The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1874-07-23
The Plow-What the Ancients Knew about
this Useful Implement.

agriculture, and its history, both authentlc ana
NEUROLOGICAL, possesses "a peculiar interest.
The period at which man first began to COM
minute the soil for the purpose of making it
produce sustenance of himself and his tlocks
is so remote as to be lost in the obscurlty OF
the past but that it was at an early period IS
clear. It is also generally admitted that the
OK and COW were in this age used as native
farmers, and it is asserted that men and women
captured in war and reduced to slavery were
employed in this way before the OK was trained
or the COW became accustomed to the YOKE !;
for war, and its offspring, slavery, are older
than agriculture. .,
The earliest plow was pointed stick, with
which the primitive man used to break up the
soil. This was slow and laborious process,
and one day thought came to one wiser than
his fellows that the forked limb of tree might
be made efficient for this purpose. Acting
upon this thought, he formed a plow by cutting
a 1forked limb from tree and sharpening one
of the prongs, so that it would penetrate the
soil. It took two persons to use this lmple-
ment-one to draw it, which he cid by bark
or rawhide trace, and one to hold and push 1t
into the ground. This, the first plow proved a
great success, and was for a while thought to
be the ne plus ultra of improvement in that
line In the course of time, however, some
ingenious laborer began to question the perfec-
tion of this implement, and finding limb of
somewhat different shape, he constructed an
improved plow. The fogies shook their heads
and muttered "humbug," but the progressive
men adopted it, and it ultimately superseded
the earlier device. Ages went by before the
forked stickplow was succeeded by another,
composed of several pieces of wood held to-
gether by mortises and pins. This improved
from time to time, until it approached as near
perfection as it was possible for plow COM
posed wholly Of wood.
The Romans were probably the first to use
iron in the construction of the pow. The
plow that Cincinnatus followed was rude affair,
with no iron in it except the point and share
The Greeks have myth which is interesting
in this connection. Prosperine, daughter OF
Ceres goddess of agriculture was abducted
by Pluto while she was in the forest gathering
flowers, and was installed as queen of the lower
daughter, wholly neglected the agricultural
interests in her search for the missing goddess.
The result was that the whole earth eventually
became barren waste. Jupiter and the other
gods implored her to return to Olympus and
resume her duties as guardian of agriculture,
but in vain. She could think of nothing eX-
cept her lost daughter. Jupiter now visited
Pluto aud persuaded him TO permit Prosperine
to revisit the earth and remain eight months
each year, and then return and spend the other
with him. Ceres consented to this arrange
ment, and at once returned to Olympus. Be
fore going however, she instructed Trptole..
mus of Eleusis in the art of agriculture, and
giving him her own chariot, drawn by dragons,
commanded him to travel over the whole earth
and distribute seed corn to its Inhabitants
Triptolemus was the inventor of the plow
The Greeks held two feasts year in his honor,
one on account of the distribution OF seed, and
the other because he invented the plow, with
cut which the seed would have been OF little
use.
Little improvement seems to have been made
in the pillow used by the Greeks and Romans
for over two thousand years, and indeed 1t was
a most clumsy affair, as recently as hfty years
ago, being only wedge clearing the soil and
COMPRISING the subsoil
It may be predicted that before many years
some Yankee Triptolemus will revolutlonlze
the pillow by constructing one that shall COM
bine the functions of both the plow and the
harrow and possibly other and valuable ad-
iuncts not now anticipated. With all due re-
spect to the great plowmakers, it must be ad-
mitted that the mechanical idea embodied in
the plow as now constructed is imperfect, and
ittis. time this was recognized and correct prin-
ciples incorporated in its construction, that it
might meet the demands Of this progressive
and utiIitarian age. Some attempts in this
direction have already been made, but they,
like all first attempts to embody a new idea,
have been only partially successful. 1t is
recognized axiom of modern times, that Amer
ican genius and perseverance know no such
word as failure" and tits confidently expected
that success in this department of mechanical
invention will soon be achieved,