, 1909-06-02
MOTOR PLOWs IN LOUISIANA

The dream Of the alchelnist to convert the
baser metols into gold has never been reoliz-
ed, but the dream Of the engineer to geuer-
ate and utilize power directly in the cyjIu-
ders has at last been realized. Forty years
ago an inventor exploded g]unpowder in q
plle-driver cylinder by compression ana was
successful, but seems pot to have made an
economic success. Coal has been ground to
a fine powder and fed by q blast as fuel oil is
now, under steam boilers, but we had to
wait for gasoline to get an explosive that
would explode by compression, leave @ clean
cylinder and utilize the power evolved direct
ly on the piston head. Gasoline has done
aud is doing it now, all over the land, in
units from half q horsepower to 1900 horse
power, rs Westinghouse demonstrated ut the
great st. Louis Exposition. Everything is
driven by gasoline, from o churn to a hay
cutter, an automobile, an interurban motor
car, from a skif to lake-boats of many horse
power, and all by gasoline.
We have long hoped that modern agricul-
tural field work would have the rough edges
taken Of it by gasoline, and now that hope
seems in a fair way Of realization, if not
already realized, in the gasoline plows inau-
gurated on the CypremOnt plantation Of the
j. M. Burguieres Co., in ST. Mary parish.
49, 0OAA D'A 0ASACo VI |HC AALt4 A@o A6"NA
the matter of motor blowing in hand for q
long time. There was no particular difficulty
in getting good traction engines, but the
complete power blowing apparatus did not
materialize. At last Mr.. Burguieres secured
the cooperation Of the noted John Deere
P1ow 90. 4 traction engine WAS secured
and to this was attached eight fOur-mule
plows, four right hand plows and four left
hand plows. Used in this way these plows
can be arranged to throw no lateral strain on
the traction engine and but little on the land
sides Of the ploWs.
The illustrations given herewith cover,
first, Il perspective view of the engine and
pl)ws; second, of the engine and plowB at
work, bedding up land aud Displaying the
completed bed in the rear; and, the third
illustration showing the land as bedded up
and ready for COW peas or velvet beans. The
engine is of the regular motor type and is
geared down to the proper speed for pIow-
ing. Gasoline is used for starting the work,
and when the machine gets hot or at least
warm, kerosene is substituted and is explOd-
ed IN the cylinder, just as is gasoline, but it
will stand q higher temperature, and expert
ence shows that under given conditions it
will develop more power than gasoline.
In examining the illustration showing the
motor pulling the eight plows it will be
noticed that the apparatus as there used is
blowing out two old cane rows 63 feet apart
from center to center, forming one new bed
in the center and two half beds, one on
either side. The plows are hooked up to the
machine in tandam style except that the
front plows, right and left handed. make the
wider cut, and the rear plows complete the
work, At the next move the machine will
straddle another middle, be ding into it and
completing the two half beds, 1t is report
ed as a pronounced success for such work as
it has experimental in. It has done the
work of 80 mules and has done it better than
the mules could do it.
All this means an enormous saving in
mule power as we'll as in human labor. II
but two crops of sugar cane are had from a
single planting, the fields then standing one
third plant cane, one-third first ratoons and
one-third corn and peas, it becomes evident
that two-thirds of the land must be broken