Commercial Motors for Agriculturists.
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The Changing Conditions of Farming, Caused Partly by the Splitting-Up of Large Estates and the Uses Thereon of Commercial Motors, is discussed in the Following Article.
By Geo. W. Watson, M,I.Mech.E.,
The past few years have snen many changes in agricultural methods, as well as in the comfort: and welfare of the agricul
tural labourer. Hand labour and more or less primitive horse-operated machinery wer, and still are in many cases, checks upon progress in agricultural methods, and to a large extent they have been responsible for the desertion from the laud and the over-crowding of our large cities by a class of labour that has caused serious concern among local authorities. There can be little doubt that the life of agricultural labrxirers in years past has been little more than existence ; the weary daily rounds of duties have been both irksome and discouraging to any man of intelligence. The farmer, as well as the labourer, has suffered as a result, but it has been the class of small farmers who have suffered most in this respect, because, by raason of the size limitations of their farms, they could not afford to inve:4 in expensive steam-driven machinery, the advent of which generally eased, to a great extent, the tedium of daily labour, Many small farmers, for years past, have only cited out a mere pittance from the soil, instead of that reasonable profit which their industry should command.
Big Outfits are Being Superseded.
The days of the big fartrtr apprar to have passed, in this country at any rate, partly because cf uolitical reasons, and. it is freely admitted by manufacturers that very few big motor outfits are now being sold for home use, whila the demand for smaller plant is growing rapidly.
A big outfit ha obviously more efficient than is small one, if it can be kept fully employed; it is only by co-operative use that small farmers could take advantage of this increased efficiency, but it is a rather unfortunate fact that co-operation in such matters does not appear to find much favour in some districts. Fortunately, there are now many really successful entail-power motor-driven implements upon the market, such as the Wefles hand-steered motor-propelled plough, winch was fully described and illustrated in THE COMMERCIAL -MOTOR, dated the 7th of November of last year. This implement, and a cultivator which is built upon the same lines, is produced at a price AV hick compares most favourably with the price of a horse and simple plough or cultivator capable of doing considerably less work per day. It is now made by Fowler's.
Small Motors for Cultivation.
By the thorough working of the soil previous to sowing, and the purchase of clean seed, free from the seeds of weeds, etc., the greatest yield per acre may be obtained. Weeds are not easily killed, and the mere turning-over of the land by the plough is not sufficient to prevent their making fresh and more vigorous growth. It should be borne in mind, that weeds consume food and moisture in precisely the same way as do wheat and other useful crops, and, as each square yard of land contains only a definite amount of plant food, only a certain number of plants can be grown par sq. yd., and unless precaution; are taken to stem the growth of weeds, the sowing for useful crops must be made comparatively thin, otherwise the yield will be a most unsatisfactory one An intelligent farmer tries to sow just enough to yield a maximum crop per acra, but his calculations may be upset completely by an abnormal development of weed growth.
It is recognized that a thorough working of the soil, previous to sowing, will do much to eliminate the evil of weed-choked crops, and farmers and small holders should indeed be thankful that motor-driven implements are now available, by which this operation may be performed in a reasonable time, and with none of the weary drudgery which characterized the same operation in pre-motor days.
Motors Mean the Substitution of Mental for Physical Effort.
With the extencted use of motor machinery on the farm, agriculturists are awaking to the fact that, after all, farming is an engineering proposition, and must be taken seriously. A small motor is only the beginning of a tremendous developmeat in agricultural engineering, and its importance is infinitely greater than is indicated by the comparatively few meters at present in use on British farms. Their employment means the elimination of drudgery, the saving of unnecessary manual labour, the provision of opportunities for the exercise of mental, in place of physical strength, and the development of a broader intelligence on the part of farmers, with direct benefit to the agricultural labourer, and, as the conditions of work improve, so will the temptation for migration be removed from skilled agricultural labourers.
The Small Motor on the Farm.
Apart from the use of self-propelled motors for ploughing, cultivating, mowing, raking, reaping, etc., small motors have many uses on a farm. The portable or semi-portable petrol engine, is in no sense a luxury for the well-to-do farmer; it is a labour-saving device that may be employed for practical and economical use for a great many purposes. It tein drive all kinds of farm machinery, and will work all day and every day, and every night, too, if required, providing it is supplied with the necessary fuel and lubrication, and its valves and bearings, etc., are occasionally given that attention which is necessary to keep them in proper working condition. A small petrol motor is always ready for work, and is independent of external attention ; it will pump water at a time when the windmills are absolutely still for lack of air currents, and in other ways will save a lot of hard work that often occurs during the heat of the summer for the tired farm-hand. It will drive pulpers, chaff cutters, grain elevators, circular saws, arid, in fact, almost any typo of machine on the farm that requires power, thus saving the seraices of at least one man, whose labour might, with more advantage, be applied in the fields during the busy season.
