Howard's earliest system consists in a stationary engine ()riving a windlass, having two winding drums, with direct and reverse action, placed in front of it, round which is coiled about 1600 yards of wire-rope. By a simple lever movement, the man can drop the winding drums out of gear in an instant, a contrivance which enables him to attend to the proper coiling of the rope, and also to arrest, in ease of accident, the plow iu a moment, stopping the engine. The engine is usually placed at the corner of the plot to be plowed, 4he rope is carried round the field on rope-potters, and fixed at the corners by light anchors. A snatch-block placed in front of the wind. lass prevents the slack-rope running out too fast, and trailing on the ground. The plow is composed of two strong iron frames balanced upon four wheels, and crossing each other at their inner ends, thereby decreasing the length of the plow, arid, as a matter of course, the breadth of the headland. The frames are raised and lowered in such it manner that the set of plows out of work is independent of, and has no ten dency to weigh or raise out of the ground the set in work. The frames are made for two, three, or four furrows, and " diggers " or scarifiers can be attached as in the case of Fowler's. The latest improvements of ainaterial character on the Bedford firm's steam plowino tackle consist of a patent self-coiling windlass and universal joint, 1600 yards of steeCrope, patent 5-tined self-lifting cultivator, 2 self-moving anchors, etc. Two men and two boys are sufficient to work the set with a 12-horse-power patent plowing and traction engine; the cost of the set is £1000. This recently introduced apparatus is popular, and- promises to be extensively employed.
Howard's double-engine system is specially adapted for letting out on hire, for largo farms, and for use on the great foreign plains. The engines are placed on opposite head hinds, and work a plow, grubber, or cultivator between them, similar to the principle on which Fowler's double-engine system operates. Three men and two boys are required to the working of this set. The price of a pail' of 12-horse patent plowing and traction engines, each with winding drum, together with 800 yards of steel wire rope, and 6 rope-porters, is £1350.
In the course of the last few years, the Messrs. Howard have issued several hundred sets of steam-enItivating tackle. The Messrs. Howard's cultivator was more generally used for sonic time than the plow, but the mere digging of much of the land corn, as a substitute for plowing, was attended with disappointment; so the plow has been all but universally adopted for soil intenied for grain crops.
The Fisken tackle is used to a considerable extent in various parts of the country, generally with the plow emanating under that name, and sometimes attached to three furrow plows made by local manufacturers. Several of the other famed firms dispose of parts of the complete set separately. In other words, those who bay the engines and
gearing do not in every case purchase the plow from the saute company.
In Coleman's system, the drums upon which the rope is wound are attached to the sides of the engine. and give out and take on rope alternately. The engine moves along the headland; and the anchor, upon which there is very little strain, and which is, therefore, a very light, portable article, is shifted opposite to it by a man as the work is performed; direct action being obtained here, as in the case of Fowler's. The peculiar ity of the plan consists in having two implements instead of one at work, the implements being grubbers, which smash up theground—a practice adopted by some farmers in Eng land, in preference to turtling the sod over with the plow. On commencing operations on this plan, the field is divided into two equal parts. The cultivators or grubbers work' only one way—toward the engine. They are. attached by the front to each end of a strong wire-rope, while a smaller wire-rope is fastened to their rear. The one cultivator is placed at the far side of the field, where its teeth or " tines" are inserted in the ground; and it is pulled toward the center of the field, tearing up the soil as it comes, the other meanwhile going out empty to meet it, When the latter reaches the middle of the field, the action of tire engine is reversed, and it is dragged back to the engine, cultivating the land as it travels, while the other goes back to the headland empty. The pull out empty and working in is, of course, continued until the whole land has been tilled.
There are some other systems of steam eultivationdiefore the public, but in various respects they resemble those already enumerated. With Coleman's method there may he a slight saving of time at the ends, hut there is. on the other hand, a trifling loss of power. In every sense of the term, the systems of the Messrs. Howard, and Fowler and Co.. are the most popular. Each of these leading systems has-its advocates and its • advantages. It is certainly a notch more expensive plan to have two engines, but yet for letting for hire it may be the best and cheapest, as they take the apparatus from one place to another, and set to work again more rapidly. It is, however, easy enough to keep one steam-engine always running at full speed, and there seems little reason to keep one engine simply to look at the other. seeing the expense is the drawback which prevents their universal adoption. Besides. the single engine on the round-about sys tem is decidedly best for the working up of corners of fields, and as it does not move along headlands, it does not destroy them; but can continue working while the locomo tive remains idle. On soil where there are many stones, it is better first to grub the laud thoronahlv, and remove the stones, before using the plow.