IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY AND APPARATUS FOR PREPARING LAND FOR SEED AND FOR HARROWING LAND
Year: 1863

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to John King, of Chadshunt Farm, near Kineton,
and Thomas Henry Marshall, of Combrooke, both in the County of
Warwick, for the Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY AND
Sealed tho 11th September 1863, and dated the 27th March 1863.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said John King and Thomas
Henry Marshall at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with
their Petition, on the 27th March 1863.
We, JOHN KING, of Chadshunt Farm, near Kineton, and THOMAS HENRY
MARSHALL, of Combrooke, both in the County of Warwick, do hereby declare
the nature of the Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY AND APPARATUS
FOR PREPARING LAND FOR SEED AND FOR HARROWING LAND," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in machinery and apparatus
for preparing land for seed, and for harrowing and in fencing land. In con-
structing machinery and apparatus for dibbling land, wheels are used with
dibbles set on the peripheries of such wheels, such dibbles are arranged to be
adjusted nearer to or further from each other according to the distance apart
at which it is desired to insert seed, and they are also each arranged in such
manner as to have a movement when in the land in order to free them there-
from without breaking up and injuring the sides of the holes formed by them.
It is preferred that a pair of such wheels should be mounted on the same
axlo in such manner that they may be readily adjusted to and from each
other according to the distance apart it is desired to have the rows. The axle

page_text: carrying the dibble wheels turns in bearings in a suitable frame, this frame
at its centre is capable of turning on a short vertical axis carried on the
under side of a frame that is provided with shafts the frame carrying the
dibble wheels is provided with two handles or levers, by which this frame can
be inclined to the shafts, and the dibbles be thus steered or guided. The
rod upon which the dibble wheels turn is provided at each end with a rod,
which descends downwards, and the lower ends of these rods when the machine
is at work enter a short distance into the land, and thus as the machine moves
along make lines along the ground. The machine can thus be readily guided
by causing the rod on one side of the machine to be moved along the line
previously made by the rod on the other side of the machine. In order that
the machine may be drawn along a road or other surface without the dibbles
coming in contact with such road or surface, the frame which is provided
with shafts carries an axle on its upper side which axle is provided with
two road wheels, these wheels are of such a diameter that they shall be abovo
the land when the dibble wheels are resting on it; these wheels can however
be brought on to the land by turning over the shaft frame by means of tho
shafts, the dibble wheels will then be lifted off the land as the rod upon which
they turn will by the frame having been turned over be brought above the
axle of the road wheels in place of being below it. In some cases I combine
a dibble wheel, such as is above described, with a plough in such manner
that the dibbles may run along the ridge or portion turned over by the
plough and prepare the same for receiving seed in the holes formed by
the dibbles. In order to harrow land whether before or after sowing the seed,
I construct a harrow of numerous similar parts, each part carrying a tine
or tooth, and each of such parts is formed to be connected to two similar
parts in such manner that when pressed together they form what may be said
to be a rigid bar consisting of several parts; when the harrow is on the land
and the teeth penetrating it the several parts will be drawn out to a certain
extent, by which the parts which carry a row of tines will become flexible and
allow each tine to rise or fall independently of the other tines in the same
row. For this purpose the ends of the parts are connected by pin joints, and
one end of each piece is made with a slot through it, through which the con-
necting pin passes, and the ends of these pieces are formed to lock into each
other when pressed together. At the angles the pieces are formed in the
shape of right angle bends.

page_text: SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent, filed
by the said John King and Thomas Henry Marshall in the Great
Seal Patent Office on the 25th September 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, we, JOHN
KING, of Chadshunt Farm, near Kineton, and THOMAS HENRY MARSHALL, of
Combrooke, both in the County of Warwick, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her Letters
Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of March, in the year of our Lord
One thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, in the twenty-sixth year of
Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and successors, give, and grant unto
us, the said John King and Thomas Henry Marshall, Her special licence
that we, the said John King and Thomas Henry Marshall, our executors,
administrators, and assigns, or such others as we, the said John King
and Thomas Henry Marshall, our executors, administrators, and assigns,
should at any time agree with, and no others, from time to time and at
all times thereafter during the term therein expressed, should and lawfully
might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the United Kingdom of Great
Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands, and Isle of Man, an Invention
for "IMPROVEMENTS IN MACHINERY AND APPARATUS FOR PREPARING LAND FOR
SEED AND FOR HARROWING LAND," upon the condition (amongst others) that we,
the said John King and Thomas Henry Marshall, our executors or adminis
trators, by an instrument in writing under our or their hands and seals, or
under the band and seal of one of us or them, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the same
was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great Seal Patent
Office within six calendar months next and immediately after the date of
the said Letters Patent.
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said John King, on behalf of myself and
the said Thomas Henry Marshall, do hereby declare the nature of the said
Invention, and in what manner the same is to be performed, to be particularly
described and ascertained in and by the following statement thereof, that is
to say:
This Invention has for its object improvements in machinery and apparatus
for preparing land for seed and for harrowing land. In constructing machi-
nery and apparatus for dibbling land, wheels are used with dibbles set on the
peripheries of such wheels, such dibbles are arranged to be adjusted nearer to
or further from each other according to the distance apart at which it is
desired to insert seed, and they are also each arranged in such manner as

