REAPER AND BINDER COMPETITION.

Timaru Herald, Volume XL, Issue 2930, 13 February 1884, Page 3

REAPER AND BINDER COMPETITION.

A competitive trial of twine-binding hsr--1 Testers was keld yeitevduy afternoon, under tbe auspioM of Ibe Timara Agrieul- oral and ! Pastoral Association, or. Mr 3. O. MrKerrow'n ■ farm, Wai-iti Road, 3?«o priiet! were offered, first £10, second |85. Six tnaoliioee , competed, the nnmes of milkers, width of oat, 1 order m the field, and name of the " expert " I m attendance on eaoh biting as follow: — 1, Howard's "Simplex," 6fV, entered by the N ZXi. and M.A. Oomi*ny j expert, Mr ■ Mole. 2, Johnston, 6ft, entered by Mr A. D. , Well* ; expert, Mr Tunker. 8, Hornnby, 6ft, , entered by Mr W. Evans for J. Anderson 1 and Co., ChrUtehurch ; (Xpert, Mr Trolly. ; 4, W, A. Wood, 6ft, entered by Mr M. . Jonac ] expert, Mr Presnmn. 6, MoObrmlok, ' 6ft, entered by Messrs Priest and Holclgate j 1 expett, Mr Ackerman. 6, Osbornr, 6ft, entered by Messrs Bitbert Wilkln and I Co. 1 •xpert, Mr Ori.ce. The Judge*

