Buchanan County bulletin. [volume] (Independence, Iowa) 1869-1891, 1874-01-09

that can be loaded upon it, while
with us it is rare that we have oc-
casion to move such heavy stones
that the big stone-boat is really nee
essary. 1t is made Of two 3 by a
inch oak Of hickory sticks, four feet
long, hewed to sled-runner points at
one end; upon these, crosswise, two
inch planks three fee, long are pin
ned with wooden pins; and upon
these, at the. front and sides, q two
inch oak rave is nailed. 1t is best
to have the whole thing of hard
wood. but it makes it little heavy.
On farm of fifty acres not more
than one may be needed, but they
are SO easily made that on farm Of
one or two hundred acres, employ
ing two or three pairs Of horses,
two or three of different sizes and
strength will be found useful. They
are drawn by chains, or better, by
an iron rod bent like the bale of a
turnpike scoop.
The next sled / describe is useful
bothfn winter and summer for haul
ing out manure, or doing any such
work. Its dimensions may vary in
defnately, and it may be drawn by
oxen or horses. 1t is rugged with q
pole or with thills for single horse.
The runners are d inch oak plank
s feet long. These are united by
cross pieces Of the same material,
let into the runners. Upon these
the bottom Of inch boards is nailed,
with a square twoinch rave around
the front and sides. Fitted to this,
inside the raves, is the box. This
made of four l2-inch boards, the
long ones cleated at each end. The
end boards are furnished with an
L-shaped piece Of iron (made from
an old wagon tire perhaps) screwed
upon each end, and projecting one
inch. These fit over the side boards
and hold them in place. BY means
of 4 dung fork or shovel they may
be lifted, and thus the box actually
fall off the sled and the manure may
be shovcled off almost as quickly as
it could be dumped from a cart.
With this sled one can haul out ma
nure where wagon or cart would
sink in so that you could not haul
half load. The loads arc not SO
great as we could take on q wagon
were the wheeling good; but if the
way can be laid over grass or if
there is a little snow, the amount of
manure which pair Of horses will
haul upon the sled a short distance,
and on comparatively level ground,
is fully equal to what they would
haul on a wagon. The sled is cas-
lily rugged for carrying wood or fod-
der, and if it be used upon the road
much it would be well to pin on
shoes of hickory, which, If bent
when green, can be made to turn up
in front to the tops Of the runners.
Never put iron shoes upon such a
sled; they spoil it for running on
bare ground.
Some years ago saw an account
Of some ingenious fellow who had
made use of the bent rims which
come from wagon wheels, and of
which there is an endless variety,
for sleigh knees and braces. Last
year | put the bent rims to the test,
and found them admirably adapted
to my use. The rims and runners
may be purchased Of such size as
one may wish. The rims connect
ms the runners may be cut off or
bent out, or trimmed in any way to
suit the desired spread Of the run
ners, or the angle at which it is de-
sired to have them set. 1t requires
four segments to each pair Of run
ners-one pair to set upon the run
ners lengthways, and the other to
connect the runners together, arch.
ing over the roadway. lemons are
cut on the ends of these rims, and
they must fit snugly into the NOR
tees in the runners. The bent rims
used as braces are bent out to suit
the space between the knee rims, SO
to speak, and then trimmed to fit:
they are boltcd to the others, not to
the runners. These rims may be
bent easily if they are first thor
oughly sottened by being wrapped
in sacks and frequently drencLed
with boiling water until wet thor
oughly and warm. A sleigh box
may be bolted directly to the rims.
resting either upon or between them
The whole structure, if well-made
is exceedingly strong, and it may be
made very light and graceful.
fhope that these hints may be OF
some service to your readers this
season.