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Mr Meikle, having had the subject of threshing corn un-der his contemplation, was at tills time induced to try, if thatwork could be accomplished upon a principle, which hadnot been previously acted upon by any other person. It i 3evident, that the power required to thresh corn in a perfectmanner, or even in any quantity, must be considerable;for no machine is capable of performing this operation cor-rectly, if the scutchers do not move with a velocity of twothousand five hundred feet in a minute. He therefore resol-ved to attempt threshing by means of a cylinder or drum, pla-ced in a horizontal position, upon the circumference of whichthreshers or scutchers should be fixed, in such a manner, as toendure the necessary motion j being quite satisfied, that corn,without velocity in the threshing-drum, could not be detach-ed from the straw in a satisfactory manner. The attempt wasmade, and the success completely answered his expectationsand wishes.

' The first threshing-machine erected by Mr Meikle, was onaccount of Mr Stein, at Kilbagie, in Clackmannanshire, aboutthe year 1786 j and a certain proof that such a machine wasthen altogether unknown, may be inferred, from the agree-ment about this erection, it being therein stipulated, that MrStein was to furnish the materials, and if the machine did notanswer the intended purpose, Mr Meikle was to receive nopayment for the workmanship. It appears, however, that themachine, when finished, performed the woi'k to the satisfac-tion of both parties. This threshing-machine being success-ful, another, on the same principles, was erected for Mr Selby,at Middleton, in Northumberland, which was immediatelyCo pied and imitated by several mill-wrights in that county \°ne of whom had the singular modesty to claim the inven-bon, because he had previously made a model of Mr Ilder -ton’s machine, which was constructed on quite different prin-ciples.

The utility of Mr Meikle’s machine being satisfactorily'ascertained, a patent for the invention was obtained, securing,