Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1892-05-27
Skilful Flowing.

How many men know how to harness a
horse or pair of horses? II the putting
on of the harness and buckling Of the
proper straps is all that is required, almost
any farmer or farmers son can do it, If
ii includes the attachment of the team to
the load in such "A manner that the horses
shall be able to pull as oxen pull in a prop
erly made yoke. from the point where the
least amount of strength eXerted will con-
tribute most to the moving of the load,
there are not as many, and perhaps but
few. adopts
There is one rule that is invariable. 4
direct line from the point where the team
can exert the greatest power TO the point
where the load offers the greatest resistance
should be the line of draught. Examine
the oxen yoked to the cart and if il is
straight line from the point where the ring
enters the yoke to the forward part of the
wheel, where it presses against the dirt in
front of it. it will be found that they can
exert their greatest power. In blowing the
driver should first examine the shape Of the
pillow, and see where the resistance of the
earth To be turned will put the heaviest
pull upon the team. This requires usually
a good powman, hut there are those well
skilled in handling the pillow who would
know nothing about il. They know by
the movement OF the pillow in the soil how
to exert their own strength. but they know
but little how the strength OF the team is
being taxed. \ mathematician who never
held pillow might help them in that re-
spect. But there are those who watch the
team As well as the pillow, and know when
il is eNerting more strength than it should
to raise and turn over a sod of certain
size.
Much depends on the shape OF the mold
board of the pillow. With one made upon
the principle of the true cone or spiral the
draught should be direct from the point of
bearing against the animals shoulder TO
the point where the pillow offers the greatest
resistance TO the earth. If the pillow is built
upon a sharper angle, or intended To turn
a more shallow furrow, the point of
draught will be lower and the length of
the chain attached to the pillow beam must
be changed accordingly The line of
draught from the yoke or the collar of the
horses to the end of the pillow beam or clevis
has but little to do with it, unless it may
be, as it always should be, in the direct
line of draught To put it much ont of
that line is to oblige the plowman to exert
his strength upon the leverage of the
handles to keep the pillow level. And the
position of the point of attachment to the
pillow must vary with the height of the ami
NAL drawing the load or the point from
which he is able to exert his strength.
4 short horse walking in the furrow
would draw the point of the pillow down
ward, and make it necessary for the plOw-
man to exert his strength in bearing down
upon the handles, while a tall horse stand
ing upon the unplowed land would be lift
ing the point upward, and would require a
lifting of the handles to keep it level in the
ground, both being attached to the cleyis
AT the same point.
The sure test of the proper Harvesting of
the team is to see whether the pillow will
run level at the depth required without
the plowman having to exert any strength
upon it, If it will not the driver has an
opportunity to show his skill by changing
the harness, or the clevis at the end of the
pillow beam, so as to bring the line of
draught where it will exert the greatest
power with least expenditure of strength.
The plowman should be expected only TO
guide the plOR, not to push il or pull it.
One of the advantages of the gang pillow is
that the maker can control the line of
draught by the wheels, instead of leaving
it to be controlled by some one else, and
thus he is very sure that the plows will
exert their greatest lifting power with the
least waste of the horse power that draws
them.