St. Charles City Republican intelligencer. [volume] (St. Charles City [Charles City], Iowa) 1857-1861, 1860-05-17
agricultural.
Success of Waters Steam PIOw.

puCCtSo vi dttIS SttdlH flOW.
We visited Minooka, in Grundy
County, Illinois, on the 9th ult.,
in order to observe the working of
Waters Steam Plow in breaking prai-
ric, and will tell our readers what we
saw there On our arrival at Minoo-
ka, we learned that Mr.. Waters was
at work. In company with Mr.. l..
Smith, who kindly volunteered to take
us to the field We left the station,
going north, and passed over field of
forty acres which had been broken by
Mr.. Waters, with his plow. This was
his first work. His Plows not hav-
ing been well finished up and polish
ed, the breaking in this field was
somewhat rough and broken, but alto
gcther, was very we'll done. The un-
dulations in this field were consider
able, giving both an up and down
grade, thus testing the capacity of the
machine in this respect
Passing this ground, and ascending
a high roll of the prairie, we caught
sight of the plow in the distance,
travelling lcisurcly across the prairie,
drawing its gang of six plows, cut
ting turrOw nine feet in width. The
scene was grand and exciting. As
we approached the machine, we found
Waters quietly guiding it, with none
but the necessary attendants about
him, and thus practically testing its
ability and power before seeking to
place it prominently before the public
We noted down the operation of the
| machine while we were with it. From
given point it travelled twenty-thrcc
minutes; stopped six minutes for
wood ; ran thirteen minutes, and stop.
ped nine minutes for water then ran
nineteen understanding ffty-five
minutes running time and fifteen min
utcs stoppagc. Had the man whose
| duty it was to furnish water and wood,
performed that duty as he should, and
could have done, he would have saved
at least five minutes of this time. Es-
timating the ground plowcd as near
~ as we could without actually meas.
uring it, we found that during seven
ty-two minutes (including stops) he
had plowcd 3 G3.l00 acres. That the
machine can plow at this rate through
the day without interruption, is not
to be expected, in its present condi-
ton. Tie day previous to our visit
Mr.. w. plowcd twelve acres with it.
The plows had been put to some very
severe tests in a field full of small
oak and hickory stumps or "grubs"
These were cut off without injury to
the plows, and apparently without
effect upon the engine. We measured
one of these hickory roots which had
been cut through f; its diameter was
4I inches.
In this trial Mr. Waters uses but
six of his gang of thirteen plows. His
traction power seems sufficient to
draw them all, and when some more
convenient mode of handling and
managing them shall be adopted, he
will have no difficulty in using the
full gang.
AS the machine is now arranged, ii
requires one and half cords of wood,
a hand and team to supply fuel and
water, (thc water in this case being
hali-milc away a fireman, two men
to manage the plows, beside Mr.. Wa
tcrs-to which add oil, &c, and Mr..
w. says the cost to him is less than
nine dollars per day.
James Waters the inventor. de-
serves more than passing notice-
more than our space, and the data in
our possession will permit us to give,
Naturally very retiring, he has work
ed quietly and almost unknown. His
mechanical talent and judgment are
of superior order. So complete
were his plans perfected in his own
mind, that within three months from the
time the first blow was struck on his
machine in Detroit, he drove it into
the United States Fair Grounds il
Chicago, amid the shouts of the as
scmbled thousands. 1t there demon
strated its enormous power, in turn
ing over furrow twenty feet wide
and from six to eight inches deep,
with it's monster gang of thirteen
plows attached. Unfortunately, be-
fore it could be tested by the commit
tee, some portion of the plows gave
way and prevented thorough trial.
Not at all disheartencd, Mr.. Waters
repaired up, and visited the central
portions of the State. exhibited the
plow in operation, and finally returned
to Detroit, where, during the winter
he has made some slight alterations
and additions to strengthen and i'm
prove it, have been adopted. lie now
appears, unannounccd, on our prairies
to claim what he has won-thc honol
of being the first man in America who
has made practical and paying dc
monstration of plowing by steam.
Up to the time we left Minooka he
had plowcd about seventy acres, and
is now engaged in large job OF
prairie breaking for which lie is paid
by the acre.
1t is his purpose to continue the
work with his present machine, until
= he shall have established by expert
encc what improvements are neccssa
ry, or may be made, in order to ren
, der his invention perfectly adapted tt
/ the wants of Western Agriculturists