The Colonial Turnip, Rape and Mangold Sower, and its Inventor.

Progress, Volume I, Issue 3, 2 January 1906, Page 51

The Colonial Turnip, Rape and Mangold Sower, and its Inventor.

It is interesting to learn that the new Turnip, Rape & Mangold Sower (Bnstow's 1903 Patent), had its origin a few years ago 111 an idea given Mr. Bnstow by a Mr. J. M. Johnston, of Palmerston North, who required a device for sowing turnip and rape seed. The former had to be deposited on the ground singly, and the latter in a continuous stream. After examining the best machines then on the market Mr. Bnstow noted that, without exception, they depended on gravitation. To force out the single seeds appeared to be the task requiring the most thought ; and in three weeks, labouring thirteen hours a day, a practical working model was evolved which to this day remains almost unaltered. The first of our illustrations shows a side elevation of the sower fixed beneath a seed hopper, portion of which only is shown. The cylindrical casing, 1, contains a drum, 8, which is fixed upon the spindle, 3, and revolves withm the casing. The periphery of the drum has a series of small holes into each of which falls one seed from the hopper as the drum revolves. In case a hole receives more than one seed it is wiped out by a brush. As the drum revolves the seeds fall out of the holes and pass through an opening at the bottom of the casing into a delivery tube. To obviate the possibility of seeds remaining in the holes a small wheel within the drum has

studs spaced apart correspondingly to the seed holes and the studs pass into the holes one after the other as the drum revolves and eject the seeds therefrom. Another illustration shows the various parts making up a complete seed sower, the way the parts fit together being quite understandable from the first illustration. The new Sower is considered to be the most reliable turnip, rape and mangold Sower invented, - it is a positive single-seed turnip Sower, and forcefeed rape and mangold Sower. It positively drops one turnip seed at a time, and cannot over-carry or injure the seed. It is a positive force-feed for rape, and is the only force-feed mangold Sower invented. It is also an excellent Sower for every

description of land. Seed cannot fall out or get misplaced on rough or hilly land, and its accuracy of sowing makes it a splendid economiser. Its design is a marvel of accurate mechanism — the wearing parts being independent of the sowing faces, and the system of revolving such that warp or sag of the drill box will not affect it. The new Sower is constructed of malleable castings and gunmetal, accurately made with special machinery, and designed so that any farm hand can take a machine apart and put it together again without fear of injury or displacement. Combined with the Colonial Patent Fertiliser Sower, it makes, perhaps, the best Combination Drill ever offered to farmers of New Zealand, or any other country. Mr. C. Bristow, the inventor, was born at Cannmgton, Bridgewater, England, and at an early period in life devoted himself to novel experiments that held possibilities in the world of invention. At the age of sixteen he came out to New Zealand, and at once turned his attention to mechanics and followed Civil engineering for six years. Like

most energetic young men who wish to probe abstruse theories Mr. Bnstow chose one of the most unassailable for his study, i.e., Perpetual Motion. But this was soon abandoned for the construction and study of a radiometer. Whilst creating a vacuum this affair was suddenly shattered inwards ; and the interest arising from the consideration of cause and effect quickly led our young aspirant to forget the dire spectacle of his broken toy. As it happened the mystery came to be very easily explained — it was the lack of mechanical perfection in the radiometer. This little incident set the maker on his long course of practice in mechanical improvement which has enabled him to give to the world many useful and paying contrivances. Mr. Bristow obtained the much coveted gold medal for his invention at the Christchurch Show, 1900, and since then improvements have been effected to the Sower in order to oust competition from the running, the success of which work may be inferred from the Exhibition honours and farmers' approval which have been freely bestowed on the Patentee. At the Hawkes Bay, Palmerston North and Christchurch Shows of 1904 the Sower gained the Baldwin & Ray ward Special Prizes for " the most meritorious invention relating to agricultural machinery," and at the Christchurch Show Mr. Bristow's Colonial Drill, fitted with his latest Turnip, Rape and Mangold Sower, was awarded the Gold Medal.