page_text: to have a movement when in the land in order to free them therefrom without
breaking up and injuring the sides of the holes formed by them. It is
preferred that a pair of such wheels should be mounted on the same axle in
such manner that they may be readily adjusted to and from each other
according to the distance apart it is desired to have the rows. The axle
carrying the dibble wheels turns in bearings in a suitable frame, this frame at
its centre is capable of turning on a short vertical axis carried on the under
side of a frame that is provided with shafts, the frame carrying the dibble
wheels is provided with two handles or levers by which this, frame can be
inclined to the shafts, and the dibbles be thus steered or guided. The shaft
upon which the dibble wheels turn is provided at each end with a rod which
descends downwards, and the lower ends of these rods when the machine is
at work enter a short distance into the land, and thus as the machine moves
along make lines along the ground, the machine can thus be readily guided
by causing the rod on one side of the machine to be moved along the line
previously made by the rod on the other side of the machine. In order that
the machine may be drawn along a road or other surface without the dibbles
coming in contact with such road or surface, the frame which is provided
with shafts carries an axle on its upper side, which axle is provided with two
road wheels, these wheels are of such a diameter that they shall be above the
land when the dibble wheels are resting on it, these wheels can however be
brought on to the land by turning over the shaft frame by means of the shafts,
the dibble wheels will then be lifted off the land, as the rod upon which they
turn will by the frame having been turned over be brought above the axle of
the road wheels in place of being below it. In some cases we combine a
dibble wheel, such as is above described, with a plough in such manner that
the dibbles may run along the ridge or portion turned over by the plough, and
prepare the same for receiving seed in the holes formed by the dibbles. In
order to harrow land whether before or after sowing the seed, we construct a
harrow of numerous similar parts, cach part carrying a tine or tooth, and each
of such parts is formed to be connected to two similar parts in such manner
that when pressed together they form what may be said to be a rigid bar
consisting of several parts; when the harrow is on the land, and the teeth
penetrating it, the several parts will be drawn out to a certain extent, by which
the parts which carry a row of tines will become flexible, and allow each tine
For this
to rise or fall independently of the other tines in the same row.
purpose the ends of the parts are connected by pin joints, and one end of each
piece is made with a slot through it through which the connecting pin passes,
and the ends of these pieces are formed to lock into each other when pressed

page_text: together. At the angles the pieces are formed in the shape of right angle
bends.
Having thus stated the nature of our said Invention, we will proceed moro
fully to describe the manner of performing the same.
DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS.
Figure 1 shows a side elevation of a dibbling machine constructed and
combined according to our Invention; Figure 2 is a plan thereof; and
Figure 3 a back view thereof.
a, a, are two dibbling wheels, in the peripheries or outer rings of which are
slots through which the stems of the dibbles pass, and are by screw nuts fixed
to the outer rings of the wheels at such distances apart as may be required for
the particular crop. The dibble wheels are capable of turning freely on a fixed
axle b, and they are set to or from each other by means of collars c between
which they turn, these collars are capable of being slided to and fro on the
fixed axle, and of being fixed thereon in any position by set screws c', by
which the width between the rows of holes made by the dibbles may be adjusted
from time to time as may be required. The dibbles are shown to be fixed to
the wheels, but this may be varied, and provision made for giving each dibble
a rotatory motion when in the land as has before been done, but we have not
found such turning of the dibbles necessary. The axle 6 on which the dibble
wheels are mounted and turn is fixed in a frame d, which turns on a short
vertical axis e, and such frame with the dibble wheels is guided by handles f,f.
To the ends of the axle 6 are fixed rods g, g, which descend into the land and
make marks, so that in returning one of the rods g is caused to follow the
mark made by the other rod 9 in the previous bout. In order that the
machine may when out of use be moved along ordinary roads, a pair of
wheels h, h, and axle i, are applied at the upper surface of the frame at the
back ends of the shafts, and they are brought into use by turning the machine
over.
Figure 4 shows a dibble wheel combined with a plough in such manner
that the dibble wheel may act on the ridge as it is formed by the turning
over of the land by the plough.
We will now describe that part of our Invention which relates to the con-
struction of harrows. Figures 5 show a plan and section of part of a harrow
when the same is inflexible; Figures 6 show similar views when the harrow is
flexible.
It will be seen that each part of which a harrow is composed is similarly
constructed, each part a carries a tine, which is passed through, and is keyed

page_text: or otherwise fixed in the enlargement b, and the two ends of each part a arc
differently formed. At one end there is an enlargement c, through which
there is formed a horizontal slot c', and an angular space or forked end c² is
formed at this end of the piece a. At the other end of each piece a is an
enlargement & formed into a horizontal fork d', through which a pin d² passes
horizontally, and this pin passes: through the end c of the next piece a of the
barrow, and such end is enabled to slide on the pin by reason of the horizontal
slot formed through it. In the fork dis formed a double incline or angular
projection &, which fits the angular recess of the next piece a, by which and
the horizontal pin the two parts a will be rendered inflexible when the parts d³
and are together, but such parts will be flexible, and the line of teeth
produced by a succession of pieces a connected together will be flexible, and
be enabled to follow the irregularities of the surface of the land.
Having thus described the nature of our Invention, and the manner of
performing the same, we would have it understood that we do not claim the
separate mechanical parts herein described, but what we claim is,--
First, the combined arrangement of dibbling machine shown and described
with reference to Figures 1, 2, and 3. And, we also claim the combining of
a dibbling wheel with a plough as described with reference to Figure 4.
And, secondly, we claim the construction of harrows herein described.
In witness whereof, I, the said John King, have hereunto. set my hand
and seal, this 23rd day of September, in the year of our Lord One
thousand eight hundred and sixty-three.
TATTY
JOHN KING. (mo.)