New-York tribune., 1868-11-06
THE CASrm0N PLOW AND us INVENTOR.

The inventions which nave leSsened the price
,f the plOw. and the difficulty and expense of run
nInQ IT, and brought the implement To its present
pcrtectiOn. rank III Importance with those which
have given us the stean-engine and the locomotive.
Improve the plOw. and improve the value of
every acre of land in the United States. Reduce the
rost of working IT, aud we reduce the cost of every
barrel of flour and every bushel OF corn between
R1ngor and San Francisco.
The plow is older than civilization. Pllny tells us
that Buzygcs thc AthenaIl Oh as osnes W0nio nave
II TrptOlemnS, first yoked oxen Tor the tlllage OF
the earth, and advised the plow" Plntarch records
ihat at the building OF Rome, Romulus taketh the
Inv 10 which hr fastened Golfer or plOwshare of
braSs and SO yoIed in an OK and COW he himself
midinG tie plow, did make round abont the compass
of the city deep furrOw' lp English history II Is
"a III NOR, mnort,,ut and plowman is honOrably
Mentioned in Chaucers Canterbury Tales rs one of
the ~ oup of story teers who diverted themselves on
Bnt Inc hncicntS and the early English plOwmen
ti.l the Garth with an implement 50 rude and I'M
~ feet thar wonder IL held its place SO long Ii
Vas lttlc more th,n Il crooked stick shaped like
section of the trunk Ot tree, with sharp PROJECT
inc branch to stir the ground Ins woouen ploHw
evactlV Il il was used among the Egyptahs anu IS
rSitrs s still in vogue not only IN the Republic OF
Mrxico but also in our own Territory OF New-MeXlc0
where when merchants tired 10 lhlrouuSe ; tme a lon
pl,yv tn. ignorant and supersnuous IatVes lhheNl-
Llr refused to have anything TO do with IT,
The Rotterdam plow, used in England a hundred
mud Gfty wears avo, was heavy, unwledy lmpement
o"d eSniir,iy of wond except the Golfer, or knife
depending from the beam 10 cut through i0ols dnu
soil aud two shoes on the undsI size oi ,ne SHARE
which were 0f wrought IRON. buJ III l'iO' james
small a Scotchman, introduced areyolutlOn III nus
I'"irv by prodnciug cast iron moldboar That
,ras fGe LeGimirg of a new era. Then there was no
marked change Ill nearly fifty years atterward
when Robert Ransom OF Ipswich, patented an iron
liOWShare.
Until after the Revolution the history of agricul-
tna implements IN America was nearly the same
as in England. Yankee inventivencss did not
assert itself till the colonies threw on the YOKE oi
the mOtheT-conntTy But as the UNITED states
struggled out Of the gloom in which the war
left them. improvements IN agriculture and manu-
factures began to occupy the keeneSt minds OF the
Is,.I~ nj
patent for some improvement in pOw-making which
was purchased Of him by David Peacock. who after
ward produced plJw having both mold-board and
Landslide of cast iron, with share OF sharpened steel
wrought iron.
SO important were improvements in plows con-
siGeTed that the versatile and phiosophc Jefferson
was greatly interested in them, and IN lCS he wrote
a long. elaborate treatise the construction of
mOld-bOards. His theory was, that, as the bottom
of the furrow is or ought to be flat the breast of
the mOld-hoard where II comes IN direct contact
with the soil should be fat also But the plow still
continued very imperfect state As late as 1870,
according To the testimony of old farmers now
living the kind best known and most commonly
used bore the name of the "BullDlow." IL was made
principally Of wood aud wrought iron. and Ordi-
nary cost $40 or so. The mold board was of wood
fitted bungngy to the irons. and the action of the
rude implement might be illustrated 10y holding
sharp-pOintcd shovel, back up, and thrustinG IT
through the ground" The share was of steel; and
frequently had TO be sharpened by blacksmith at
charge of from ten To twenty shilllngs. The plow-
ing season especially where land stony proved
very expensive To the hushandman.
In 1914 JethTO Wood, a farmer of ample means and
large intelligence, living in Cayuca County New
York, took out patent for an improved pillow. Prom
early childhood he had shown remarkable ingenuity
in the construction OF agricultural implements.
