The Express.
London, England, 1850-04-04 00:00:00

STEAM POWER IN AGRICULTURE.

Oa Thursday evening last Mr. Mechi addressed a
large company at the Coggesball Mechanics' lentitu'n, On
the necessity and advantage of applying steam power to agri-
culture." The lecturer, amongst wher thioes, remarked—
The general application of steam is agriculture involve' a
thorough change and reformation of our farming "viten.
It is a question of more capital and less lead, both for landlord
and tenant; It is a question of abolition of men of straw,and
Isubstitution of men of capital. Ina word, the employment
of steam power in amienelture will compel or induce a
larger employment of labour and production of food.
Drainage, deeper cultivation, open &los, good roads, better
huildirgs, more livestock, and less weeds, must and will be
the concomitants of agricultural steam power, for item
power means amendment and progression. Steam will do
on a farm that which horses cannot do. Steam has already
dose something for agriculture. That vut expanse of swamps
end bogs, the safe and solitary subagent' the snipe, the duck,
and the bittern—l mean the greet Bedford Level—presents
now • dry and rich extant of corn, of roots, and of stock.
Tatra is no doubt but ultimately we shall aToll ourselves of
steam for irrigation, in our warm and dry districts for sum-
mer green erope. Ultimately the power of steam will be
applied to the working and stirring of the soil; already
many experimental trials have taken place. One thing is
quite certain--that the general application of steam power
in cultivation will necessitate such a squaring and levelling
and reparcelling of the soil as will thoroughly reform the
bedge-and-ditch.row-ism and topography of this kingdom.
It will equally compel a reformation and re adjustment of
the system of transfer or exchange of land, which should
cluinga hands as easily as the Three per Cunt. Consols. A
farm of 600 acres should represent a square mile with a far-
mer, in its centre, having half a mile divergi :g roads to Its
extremities ; whereas now, under the lust( m of old custom and
unalterability, a farm of that sirs generally involves the intri-
cate SthreadWg of miles of almost impels-Joie green and
muddy lames, with fields of every form except the right one.
I am enabled to form a correct comparative estimate of the
relative power of horses snd steam, because, unfortunately,
my first attempt was with six real horses—the remembrance
of that great mistake awakens many unpleasant sod unpro-
fitable reflections. The mere working space required for the
six horses is three times as great as that nece•sary for the
engine and boiler—to say nothing of the stalls, attendance,
and food. Heroes, when not at work, must he fed and at-
tended to, even on Sundays; wh esteem engine may be
rested days or weeks without cost or injury. If a steam-
horse cost, only 251., it is quite clear that it is in first cost,
power, maintenance, and durability, more alvantsgeous
than a real hone; besides if you feed it well with coals and
water, you may work it all night as well as all day. The
cost of a 6.borse power engine, best wrought boiler;
fixing shaft, brickwork, &c. ; pair of mill &View, gear-
ing, and miller's tools; Turner and Hurwood's linseed
crasher and gearing; pump and gearing; sock tackle
and gearing; threshing machine and gearing;'nutters,
do.; e.rrseing machine and gear ; chtff tuner sod gear-
ing; grindstone and gearing; amounts to 4V1., and the
daily charge is for—
Coals (half atria) 6O 10 0
Miller and engine-driver, both combined in one
man
Sperm oil, rags, candles, packing, &c.
Wear and repairs to engine, &c.

0 1:i 4
Interest of capital, 4001., at five par cent.

0 IG 8
Daily prefit

LI 8 0
The cinder althea from the engine art given to the
r.igr. and they at them with great reli.a and wivantage.
(Li.ughter.)

DAILY WORE DONE.
Charged at the price we ahou:d have to ray in the regular
way, indepsndent of cartage to mil, &c
Seven quaver of corn ground CI 1 0
n.) bushels of chaff cut a of an inch long (Inas
woman's time 7d)
Miller's toll saved, albs. per sack, is 56 at id
(Laughter)
Li-seed crushed, water pumped, sacks reisvd,
grindstone turned, water boiled, food steamed gratis.

4:1 8 0
For a small additional cost I could drive an extra pair
of mill-stones. My agreement with my miller is to work
later if required. So that we could, if nece•s,ry, do
much more at a trifling increase of fee!. T^.e daily
charge for fuel depends on a variety of circumstances,
such as the price of coa's and the quantity of work
done in a given time; mice of G-horse power Silvan with
great rapidity (about 92revolutions per minute) consumes, in
the 10 working hours, nearly half a ton of coals. They are the
large Blyth coals, which ecst me, including carats o an
farm, Ise. Gd. per ton. Tho quantity of work dose by this
engine is much mare than ten hones could possibly uccora•
plash.