ir> were Messrs J. Lawrie, G. F. licvo >y grove-, J. Smith, W. S. Harkneac, W d- Guild, and J. Talbot. A mnrshall was op rs pointed to attend each machine, to enmn n- fair play, thase being Messrs Baifcur, Ford d Aplin, Fringle, Stubbs, and Park. >f . The crop operated upon was tuscan wheat »- crown m two small adjoining 'paddocks hea hind Mr MoKerrovr's house.. It hub not very d even, being much heavier m same plncts ,r than others, and some of the machineu k worked under considerably different ciroumil stances from others. All the grain bad a de--0 cided inclination towards the sea, but ir numbers ono and two, the Howard and i- Johnston, had to deal with grain a gaud bit d tangled as well as inolioed. The Hornsby had t to turn one corner, upward, on a steep sidling. The rest were more fortunate io p their ground and state of the at raw, the Me--1 Oormick only baviog some trouble m crossing . a deep water furrow. The competition wan fixed to commence, at 11 a.m., but a very heavy rain having fallen during tho previous! 'night, it waa decided to postpone the start till 2 p.m., ard even then it was t'eared the ground would be too soft for tho machines. The land proved quite sound, however, and no trouble arose from this sourcu. Tho plots had been surveyed m readiness and "opened out," to nave loss of grain from so many machines going through it. Lots 1 to 4 contained 4 acres 1 rood each, lota 6 and 6, 3 acres 3 roods 30 perches each ; tbe former being m one paddock, the Utter m another. Owing to rhn night's rain the maohines were not hurried to tbe ground, and it was 2.45 pm. before tho Kun was fired as a signal for the start. There was but a few person b present at this time, but as the afternoon wore on tbe numbers increased, until there was a good mutter of spectators, who took great interest m tho competition. The Howard machine, No. lin the field, had bad luok. The horeen went very unsteadily, not being used to the work j the expert could not make them go, and the driver obtained was unused to thu machine, and so very slow progress wn made. A nut was lost off a bolt m the framework, and the knife-driver became shaky, finally the compressor spring broke, and at n quarter to six the machine wns hauled out, leaving a good part of its allotment uncut. So far as it vent its work was not fir«t-clasi. The sheaves were tied too near the butt, and the cut was too bigb, a good many laid strawß being missed. Tbe machine apparently wanted Borne regulating, and tho manager may have become careluss, from having an unsatisfactory team. No. 2, the Johnston, did good work, cutting olean and tying securely, missing only four or five sheavoj, from straw getting m the knatter. Its sheaves were rather ragged on the side out -with tho wind, which might be excused as due to tbe brokendown condition of the orop. On the other aide, cut against the wind, they were rather askew at the butt, like the sheaves put off by a side-delivery reaper. We are inclined to think this may have been due to the " butter " being worked too cloee up to the binder. This maohine is ejrongly made, and contains the lotest improvements m tbe Appleby binder, the tying apparatus being much simplified. An important feature m it is that the wholo machine may be raised or lowered — both sid«a at onoe — by the driver while retaining hia seat. No. 3, the Hornsby, was drawn by a team of three heavy greye, which were too slow for the wort nnd exasperated their driver proportionately, fiftuh of the machines, by the r~aj, had a tbree-horse team. This machine matin rather small 'heaves, and did not tie them over tight The regularity with which each sheaf was dropped to the ground, butt end first, was very noticeable, a valuabln feature m cutting ripe grain. Tbe Hornßby made good work, making neat straight nheaves, even when going with the wind. The Walter A. Wood maohine obtained » nearly level piece of ground, and a pretty strong piece of orop m allotment No. 4, and ought to have mada good work m it. This it did, such work, m faot, that considerable surprise was felt that the judges did not award it' first prize. It made v clean out, and made bigger sheave;, and tied them tighter than any other machine on tbe ground. But what took the publio fanoy, and was considered so valuable a point that it should have weighed heavily with the judges, was a new sheaf-carrier with which it was fitted. This is a sort of cradle, like the skelaton platform of a tilter, curved so as to hold threa or four sheaves. This is fixed on a pivot bar outside the binder, so as to catch the sheaves as bound. A few jointed rods place the driver's foot iv connection with it, and at the proper time ths lifting of hit foot allows the rear of tha cradle to fall, and the sheaves quietly glide to tbe ground. By this means the sheaves are left m thick rows, lUid the labor of stooking must be reduced at the very least by onohalf m a heavy crop ; and by more m proportion as the orop is light. At yesterday's trial, m a piece of crop ranging say from 110 bushels an acre upwards, the rows of shenvos were from one to two chains apart. The appearance of the ground was muoh more businesslike on tbis plot than on tbe otliem, where the sheaves were scattered all over the ground. The addition does not perceptibly add to the draught, it ought not to cost much, aad it is applicable to any binder. No. 5, the MoCormick, went away at a steady pace and kept it up, except that a stoppage was caused nearly every round through having to cross a deep farrow, wheD, both wheels coming into it together, the knife bar dug into the soil ahead, and pretty often gob choked. The machine .mode a clean out, and a very square sheaf, well tied. Leaving out of account the Wood, which carried its sheaves into rows, the idoOormick left the neatest looking plot. la this machine the binder delivers the sheaf a little higher than the Others, and, it may be, a little quioker, and the extra inch or two of fall causes the sheaf to make a clean hiilf turn m falling and land upon one of its flat sides, perfectly straight. In all tbe other machines the delivery was •uch that the sheaf grounded first upon one of it* narrower sides | the butt remained, so to speak, od edge, while the heavy heads on the upper side slipped over. The sheaves m this way were twisted and more difHoutt for the (looker to piok up, while their butts, sticking up m tbe air a good deal, presented a considerable surface for a wind to take hold of and twist tbe sheaf more. Tbe McCormiok's sheaves lay "as flat as a pancake," and 'a strong wind oould scarcely get hold of them. The flat fall of the sheares might- seem an objection, ai likely to knonk out dead ripe grain, but they seem to fall lightly, and come down butt first. Whatever be its advantages or disadvantages, the ground spread with sheaves so laid looks a great deal neater, and tbe Bhoavas tbemtelvrg far safor from being knocked -about by wind. No. 6, tbe Osborne, bad a good quickstepping team, and baviog no stoppages, was first out. Its allotment was a level piece of ground and pretty level crop, and it made good work, the tying being a little stuck porl'aps. This machine ban been considerably improved and simplified since last year, the tying apparatus being tbe simplest on tbe ground. All tbe machines with one exception have tho Ap pfeby binder — thu thumb aod-finger knotter anid slotted diso gripper — tbn simplifications being m thw mechanism by whioh the pnrts are moved. The exception is the Wood, which has the Holmes fcyer. This docs not look to simple a* tbe other, but it is quite as"" effective and reliable. This binder has been improved m some details since last season. During tbe day, we way mention, a new binder was talcefl about, that bind* the sbeaf between tbe platform nnd the main wheel. It wan stated that there, are a few m this colony already, but thoy are not y«t satisfactory. To nmko a binder of this kind the machinists of America and Knglatid have been taxing their i»gontiity for tome time, and eventually they will op doubt succeed. \ ' ■ Five maohines having finished their alloltod tasks, and the sixth,. the Howard, withdrawn, all were drjjwnoiE thestubblo.nucl the Judges, who had boen busily taking notes all the time, mado «, final tour of the ground. Thoy then made an examination of eaah machine, tho expert m charge doing hi* best to show it* superiority m this, that and the other detail, to. all otWs. The judges than retired to count up paints nnd make their award. They were a long tifne over tbli, and the people waiting passed tbe time by getting up a " OaloatU sweep" on the renult. The Wood fetched the nifjheit price, the Otborne and MeCtormick being next, and at about »<jual priest, . tbe Johnston being fourth, almott equal m domand. with tbe lait- two. The decision of the Judges w»s announced by tbe secretary, Mr Stubbi, at follows :—

;- Muchine. Area. Time.' Points. '• A. B. P. H. U. 1- McCormick... 8 830 222 184— 1st c Johnston ... 4 1 0 252 133—2. d I, Wood ... 4 1 0 224 132-Br<l O-borne ... 8 330 2 2 180— 4 th , Hornsby ... 4 1 0 3 9 113- 6th - Howard ... 4 1 0 — 89— 6 th p The Howard retired after working 3hrs. s The MoOormiok machine thus won the a first priza of £)0 offoretl by the Agricultural • and Pastoral ABSooi.itior, and the Johnston - the second prize of £5.