STEAM PLOUGHING

Dominion, Volume 14, Issue 255, 22 July 1921, Page 8

STEAM PLOUGHING

PROFITABLE CONTRACTS IN BRITAIN STEAM V. PETROL TRACTORS In an account which he gave to the Council of Agriculture confei-ence of a recent journey abroad, Mr. W. 1). Hunt yesterday made some interesting remarks about the way in which steam ploughing contracts apparently paid the contractors. “1 met a most interesting man in Northamptonshire,” said Mr. Hunt. “He was u steam ploughing contractor, and made his living by doing this class of work. He owned three steam plants, and spent his time touring round the country in a motor-car watching his plants, and arranging contracts for them. He was taking contracts from just ordinaxy farmers in the district, working in many quite small paddocks. He had to compete in price and effici ency with the farmers' own teams, or else he would not get the work, but he told nxe that it paid him quite well. He reckoned that each plant he had was worth £lO6O a year net profit to him. “When we were going along together he pcinted to a house we were passing, and said: 'The man who lives there is a steam ploughing contractor also; but ho is in a bigger way than I am. He has sevexx plants. 1 reckon he makes a thousand n yeax- out of each of his also, because a short while ago he was had up in a breach of promise case, and was let in fox- £2OOO damages, and ho said to me after it was over: "There is profit on two plants gone for a year-.’ ” “I asked this man xf he did not think that the petrol tractor would beat the steam tractor, but he would not listen to it. He had tried the petrol tractor, but said there was too much time lost over breakages. Something was alxvays going wrong, and the life of, a petrol tractoi’ was very short, whereas the steam plants lasted for many years. “It seems to me that these plants would do most excellent work in New Zealand. Our conditions here in many parts are very much the same as those in England. A steam plant would, of ccurse. be too big for most farmers. They will plough about twenty acres a dxv each, and do other work in proportion: but if several farmers in a district jrjned together they might get come contractor - to get a plant and do their work for them.”