The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1853-01-07
TIL E R EPU BLIC..
From, the Ne,D York Herald.

y
cations during the present year. The Economist
London journal of high character, sums up the
more important tests of the respective merits o.
rival machines which have been made during the
late harvest in England, a. follows: -.
ReAPING MACHINEs.-We have purposey alb.
stained from commenting upon the various &C.
counts OF the progress made in reaping corn by
machine, until the Termination of the harvest
should enable us to form estimate of the sue
cess OF this class of instruments, and to ascer
tain which of the several competing re aping ma
chimes has proved the most effective. Enough has
been done by the use Of the the reaping machine to
persede hand reaping on large farms. Even now
great economyis obtained by using the machine,
and there seems reason to believe that great i'm
prov ements will be made in the different hines
on comparative trials made between rival rea pin O
machines. The first was trial between Hussey's
American machine, as manufactured by CroskiII
and Mr.. Bells original Scotch machine.
The next extract is from the report of the com.
mttee of the Driffield Farmers Club in Yorkshire
in trial between Hussey's and McCormick's ma
chimes, in which the decision was in favor of the
latter, and the following contains their reasons for
that decision: H..
McCormick's machine is six feet wide, and Illus
seys five; but as it would be impossible always to
keep up cutting exactly to these widths, they
conceive that six inches less is all that can be cal
culated upon, and at those widths, viz five and
half and tour and half feet, and the horses move
ing at an average speed of two and half milesp
hour, "a speed which your committee would re-
commend, y Hussey's machine would in FIVE and
half hours cut exactly seven and half acres; while
in the same tne and with full little horse pow
er, McCormick's machine would do nine acres and
twenty-six poles. Another matter worthy of con-
sderation is that one man only is needed to drive
the horses in McCormick's machine, the horses
being yoked abreast, while two are necessary in
Hussey's, the horses having to draw in line
Mccormick machine also possesses another ad
vantage in having wooden reel, which, without
any injury to the corn materially assists the man
who pulls away the sheaves, and gives him better
opportunity of adjusting their size. But the great
est superiority of McCormick's machine over Hus-
sey's, which your committee have to notice, is,
that the sheaves when pulled eff are laid in such
way not to impede its working, so that two men
and two horses may move uninterruptedIy,
leaving the rest of the laborers to be otherwise en-
ployed; while in Hussey's the sheaves are left be-
hind, and sufficient number of workmen is, con-
sequently, requisite to remove them, that the
machine may 20 This, your committee need
not point out, is grave objection, more especially
when the crops much mixed with clover seeds,
and when it is desirable to let the sheaves remain
unbound for few days. Your committee are
further of opinion that from the violent reverbera
tory motion impaired to every part of Hussey's
machine, durability is not to be eXpected and
that the form of the serrated cutters in McCor-
mick's machine is far preferable to the deepIy-in.
denied cutters in Hussey's and that they will not
nearly so often need renewing. In giving de.
cided preference to McCormick's, their opinions
were unanimous
The report concludes with the following very
sensible remarks the effect produced on the ag-
ricuitura aborers by the increased use of machine
ny i'll husbandry:
As yeur committee have already stated their
opinion of the utility of well-constructed reaping
machines on the interests of the farmers, it may
not be improper to state what in their opinion will
be their effect upon the condition of that useful
and necessary class, the farmers laborers. They
hoo Ip-s
prove that, in whatever branch of industry ma
chinery h IS been the most extensively useful, the
condition of the operative (however paradoxica it
may appear) has been improved in a correspond
ing degree. For proof OF the truth of this asser-
ton, your committee need not go into the West
Riding or Lancashire; but may conhne themselves
to branch of our own industry Immediately I'm
der the observation of every one connected with
agriculture; and as one fact Is worth many argu-
ments they may call attention to the effects that
threshing machines, drills, and many other imple-
ments for facilitating and lessening the necessary
operations of agriculture have had upon the con
dition of the aborer, and we shall hnd that, not
outstanding the immense increase OF the laboring
poor upon limited surface and their improved
condition. that their predicted fears of the baneful
effects of the introduction of machinery were alto.
gethcr chimerical and unfounded, and that instead
of considering themselves likely to be injured by
the shifting of severe bodily labor to animal or
steam power, they are reaping an advantage
which, properly understood, ought to be hailed by
them as q boon, as no advantage eau De Sdin6Q OV
any class that will not ultimately be spread over
the whole community
third report is OF a trial between Hussey g ma
chine, manufactured by Garrett and McCormick's,
made by Messrs. Burgess & Key, which took place
on the Agricultural College farm, at Cirencester
Here, also, Mccormick seems to have been pre-
ferred:
That, upon examination of the fields in which
the crops had been cut, we found the work 10 have
been generally we'll and satisfactorily done by both
machines; but the stubbie left by Hussey's appear
ed in all descriptions of grain, rather the neatest
and most even In each case it had been consid
cred necessary follow with the horse rake, which
had effectually cleared up all the waste, amount.
ing, it was found the wheat stubbe, to q bu sh-
els per after McCormick's, and 81 after Gar
rett's machine. The wheat field considered to
have been favorable for the working of the ma
chimes, being generally level and clean, and TO
have presented Iair average stand up crops, in no
places much laid, such were likely to have pro-
duced in fair yield about probably thirty bushels
per acre, or rather more. The beans, moderate
crop, drilled twenty.tw two inches apart, had been
cut principally by McCormick's machine, which
had made very fair work; and the small portion
upon which Hussey's had been tried equally
we'll done in both instances, leaving a more tidy
stubble than the scythe which had been applied to
an adjoining portion OF the CROP crop OF oats of
about twenty five acres, which we inspected, had
been cut by the machines, and the oats were lying
on the ground. The part cut by Hu5sey's appeared
the cleanest and best work; but considered either
sufficiently well done VS. made careful inspec-
ton of the working of the two machines in field of
barley, laid down with clover and rye grass. The
barley was estimated to produce about four quar-
tiers per the average, but not equal through
out, portion being estimated at five Quarters
while other parts were but only at three quarters,
the clover being reg ular and very luxuriant, par.
ticularIy where the barley was lghtest. We con-
sidered this crop, from its nature, to be a severe
trial to the machines, though the day being fine
and the clover dry, were points much in their ia
vor. The work made by each of them was highly
satisfactory, and, where the barley stood up, in
point of cutting everything which could be desired
and even where partially laid, not much to be
found fault with. Hussey's cut the stubble lowest
and left it rather the more of the two; but in
more than one instance during inspection it
cogged so as to require the machine to be stopped
III order to clear the knives, accident likely in
our opinion to have occurred more frequently and
to have presented serious obstruction, had the
crop been wet or even dew damp. d.
From this objection Mccormick . appeared to be
free, FAR as our observation went; the serrated
cutters always clearing themselves, and its delive
ry was in this crop very superior, as the barley
was laid out regularly by the one man on the ma
chine conveniently in small heaps, with the ears
employed in Hussey's to effect lateral delivery,
though apparently laboring more severely, could
not deposit the barley regularly, or In SO good
a form The pace at which it was necessary lor
the horses to walk, in order to secure the proper
working of the machines, appeared TO us most
material feature in their relative claims. The