Year: 1877

Steam Power for Farmers.


Steam power for farm use is rapidly
taking the place Of horses, in all those
employments that do not require con.
slant movement, and for tl,reshing, saw
ing wood, grinding feed, cutting straw,
&C., it is the cheapest and mort availa.
BILE agent. There are, however, two
great objections to it: the enhanced dan
ger of fire from flying sparks, and Of ex-
plosions, and until within few years
these have been so great as to prevent
its general Introduction.


Mechanical ingenuity has recently
been engaged in contriving appliances
to lessen, if it can not entirely obviate
these dangers, and so successful have
been these efforts that the apprehen.
sions Of injury by the use..of steam pow
ers are materially decreased. The in
vention of the spark catcher, with the
improvements that have since been made
in its construction, makes it improbable
that an engine will communicate fire ev-
en- to straw piles lying close by; and
one make Of engines, that of Messrs. c.
& G. Cooper & Co., of Mt. Vernon,
Ohio, is so constructed as to render ex-
plosions unlikely, even though the ma
chine shall be operated by persons des-
titute Of experience as engineers.


The advantages which the Cooper en-
gines possess may be stated briefly;
first, they use only the best quality of
boiler-plate or f1ange iron in every part
of the boiler; and, secondly, every en-
CINE is provided with perfect automat-
ic safety valve having sufficient opening
to allow the escape of excessive steam
so rapidly that the pressure cannot be
increased under ordinary circumstances
when it is open.


In order to furnish cheap engine,
it is frequently the practice with build
ers to use:a good quality of iron for the
inside fire.box sheets and outside end
sheets of the fire box, because these re-
quire to be bent into shapes which the
poorer quality would not admit of with
out cracking; but in the shell.sheets of
the boilers and in the sides and top
sheets of the outside of the fre-box
they use an inferior grade. Experience
has proved that even the best iron is
not always reliable in its ability to with
stand pressure. Imperfect spots, i'm
perceptible to the most careful exam
liners, are sometimes found in it. Of
course, these are Of more frequent oc-
currence and serious magnitude in the
inferior grades. Hence, the danger of
explosions is greatly diminished by the
use Of the best iron only in every part
of the boiler.


The common safety valve, as every
one who has had experience in running
an engine is aware, is apt to get out Of
order, and, at best, it only serves to
give warning when danger occurs. 1t
does not avert the danger, for the rea-
son that steam will continue to rise in
the boiler and increase the pressure af-
ter it is opened to the extent permitted
for the e scape of the surplus amount.
A real safety-valve should allow the
steam to escape Us fast as it is possible
for it is to be generated in the boiler
after it has attained degree of pres.
sure known to be safe. Probably no
valve can be constructed which will be
do this under all circumstances, but the
patent nickel.seated safety valve, with
which the Cooper boilers are oil sup
piled, will do this effectuallY under all
ordinary circumstances likely to attend
the operations Of a farm engine, if at
tention is paid to keeping the boiler
clean and maintaining supply Of wa
ter regularly.


There ore several other points of ex.
cellence possessed especially by the
Cooper engines, but space will not per.
NIT US to designate them all at this
| - I.
time. We cannot, however, forbear