Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1878-08-28

: Tools AND TEAMs.-Prof. Beal. who
occasionally contributes an excellent paper
TO the Rural NeiU Yorker, states in one oil
them that beginner at the farm business
had better not, Just then. buy very large
assortment of tools. His expenses are
likely to be large, and he may not know
exactly what he wants. or this he may nc
certain that poor tools are not economical
| He should remember that days work OF
man is often worth dollar or dollar
and half, while a good hoe can be
bought for half that amount. Labor that
is performed with a dull, rusty hoe that is
loose on the handle will cost more than
that performed with a nice new imple-
ment. 1t is economy to throw away poor
tools and buy good ones.
To some extent, says the professor. the
same is true of team. 1t takes as much
time of the driver to care for and drive
poor team rs it does good one, while the
cost of feeding each may be about equal.
The wages of driver will cost about as
much as the wages of team of two good
horses. Why waste half or third or
even a quarter of the labor of a valuable
man in setting him to work with cheap,
light, or inferior team?
A good. handy. fast walking team is
more economical at high price, than
team which walks slow or which is awk-
ward or of poor quality. A poor tool or
a poor team is always dear at any price,
and is one of the signs of mismanagement
and poverty. An implement should be as
, light as is consistent with strength. There
is great satisfaction in handling excel
lent tools. 1t is well to be little shy of
patent high-priced implements of all kinds,
r unless you have plenty of money to spare.
/ Prof. Beal goes on to state that the
, thrifty man. on garden or farm. will take
/ care of the tools and the team. He will
paint the former, oil them, clean them and
5 house them. Tue careless man will leave
e them in the open air, scattered about the
1 premises where they were last used, or he
will leave them along the road or in the
lane, or in front of his barn or dwelling
t house. We can nearly always judge Of a
. farmers care, and generally Of his success
L by seeing his tools, and how he takes care
e of them. Many men are heavy listed ant
Y twist and pry and break or soon spoi
: nearly every implement they lay thei
s hands on. They are proud of displaying
Y their strength. They are very unlucky.
e Others, or the best of hands, take hold o
f tools with care and use them properly
Y Such men are handy, lucky. and profitable
. to employ.
d The beginning farmer Or gardener. say
t the professor, will need few carpente
: tools. 1t will be very fortunate for him, i
v he has had some instruction and practc
e in the use of such tools, and in keepin!
: them in good repair. Other things being
i equal, the natural mechanic will hav
much the advantage over the one who ha
e no tact in using tools. Mechanical in
n genuity is Il priceless gift but those VIII
Q have not this gift Can learn to do nue.
t better than they usually do Good wor
: depends, more than many suppose, Of
e good tools in good order. Tools should b
}, taken care of and kept everything in it
e proper place. A lot of old rusty tool
o sticking about in the cracks of the wall o
It thrown together in an old box are indee'
= very little better than no tools at all
Y Botch work is the only kind of work tina
' can possibly be done with lhem.-Mobii
: Register.