Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1889-06-20
FARM IMPLEMENTS.
Reasons That Should Govern the PA
chase OF Expensive Tools.

The great multiplicity and variety
| of farm implements now pushed before
the farmer often confuse and perplex
him, especially when his purchasing
| means are limited, while his needs ap-
parently cover the whole ground OF
| improved farm machinery. With Out
few exceptions all the implements.
| improved and late invented, are great
labor savers, and most economical for
those who have the means to purchase,
and who have work enough to per-
form to enable such implements to pay
their cost.
The well-established farmer upon a
farm of good size, on smooth land. who
follows system of mixed farming.
will find it most economical to have
plements. His decreasing expendi-
lures for hired hand-labor will fully
warrant him in the large outlay neces-
sary to furnish him with this outfit
But with the farmer upon a small
farm, or upon rough, new land, the
case is quite different In such cir
cumstances, it is often difficult to de-
eide whether or not a certain imple-
ment or machine will prove profitable.
The more common farm tools. such as
the pillow, harrow, cultivator, wagon.
ETC.. must be kept upon any farm. but
when it comes to the reaper, self
binder, mower, horse-rake. tedders.
hay-loader, seeder. mill. power-cutter
and all those high-priced kinds not inn
peratively necessary on the small farm.
the question always arises: ''Wiu 1t
payP"
OF course the agent or dealer who is
importuning the farmer to buy. figures
it all out and shows the great gain
that will accrue to him (the farmer)
through the purchase of the particular
machine in question. Agents often
boast of selling machines where farm
ers did not in the least need them.
This is no doubt too often true, but the
question of expediency is sometimes so
nearly balanced in the farmers mind
that it requires but little inducement
on the part of the agent to tip the
beam in his favor. The farmer seldom
buys machine that he has no use for,
but the question is whether he has
sufficient use for the machine to war
rant the expenditure.
We will take the self-binder for in
stance. 1t is hard to say just how
much land farmer should have into
grain to make the purchase of a ma.
chine profitable Investment In good
harvest weather the farmer can handle
a large area of grain with the reaper.
even if he does not have full binding
grew. He can cut down a few acres
and then bind them up. But if the
weather be unfavorable he is apt to
lose much through such slow means of
harvesting. The losses in this way on
even small farm will frequently equal
half the price of a binder. On the
other hand we must look at the chances
for hiring the use of such high-priced
machinery on the small farm, instead
of buying. In almost every neighbor-
hood there are men who own and OPP
crate such machines, charging stated
amount per acre harvested. or per day.
When the farmer is sure of getting his
grain cut promptly when crop and
weather are suitable, it is often much
cheaper to hire it cut in this way than
to own and operate machine himself.
The circumstances of the farmer must
determine all these such as would arise
upon farms of small area This much
can be said in a general way, that any
farmer who has thirty acres of good
level grain land to cut each year can
proftably own a binder to harvest it
with.
The same questions arise in the con-
sideration of other farm implements.
The farmer who cuts but a few acres
of grass does MT feel like investing in
a mower, and yet he had often much
better do so than to waste valuable
time and hazard his crop by following
the slow hand methods. The mower
is somewhat different from the binder
in this respect. 1t seems an almost
Indispensable article. 1t can be put
to such a variety of uses On the farm,
outside of the work of the bayfield,
proper. Sowed fodder crops of all
kinds can be cut with it. from the
early rye to the late corn fodder.
Thistles, weeds and rank growth of
grass in the pasture may be trimmed
down with this labor Saving implement
at any time during the season. Every
farmer who cuts eight or ten acres of
grass should have a mower of his
own. This and other uses that he can
put a mower to will make a moderate
priced machine of this kind profitable
to own
The seeder and cultivator combined is
another implement that should be
more generally fourd upon our small
farms than it is. The use of the Guilt
vator portion and the evenness of the
seeding will add bushels to the yield,
besides facilitating the work of getting
the crops in.
The hay rake, while of considerable
labor-saving capacity. should be sec
ondary to the two machines just men,
toned. The hay-tedder is needed only
in the heaviest clover
The farmer who feeds large quanti-
ties of grain will find the grinding mill
an economical institution to have on
his own premises. 1t will soon save
its cost in toll and the hauling of grain