Spring Tugs for Working Horses.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 409, 9 October 1889, Page 3

Spring Tugs for Working Horses.

The heavy carting work, the sudden strain of a dead pull ab a heavy load, when a horse throws himself into the collar to start it, is very injurious, and must often be very painful to the draught horse. It is these sudden jerking strains which are said to be the cause of the rapidity with which tramcar horses wear out. In the case of impetuous, fiery animals, the violent. effort to overcome the vis inertia of a heavy load may often cause permanent physical injury to the horse, and it is to the horse owner's interest, as well as in accordance with humane instincts, to relieve working horses, if possible, from these painful and dangerous strains upon their strength. We illustrate herewith Siden's Patent | Tug-springs or Horse Protectors, which are thus described in the Ironmonger :—: — 14 These springs, which are constructed on the tensive principle, consist of two spiral springs, one inside the other, coiled up in opposite directions, covering sliding links. (The links, we are informed, are treated at the factoiy up to a weight of 4,5001b5, and that the springs are stretched to double length before being fastened to the links, an arrangement limiting the stretching to 3 or 4 inches, and preventing breakage by

suddon strains or jerks.) These springs are intended to bo a relief to horses and to enable more work to be got from them with less exertion by obviating the concussions and jerks to which they are exposed, especially on the shoulders, chest, and withers, when pulling heavy loads on rough roads. They are made of steel with double springs ; the springs are various grades of elasticity to suit any load or power of horse, and have great power of elasticity, and the resisting power is proportionate to the stretching of the apparatus ; these tug-springs are fastened to the ends of the traces, or, in heavy drays, from the harness to the shafts, as illustrated below :—: —

" There is no alteration required to the harness, for they are made with all kinds of hooks and eyes, on each of which is expressed in kilograms the starting and final tension of the spring. Mr J. T. B. Siden, of Stockholm, is the inventor, .and the agents for Austi'alasia, H. Frawzen and Co., 19 Macquarie Place, Sydney." We depart in this instance from our general rule not to give free advertisements by publishing the agents' name, as we think the invention one that our farmers should patronise.

A Million Bushels. — People talk glibly about 1,000,000 bushels of wheat, but very few of them realise what a vast amount that is, A wheat broker says that if 1,000,000 bushels were loaded on freight cars, 500 bushels to a car, it would fill a train over fifteen miles long ; if transported by waggon, forty-four bushels per -waggon, it would make a line of teams 142 miles long. If made into broad, reckoning a bushel to every 601b of flour, it would give each man, woman, and child in the United States a 21b loaf of bread. With the above in mind, the reader can better appreciate the following paragraph : — , There are used annually in the United ( States about 15,000,000 bushels of wheat in various manufactures, such as srarch, food preparations, sizing for clotband paper; 50,000,000 bushels are required for seeding and 285,000,000 for food consumption, which leaves only about 50,000,000 bushels for export. If these averages are all kept up, an increase in the wheat area of the country is imperatively demanded.