The Daily state journal. [volume] (Alexandria, Va.) 1868-1874, 1871-11-22
FLOWING MACHINES.
The True Aim of steam Culture

English, and, SO far, the only successful
system of steam culture. The department
writer then relates how the American steam
plowing-machine have all failed. The
writer recounts these failures, and ther
proceeds to give his idea of what a steam
pillow should be and do.
With most refreshing American go.
ahead-at-any- energy, he informs us
that the coming steam plowing-engne
must run over the field like a horse, be
able to frisk about the farm like an animat-
ed elephant, and be ready at any time to
race over the prairie at jolly pace, with a
dozen steel plows tearing up the ground at
its heels. Io.- q-...-r..
To quote from somebody who probably
never saw steam pillow, It must :" get up
and go' like the iron horse that it IS. Ii
must smell the battle alar off, and shout
Ila! Ha! among the trumpets. Its neck
must be clothed with the thunders. II
must shake the ground with its iron feet,
and pillow hundred acres day.
Now this is q festive plow-horse, no
doubt, but he is not born yet. If he were,
of what earthly use would he be? Ac-
cording to the report, the makers of Amer
lean steam-plowing machines have brought
forth with much labor some very queer
things. Furthermore, every one is fail
ure, if the report may be believed. To
our thinking they all proceed upon wrong
principle, and though they have once in a
while plowed up a field or two, yet for
deep and real culture they will never ac-
complish much. lf
Now to clear the ground that we may
see things clearly, let us at once get rid Of
all the triturators, scarifiers, scratchers and
other agricultural vanities ever invented
They may be very fine in their way, but
we do not care for them just now. The
pillow is the tool we are to use. How to
drag it through the ground by steam power
is the problem before us.
The department report gives brief no.
tice of the English method Of steam-plow-
ing, and then dsmisses the matter. Then
the American steani-horse mot yet invented)
is trotted out, and we are told he is soon to
be seen dragging gang of plows behind
him, after the manner of horse. We
venture to say that this is all wrong. The
English system, where to plows are pulled
over the ground with ropes, is the only COR
rect one. ~
The English steam plowing-engine, as
we saw it in England, stands still while at
work. 1t does not so upon the plowed
land at all, bat stands on road at one side
Of the field. English steam piows are
made upon several different plans. One is
known as the double engine, or direct plan.
Two engines are used. One takes its posi-
ton at one side of the field and the other
stands opposite. The gang-plow, with
eight shares, four pointing each way, is
placed between and attached to each engine
with n wire rome Onn pnpi 10 winds nm fha
rope and pulls the pillow towards it. Then
it Stacks the rope and without turning
round the pillow is pulled back by the other
engine. The idle engine meantime moves
forward the width of the furrow, ana pre-
pares for the next pull. Thus alternately
the land IS plowed to depth of twenty
inches at the rate of ten acres in a day of
ten hours. The cost is less than one-half
that of horsepower.
Another, called the single engine or
IN these columns. In brief, it is like this
The engine stands still in the corner of
the field, and pulls the pillow round by
continuous rope that runs through blocks
anchored at the corners OF the field, or
d d the glow backwards and forwards
VI "i.SSi" az ."S OPPo'''S 'ie'S VI eho ioiu'
In this case the engine and anchor block
move forward together as the work goes
on. ~
On seeing plowing apparatus of this
kind upon an English farm, | ventured to
ask the foreman why he did not hitch the
plows behind the engine horse-fashion, and
SO get rid OF the ropes. The man fairly
laughed in my face.
why SIR said he, ''thc engine would
pack the soil down harder than any pillow
could lit It,"
replied that such things had been done.
oh yes, dare say; but, mind ye,
though the plow will follow the engine, and
Will turn the soil over, yet the crops will
show that it has been more pressed down
than stirred up. Why, sir, one day last
spring was riding the engine to the field,
and to save time | drove her right across
the field we'were to pillow. The place was
plowed long with the rest, and everything
seemed all right. When the wheat came
up we could tell just where the engine had
been. The soil had been pressed, and
there was strip of poor wheat just there.
ferhaps another season the track VIII dis
appear.
mo SIR, We can't do it. The engine
must keep to its path, and not be tramping
over the land like horse"
This, 1T seems to us, IS the sum OF the
whole matter. Every farmer knows how