REID AND GRAY.

Temuka Leader, Issue 2042, 6 May 1890, Page 3

REID AND GRAY.

The Exhibition correaponient of the Sydney Mail writes as follows :—Amongst the best-known firms in this country who manufacture agricultural maohinery is that of Messrs Beid and Gray, whose works in Dnnedin Exhibition visitors have very generally made a point of seeing. These works are spacious, oovering 2f aores of ground, and are exceptionally well furni»hed with the most modern ingenious and laboursaving machinery, while in different parts of the North and Middle Island the same firm have several branches, depots, etoreu, or workshops. Apropos of eome late statistics showing the nonprogressive charaoter of the ' Victorian export trade, Mr Gray informs me that New Zealand is rapidly acquiring all the Tasmanian trade, whioh was formerly i Q the hands of Victoria. It is no part of my object in this present writing to treat of fiscal matters, bnt it is worth mention, en passant that New Zaaland, whose tariff does not impose a duty on agricultural maohiaery, either whole or in part, succeads in obtaining a market for its work in our Australian oolonies both proteoted anA freetrado. Coming back to this factory of Messrs Beid and Gray's, their largest output consists of double-forrow ploughs, of which 800 were were turned out last year, 200 plough frames being put in hand at a time. The class of plough used by the various colonies differs, New South Wales, Tasmania, and Queensland taking a lighter implement than is used in New Zaaland. It is indicative of the enterprise of the oountry that, as I am informed, this New Zsaland firm are the only makers at present, besides Great Britain and America, who are manufacturing reapers and binders. Amongst the many implements produced is one which, it is claimed, originated in New Zealand, viz, Beid and Gray's '♦ New Zealander " portable chaff-cutter and bagger, whioh has a patent adjustable brake, preventing waste of chaff when bags are being shifted, and takes out long straws, dust, dirt, small seeds, oto. But a glance through the very handsome catalogues of the New Zealand firms shows them to be fully alive to the speoial needs of oountries and climates, and to the latest improvements from all partß ot the world, in eonneotion with agricultural maohinery. I have referred to the ingenious and modern machines found in the workshops of this partioular firm. Several are worth men> tioning: amongst them a milling maohine, for wheel gearing, which I found automatioally outting great teeth, or oogs, in a great chunk of iron, and whioh is graded to cut to the 60,000 th part of an inoh. In Brother corner was a contrivanoe apparently gifted with intelligence—a maohine which had hold of a long saw, the teeth cf which required sharpening. It (the maohine) slowly and regularly passed the saw along, while it (the machine) also advanoed the file' sharpened each tooth, then, withdrawing the file, waited until it (the maohine) had pushed the saw one tooth further along, when forward came the file again to do its work as before. Possibly this implement may be found in Sydney. I had not seen it, and watohed its olever and perfeot working with amused interest. In another plaoe is a rattling, whirling arrangement, perforating II holes at a time, in as many different pieces of iron; here another chopping pieoes off thiok bars of metal as a cook outs off carrots ; there thiok iron being slioed about like brown paper j here are large lofty workshops, with two overhead travelling cranes, and 50 or 60 men pouring hot metal iuio the black-sand moulds, taking out the castings, preparing moulds, etc., while a tramway, running to and fro, carries the osstings to the dressing shops. Another shop contains 10 different size lathes, one, one with a 22ft bed, where recently oyliuders measuring Bft by 7ft diameter were turned for a railway bridge. Now past punohing, shaving, mortioing, planing, and boring machines insatiable demons of these swart chambers—past a Boot's blower equal to 80 fires—and to melting at the same time two tons of pig iron per hour, through the smithy, with its 28 blacksmiths' flies, five forges, and four steam hammers, and out into the open air again, where stand great staoks of New South Wales hardwoods, of whioh the firm import many thousands of feet per annum, always keeping a large stock on hand, both for seasoning, and beoause New South Wales floods oooisionally prevent the timber reaching the coast for shipment to this Bide. 1 Of another New Mouth Wales productionNewcastle coal—over 1000 tons per annum are used for Bmithy purposes. About 280 hands are employed, good blaoksmiths Sotting 120 a day } seoond-olass men, 10j to lis. There are other considerable factories connected with this industry in the colony. What I have mentioned, however, will serve to show what New Zealand is doing in this industry. Perhaps my readers in Now South Wales will, in eonneotion with this, note as worthy of refleotion that this oolony can make it pay to send to Sydney and Newcastle for wood and coal, and after bringing them across the sea use them in manufacturing implements, which they can ship 1200 miles to New South Wales, and soil in the interior of that colony, and also in Queensland and Viotona, to the satisfaction of the buyer, and with, as I say, profit to the manufacturers here,