When only few years old he nodded little pow
from metal, which he obtained by melting a pewter
cup. Then. cutting the buckles from set of braces
he made miniature harness with which he fastened
the family cat to bis uny plow, and endeayOred 70
drive her about the flower garden. The good old
fashioned whipping he received for this " mischief y
such to drive all desire for repeating the eX-
pertinent ont of his Juvenile head.
when manhood the ruling
asserted itself, aud for years the improvement of the
plow was his darling project; His chief desire was
10 inveRt a new m0ld-bOard, which. from lis form
should meet the least resistance from the soil and
which could be made with share and standard eu-
tlrey OF cast Ion 10 nlt upon the exact shape lor
the mold-bOard he Whitfield away, day after day,
until his neighbors, who thought him mad on
the subject. gave him the sOubTiqnet of the
"whittling Yankee HIS custom was TO take
n large oblong potato which easy for the knife.
and cut it till he obtained what be fanced was the
The plow which he patented in lsl4 he found de-
fective and, destroying his lSt patterns he set to
work again; In 1919 ho took out q patent for hs
perfected pOw. IL covered five distinct improve
mens l. The new shape of the mold board. 10 raise
and turn the soil with the least resistance, ,. The
cast-irOn standard. which is a projection from the
mold board. connecting il with the beam. 3. The
cast-irOn edge share and the manner of attaching
IL TO the upper side OF the mold board l. Inc last
enng of the handles 10 the Landslide and mold board
by nOtches loops, east with the Landslide and mold
board respectively. ;. The manner of connecting
the landslide and moldbOard without the aid OF
scTew-bOlts.
lie obtained his patent for period of fourteen
years and his inycnIion T1ceyed me Daine ol tle nc
Cast Iron PlOw, fIom the entire abandonment OF
wrought non IN It's construction.
Ic Immediately began 20 Inanufactufe ms PQWs'
and introduce them 20 the farmers IN ms nclghboT,
hood. The difficulties which he now encountered
would have dauuicd any man without extraordinary
rcIsevcrance and firm belief ~ the ineHumabie
benefit 20 agriculture sure 10 result from MS lhNen-
ton. lie obliged 10 manufacture all the pat
teens aud 30 have the plOw cast under the disadIan-
fages usual with new machinery HE nearest i'if-
mace was thirty miles from his home, aud, haied 10y
nbstaclee which uuskillful and disOblglng WOrkmeD
threw in ms way hc visited IT, day after day. direct
ing the making Of his patterns, standing by the fur
uaces while the metal was melting, and often with
lis own hands aiding IN the casting.
Whom. al length. samples Of his pl0w wore ready
for tl.e be met with another difficulty 10 the unvil
Iingness Of farmers 10 accept them. What they
cried in contempt, "a plOw made Oi pot metal iOu
might As well attempt 90 tGTn up the earth with
glass piOwshaTe. IL would hardly Dc nOIe brltte."
One day he induced one Of his most fkcptIcai
BeighbOrs 10 make public Trial Of the plow. A
large cOncOuTse gathered 10 how n would work.
with stones. many Of them firmly nbcdded IN the
E0 and iutting mp from the surface All predicted
that the plOW would break at the outset To their
astOnishncnt and Woods satisfaction it went around
the field, running easily and smoothly, and turning
up the most perfect furTOw which had ever been
seen. Tho small stones against which the farmer
inalIcOnsly guided IT, 20 test the brittle metal,
moved out Of the way If they were grains OF sand
and It Slid around the inmOyablc rocks as If they
We're icebergs
Incensed at the non-fulfllment Of his prophecy
the farmer finally drove the plOw with all force
upon a large bowlder, and found 10 his amazement
that ii was uninj red by the collision. II proved n
sav Of tTnniph for JcthTO Wood aud from that time
lac heard few tannts about the pot metal
so with 20 much ease that two horses could do the
work for which yoke OF oxen anu "a span Oi horses
had sometimes been insufficient before that II made
a better furTow and that il cOnld be bought Tor seven
a., .;0It doIIars M more running 20 the blacksmith