Lewisburg chronicle. [volume] (Lewisburg, Pa.) 1850-1859, 1856-05-16
From the PennsylVaH.4 Farm Journal.
Farm Hands and New implements.

MEssRs. EDITORS The d0utle Mi
chigan, or soil and subsoil plow, pro-
cured last fail, had in use over a ten
acre field, and | can assure you 1t did the
work to my full satisfaction. We used it
on field that has been in my possession
only few years, and this is the second
time We plowed it in the course Of a seven
years rotation. Tle first time Of plow-
ing We could not 90 deeper than FIVE or
six inches, the subsoil being hard slaty
clay, and the ground dry and hard at the
time. This time we put three horses to
the plow, aul brought up the subsoil at
least ten inches deep. The field now
looks Cor did before the snow felD like
clay turned by the brick makers.
Now, sir, l do not pretend to be
prophet, nor the son of a prophet" yet
will venture to predict, that should We
have season sufficiently warm, aud with
" the early and latter rains" that this
field will not fail to produce crop of corn
that any farmer might be proud of.
always find great difficulty in getting
my hands to use properly any new agri-
cultural implement. They seem to set
their heads against and innovation upon
their usual habits. Even this plow my
man thought he could DO nothing with,
and only for my determined Perseverance
would have tumbled it into the fence cor
ner after the first round. He thought he
could rlow only half as much as with
common plow, did not like to use three
horses, it wouldn't work well, thought
the pl0w would not turn the burrows, &c,
yet with coaxing, persuading, and s0oldiDg,
kept him at it, until the whole f9id
was turned over at least ten inches deep.
So much for perseverance,.
Last spring | had a corn planter on
trial, and the best in my opinion that has
Kat been made for the purpose of planting
corn Mr.. Snyder 8, Va re1.J o->]I...
my man to try it, which unfortunately
happened to be in field that had corn in
the previous year-here the old corn stalks
interfered with the cutter, and it would
not work we'll The next field was full Of
stones and stumps, and We did not use it.
Then ! had it brought on my home farm,
which l have leased, and got my tenant
to try it. The frs; field again was full
of ccrnsiaihs in one round he had one
of the tubes choked with extra large grains
of corn said it would not wark. The
next field was clover lay, and in as fac
a tilth as a garden; l could not induce
/ him to use it until the field was nearly
planted After much persuasion however
and putting the machine in complete
working order, l got him to give it anoth.
er trial Well, after making three rounds
| found it stuck up against the fence, and
the old plow in operation. When asked
him WHY he did no. finish the field with
it, his excuse was, it did not run steady,
his plow and TWO horses for furrowing out
would stand idle, three boys for drop
piug the corn ditto, man and horse to COW
er the corn d.to. Sol gave it Up.
! We're l young and able to lead off my
self, would certainly "go in for adopt
ing many Of these new inventions, which
may truly be termed "labor-saving i'm
plements," but when you have to depend
on hired labour, better keep on in the
"good old way do as our fathers did be-
fore us.
Respectfully, friend 70 progress,
Columbia, Pa, Jan. 80, 1886. J.B.G.
TThe communication Of our friondJ B.
c., who By the way is one of the mos. en-
terprising farmers i'll the State, explains
one of the reasons why we so frequently
hear Of the failure of some of our best ag-
ricultnral implements. 1t is to be regret
ed that circumstances compel farmers to en-
trust the trial of new implements to labor
ers, who either desire their failure, or are
go little interested in their success, that
they would as soon toss then. into the
nearestfence corner a use them. Amongst
this class, an unfortunate and uuiOunded
prejudice too often exists against all i'm
,rnvai imnlsuents They have an idea