The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1906-03-07
Flowing By Steam Power.


farmer of practical and progressive
mind. He owns some of the finest
farms in the Piedmont and his meth
ode are constantly gi.en the fattery of
imitation b. other successful planters.
His latest departure from tho tradi-
tional rule of farming in this section is
the purchase of steam blowing outfit,
the only one of its kind east OF the
Misslsaippi river.
Mr.. Groce says that he has given the
apparatus @ thorough trial under se-
we're conditions and that it is unuues-
tionably success. III fact, he is con.
templatinR the purchase of q larger
equipment.
He WAS in the city yesterday, and
man. He said:
Il bought twenty 1--WE horse power
Case steam traction engine and O set
OF gang disc plOws, not unlike the old
disc harrow. The discs are twenty
four inches in diameter, arranged dag
onally behind ench other, in V shape,
and they cut swath or Through" Of
twelve teet at clip, blowing from
"I have gone foot deep without
an trouble, but this puts the shafts
right ON the ground, and does not give
as good results as ploughing n Shallow
or trench. Nine inches is deep enough
for ordinary purposes, anyway.
''My eon,, Elliot Groce. is in charge
of the outfit. He has found that he
can climb and plough at pinch on a
tive per cent. grade, and work easily
on u grade OF three per cent. 1t IS
possible to cultivate still sleeper hill
sides by plowing ia curves down.
ward.
"Ot course you can't plough in sharp
angles with eteam plow, any more
that you Can harvest grain in fence
cosuers with reaper and binder. The
mules and hand plows.
The machine, however, travels two
and q half niies an hour, cutting a
6Tath nf twelve feet wide, and have
found that working from outer edge to
center in circles l can plow twenty
acre field down so that less than two
aeEea remain to Dc worked out by hand
plOW.
Il don'5 know il steam plow could
be used to advantage right around the
city OF GreenviiIe. The land is too
soiling and the fields too small.
"But In the Fairview section OF this
county. In Spartanbnrg and Anderson
counties, and In fact In nearly every
other farming section Of the State,
vantage. I wouldn't farm again with
out one. .-....,
II have just. finished p'oushiug
seventy five saores. The ,apparatuS
worked perfectly. ! 'had eaought of
doing some work for my neighbors,
but have between four and five hun.
dred acres OF my own e .==ee::k1: :arst,
and don't know when I'll get around
20 doing work for other people :
III y outtits consisting Of .ngine and
gang piowe, with pumps. plow fixtnres,
tanks, tender and all kinds of extrae.
cost me, about $4,000, laid down, :
|esking equipment can be hnueht for
less, It the purchaser will furnish his
s oTn tanks and build q tender him
~ en- usins Ave men to operate INV
stumps and rocks that the man on the
engine might not see. Four is all that
are strictly necessary, and only one
need be anything more that a common
IL figure that the plow costs me- $40 a
day, when in operation. and that it
taxes the place OF twenty-five negroes
another beauty ds that by prepar-
::GG the and with steam Dt0w. q far
mer may tend as much lana with
twenty -fiYe mules as he could before
with fifty. know something about
tho cose Of p!oughing. fol. :. I. have
twenty five mules in my home stables
right now. :, -. = -
IF it were not for stoppages to got
wood and water, l believe my plow
would take the place Of thirty. i've
mules. and I am going to rig up some
apparatus to avoid these stops. I re-
ga-d the plow as tho best investment
ever made. had no idea they were
60 Ss e s,:!!!ss: Il TIC Sou; ieass. hy,I
had to send all the way to Dallas to
get man to set 1t up and start the
thing. and have had men from
North Cerolins end Georgia and all
work. -. :. -. =,
Il am always glad to chow them,
becanse l believe in steam plowing
and would like to see more Of the out
tits introduced, especially in those fine
level nn + tarms IN, OranGebnrg, Marlboro