REPORT OF MR. FRANCIS H. APPLETON.
503
books contain chiefly a minute description of the various branches of agriculture practised in Austria, and have been prepared with the view of showing the public the progress and advancement of Austrian agriculture.
We find here descriptive charts, showing how the cultivation of the different crops, including the vine, is distributed over the Austrian Empire, etc.
This, together with a large variety of other objects of interest, made up the display. Most of these were taken from the Agricultural College and School museums, or were made at those institutions especially for the occasion, and at the close of the Exposition were either to be returned to the places whence they were taken, or be added to the collections of the institutions that sent them. In the
Agricultural Halls,
while examining the very extensive displays of implements of all sizes, and for many purposes, I found only a very few that I shall speak of as suggesting novelties or useful ideas for our Commonwealth.
Almost all implements were of English patterns, or similar to them; the English manufacturers having some extensive factories in different parts of Europe. These were universally much heavier than we could use to advantage, but, knowing the unintelligent laborers that are intrusted with the care of implements in Europe, I felt that there was a necessity for their being strong and durable, and such as could only be made of considerably greater weight than our own.
There is certainly, however, a possibility, in some cases, that the usefulness of an implement can be increased only by additions which necessarily increase its weight.
I know of cases where our light American ploughs, which are highly esteemed by us, have been bought by English farmers, but which were thought very little of by them. On the other hand, while the English plough is greatly prized by many Canada farmers, we in the States prefer not to use them. I am sure the true solution of this difference of opinion has not been reached.
Steam-ploughing is much used in England and on the continent, and possesses very great advantages over ploughing