Later his establishment grew large.
Another John Lane, a son of the first, patented in 1868 a
"soft-center" steel plough. The hard but brittle surface was
backed by softer and more tenacious metal, to reduce the
breakage. The same year James Oliver, a Scotch immigrant who had
settled at South Bend, Indiana, received a patent for the
"chilled plough." By an ingenious method the wearing surfaces of
the casting were cooled more quickly than the back. The surfaces
which came in contact with the soil had a hard, glassy surface,
while the body of the plough was of tough iron. From small
beginnings Oliver's establishment grew great, and the Oliver
Chilled Plow Works at South Bend is today one of the largest and
most favorably known privately owned industries in the United
States.
From the single plough it was only a step to two or more ploughs
fastened together, doing more work with approximately the same
man power. The sulky plough, on which the ploughman rode, made
his work easier, and gave him great control. Such ploughs were
certainly in use as early as 1844, perhaps earlier. The next step
forward was to substitute for horses a traction engine. Today one
may see on thousands of farms a tractor pulling six, eight, ten,
or more ploughs, doing the work better than it could be done by
an individual ploughman.
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