COST OF A DAT.. THRESIIING.
30 quarters of !wig mowed wheat, threshed, a. d.
dressed, nod sacked up In eight hours, or 40
quartets of reaped wheat, ca:s. 10a. ; engine-
driver, 3•. 41.; oil rag', &c., 61. ; wear and
repairs to caging, Is. 6d. ; interest of capital,
ls. 4d.
Wages of 7 ma., at Is. 61 6
Three women and three boys, at S 4. each 0 4 0

.t; 1 11 2
or Is. per quarter for the mowed and 9d. per quarter kr the
reaped wheat; mess might bo dose, but 30 quarters of
mowed wheat is as much as a good mat elan pus through hie
hands in the time. (Hear, hear.) Bat even if, inn's: of
111. 4d. daily gain, we only conducted our basineas at the
ordinary omit, still there would be an immense conveniesim
in Lein g able to do everything our own way, and at the
right time, without cartage to mill and the uncertainties
of supply. Steam will have the effsct cr
dinsiairdng the extent of land in grass. Same isrmers
would stare with disbelief if you told them that it was
easy to keep working horses in good order without hay, but
I can assure them it is quite possible to do so, pro-
vidtd we allow item a sufficiency of meal with th-ir
cut straw chaff, and add a little linseed coup to :t.
The same reloads applies to feeding cattle. The fa-
cili.y of cutting straw into chaff and grinding corn into
meal by steam power will convince lanolords, and tenants
I too, that the poor grass lands will be inure .idvantagtously
converted into good corn and root growing arable !and.
The Scotch system of two years grass for rest will natu-
rally give way to the improved method of olstaininc abund-
ant manure by purchased corn on bearded doors, or under
sheds.

A CLERGYMAN ELECTING lIIMSELF Cll it-
WaRDEN.—At a meeting, held in the vestry of the perish
of Saint Gilt", in the City of Durham, on Tuesday, to
appoint officers for the parish for the ensuing year, the
Rev. Francis Thompson, incumbent, in •he chair, the
chairman stated, that u he had the power to no-
minate • churchwarden by law, and that u he had
nayer been able to appoint one that gi,ve him satisfac-
tion in the discharge of the duties of the office, he wculd
nominate and elect himself. The meeting protested against
such appointment as being inconsistent with his other chores
to the parish, and nominated two inhabitants to fill the
tfice. The rev. Chairmen would only put one of the pee--
Bone nominated to the choice of the meeting, and the other
as an amendment. The parishioners listed cn electing
both, if the Chairman refused to appoint a parishioner as
usual. The Chairman stated that he would only return
himself, and a Mr. Joseph Dawson, who had the majority of
votes, at the neat visitation as elected. A scene of confusion
ensued, and the parieLioners then left the vestry in a body,
declaring that such coneuct otthe Chairman was tantamount
to shutting the doors of the church.
_

PERSONATION OF A TIIIEF.—OR Saturday last an
Irish girl, calling herself Elizabeth Wilson, was brought up
at the Borough Court, Manchester. Ou the 25th of January
last, a girl, named Elizabeth Wilson, in the service of Mr.
Birbok, Fannel.street, abseonthel from his house, taking
with her a gold lever watch and guard chain. Mr. Birbeck
gave information to the police, and Mr. Betwick ceased a
notice of the robbery and a description of the girl to be in-
serted in the Hue and Cry. A few days since the prisoner,
who answered to a great extent the description of the girl,
made a statement at the town of Roscommon, before the
Hon. Martin French, R.M., county magistrate, to the
effect that she was the person mentioned in the Hue and
Cry as having stolen the watch. She said she gave it to
a girl named Rose Malone, who pawned it in Gaol-
street, Dublin, for St., which they equally divided. They
separated at Mullingu. Her deposition, signed by Mr.
French, was transmitted to Mr. Beswick, who sent sub-
inapector M•Donald over to Ireland for the prisoner. The
I officer took her to Mullingar, but she refused to show him
where she lodged with Rose Malone on the night previous
to their separation. Oa arriving at Dublin, he was unable
to find any Gaol-street, or any such watch as that stolea,
although he went to thirty-two pawnbrokers, and got them
to look through their stocks. When brought to Manchester,
it was discovered that the prisoner was nut the Elizabeth
Wilson mentioned. Atter stating the above facts, Mr. Bee-
wick added that the prisoner, some time since, lived in Little
Ireland, and hawked articles for sale. She saved autlicient
money to take her to see her parents at Reb.:01111a011; but,
finding that she was unable to get as much money there as
in Manchester, she took this step to get haek again, having
no money to pay for her passage from Ireland. She had
thus put the prosecutor to the expense at 14. He believed
that the line and Cry was exposed in some parts of Ire-
land, and he had no doubt she had seen one before she
went to give herself into custody.—The prisoner, who, in
answer to Mr. Maude, said that her name was Elizabeth
Wilson. was discharged.
ALLEGED SUICIDE OF A POLICE CONSTABLE.—OR
Tuesday afternoon, between four and live o'clock, the body
of a man was discovered lying in shallow water, near Rich-
mond-bridge, and upon being taken out it was at ono* identi-
fied as the body of Thomas Emeseraon, a police constable,
who had been nearly sixteen years in the force, ten of which
he had served as eergetuat at Clapham. Some little time
since be was reduced to the rank of constable, and ever since
he has been (wilful of lining dismissed, and left his home
early on the morning of Sunday, the 17th ult., when he was
seen going towards the river, and that came morning his hat
was found on the bank of Colonel Peel's meadow. The
body was removed to the deadhowie to await an inquest.
loou SUPPLIES.—ErNI:, ArRIL I.—A large
market of potatoes and corn to•day. Alter all that has been
bought for seed, the market is still literally crowded with
loads of potatoes. Where they were kept concealed so long
is a mystery. It is testifying to find such t lar,;e quantity
of food in the country, both as regards corn and potatoes;
and there has not been for several years past so large a tract
of laud tilled at *Lamson for the reception of these crops.—
Moro Journal.