White Cloud Kansas chief. [volume] (White Cloud, Kan.) 1857-1872, 1861-09-05
for tie farmer.
The way TO Pitch Nav.

enced in this branch of haying.
There is little science, .aftersaIi, in pitching
hay, not only with horse fork but hand fork;
but most of the laborers of the present day seem
to think that physical strength alone, is the
great desideratum; and therefore, pitching hay
is looked on as very laborious and fatiguing
work. If man has little good skill and is
not very strong, he can pitch on or pitch on a
load of hay, With very little fatigue; but if he
is deficient in skill, pitching bay will be very
laborious and atiguing work.
Twill explain what is meant by skill and by
want Of it, when pitching hay.
When grass is very long, and has been raked
with horse rake, the hay will sometimes hang
together in long strings Now, when pitcher
thrusts his fork into one of these long lunches
of hay, to pitch it on the wagon, and it hangs
from the top of the load to the ground, he pitch
es at very great disadvantage. and is greatly
fatigued, and performs but little work in pro-
portion to the strength excrted. But he who
aims Understandings, to use his energies in
such manner as to make every ounce of force
which he excrts accomplish all that is possible,
will think before he heaves his forkful.
In pitching hay on load, either from a win
row or from cocks, man will pitch much easier
and much faster to take about much as he
can lift right up, without an extra effort. Some
men will thrust into forkfuI as large as they
can move and stick one end into the ground,
and tug and lift and exhaust themselves enough
to have pitched more than three times as much
as they do really pitch.
Whenever have had such unsk illful pitchers,
ask them to watch my movements while
throw up few hundred pounds. Now, thrust
the fork into about as much as you can take
right up, and lay it on the load, without exer-
ting too much strength. In case there seems
to be double and twisted waI, to, heavy for
one forkful. instead of resting one end of the
fork handle against or beneath one thigh, and
attempting to lift your load when it is five or six
feet from you, take hold of your handle close to
the fork, and divide the bunch, and then yon
can toss them up with ease. and very quickly
too
1t is very disadvantaseous way, to lift a
forkful of hay by resting the end of the fork
handle against one thigh and lifting all with one
hand, unless the handle is very short In Or
der to pitch with ease, it is far better to rest
the handle across one knee, until the forkful |
is torn loose from the rest of the hay, and then
elevate it with one hand near the fork. and then |
raise it as high as may be necessary, while the !
handle is erect in the hands. Sometimes when
we get hold of forkful little too heavy too lift
right up, plant the end of the fork handle un.
der one foot, and apply both hands to the han
die. and set up the fork erect, and then no force
will be misapplied in lifting forkful on the
load
PITCHING HAY OFF THE LOAD.
What has been penned in the preceding par
agraphs has more particular reference to pitch
ing hay in the field from the winrow or cock.
But far more skill is required when pitching off
a load than is required in nitching ON the wag-
on.
In order to be able to pitch off hay with case
it must have been properly loaded. 1t will.
with some kinds of hay, make full one half
difference in the time and strength required to
pitch of load, whether it has been loaded in
a hap hazard way A skillful pitcher will try
a forkful at different parts Of the load, and i'll
he is possessed of little good SKILL he will dis.
cover some places, where the hay win look as
If forkful would come up easily; and while
he is lifting that he will be looking for another
good place to get forkfuI. But, if be is des-
titute of good skill in pitching, he will stand on
the topmost forkfnl, and endeavor to pull it out
from under his feet. OF course this will rem
der the work very laborious, and the progress
slow. d. sE5- rFl -a,-.l.5 rEe
PITCHING HAY ON A LOAD OR STACK.
Most men know enough without telling them
to elevate their forksful as high as they are to
be pitched, before they allow thom to touch a
load Or stack; still there are some pitchers, who
will thrust almost every forkiul right against
the side of load or stack, and then push it up
to the top. No man can load well, nor make a
good stack, when the sides are disturbed by |
pitching forkful after forkful against them, and
then showing them up the side. Every forkfui (.
should be laid clear on the top, especially when
a stack is being made; and when stack Is be-
ing Finished none but very small forkfuls should
be pitched, because it is very difficult to top off
a stack with forkfuls that will extend entirely
across the top. - AN ~
PITCHING HAY WITH HORSE FORK.
A little good skill is as necessary when pitch
ing with horse fork, in order to do it with ease
and rapidity, as il is when pitching with hand
fork
If load is heaped up in the middle, thrust
the fork into it little one side of the highest
place, and if the load is about level or even on
the surface, take forkful at each end FIRST and
then you will be able to get one of good size
from the middle. But when the fork is thrust :.
first into the'middle of the load, it will some
times Lift and tear out more than can be eleva-
ted, and it will be necessary to release por- 4
ton Of it; and then it will be difficult to get d
a forkful Of good size. But, BY standing lit t
tie one side of the middle of a load, and by v
handling the fork right and left, and then d. a
rectly before you, the forkfnls will come up Il
with far less force than when the fork is thrust
in at random. A man who has but little skill a
will often make very labo rious and slow work, Il
when pitching with horse fork, and will make Is
very hard work for horse also.J
Ascending Bees. Il
The Bee Journal says that the only means of
the absconding of swarm, besides NJ