tri 3"..resatutiori was carried.

43; W motion iiiiikTino. dienzinece, amended by Mr.
H. WrifiAms, a resolutice, approving of the objects of
the Gwent Steam Cultivatioo Company, sail the mode in
elicit it vas designed to carry them into gib* WY also
lidnittiA
A cordial vote of Visas vas then accorded to Mr. Hol.
kind for presiding, and the siestlng implicated.