Ono of the greatest values of such an engine, is its adapt. ability for power-driving in the household and dairy, thus saving much labour and anxiety on the part of the farmer's wife, upon whom the superintendence of these departments invariably devolves. Such an engine can be made more useful for domestic and dairy purposes than an extra maid, and is much easier to obtain.
Refinement in Design not Necessary.
It is quite unnecessary for manufacturers to put a lot of expensive work into motor machinery intended for use on farms; the farm servant has little or no time to spare to clean op polished parts, and a good protective coat of paint is
D2 preferable, from the farmer's point of view, to brightly-shining larass and steel work. Simplicity of design and construction, and the ability to work for long hours without attention, should be the basis of all farm machinery. Extremely low cost of running, so far as the fuel bill is concerned, is not tbe chief consideration, because motors of this class, which usually work in a large and well-ventilated barn, or even in the open country, may conveniently and with advantage be run upon very low grades of fuel; the smell of exhaust is a thing which dues not matter much where there is plenty of ventilation.
Nearly every builder of farm motor machinery is prepared to supply paraffin carburetters or vaporizers with their engines. Seam of these devices are highly satisfactory, from many points of view, whilst others leave much to be desired. The fact remains, however, that a very large number of them will permit of an engine's being run fairly successfully for long periods at a time, and at comparatively low cost for fuel, notwithstanding the fact that the combustion is most imperfect and the exhaust fumes are particularly noxious; still, as I have already stated, the presence of a dirty exhaust is not so objectionable on farm machinery as it would be in town, and for that reason it is not necessary to take such careful measures for its elimination and prevention. Noise of the exhaust, also, is another matter that does not call for such close attention on farm machinery as on motors used for other classes of work.; in fact, in some cases, it is distinctly advantageous to have a noisy exhaust, because the man in charge of the engine, who frequently can find other duties to perform at considerable distances from the motor, is thereby quickly given warning of any irregularity or cessation of.running of the engine.
Transport Difficulties.
No matter bow efficient may be the farm machinery for irrigation, cultivation and gm gathering of crops on a farm, the ultimate profit to the farmer will be insignificant if lie is unable to transport his produce to market at economical rates. It is an unfortunate fact, that our home railway companies frequently give the foreigner better rates than are given to farmers at home, and produce may be sent from Brittany to London at lower rates than are charged for carrying farm produce on the same lines from mid-Kent. In other parts of the country, farmers are evert more badly placed, as many farms are located at considerable distances from the railways, thus involving relatively long journeys by horse-driven vehicles, transhipment at the railway station, retranshipment at the railway terminus for the market, and probably one or two more handlings from the market stage to the consumer.
These im but few cases in which the use of motor vehicles would not be profitable to the farmer ; if he is farming in a small way, he could use a small motor, whilst if farming in a bigger way, he would increase the number of his small motors, or, with greater efficiency, run one of larger size.
Co-operative Use or Contracting, Of course, there are a very large number of farms and small holdings which do not produce sufficient lead to keep a motor fully employed, and, in such cases, it should not be an insurmountable difficulty for three or four men, similarly placed, to co-operate in the use as owners or contractors, of a motorvan or wagon suitable use, their needs. The difficulties in the way of such co-operation are that all the co-operators would require the use of the machine at practically the same time, unless they were growing crops which ripened at different periods; tints it might be possible for a market gardener and a dairy farmer, within 15 or 20 miles of a large town, to operate one machine most profitably together. With two drivers, it would easily be possible, within the 24 hours, to make four double-journeys on five days in the week, and two double-journeys on the remaining two days of the week, and still leaw sufficient time for one of tho drivers to give the necessary attention in the way of adjustments, cleaning, etc., to the motor to keep it in good working order, providing that he was competent to undertake such work. I do not 'think that, except in such cases as I have mentioned, co-operative employment will make much headway, but I do think that contracting, among farmers, is a field that promises good work, and practical owner-drivers and small capitalists might, with advantage, give this class of employment their careful consideration. Railway rates are increasing at an alarming rate, and the,establishment of light railways will not de much to stern the increase in freight charges; there is thus a tremendous field available for the development of motor transport. It is not, however, to he expected that motor manufacturers and motor owners can develop rural transport without the assistance of farmers and small fielders, either in the way of subscribed capital or reasonable contracts for employment.