Mohave County miner. [volume] (Mineral Park, A.T. [Ariz.]) 1882-1918, 1890-09-13
FARM AND HOUSEHOLD.
Interesting Rsvisv II Recent Improve
msnts which Tighten Farm Labor.

Labor SAVING Machinery hat Has 1svpll-
tloniseA the Yaruers, Toll and u 1hnult
RsTvS to MSks Farming More Attractive 10
Our East 1oyS.
Within ten years. the character Of
farm work has been aitogstheF chang:
ID. pRrLI6ulRrly II the great prairie
regions whero tho surface Of the land
permits Of Tho easy use OF complicated
machinery. Let US motto briefly tho
character Of tho revolution In farm
work, its enact upon farming "a an
occupation, aud the changes 1t has
made In the requirements Of farm
labor.
II Il abUut ted yeats since II &as
demonstrated BY general practical
test In the haryest field that the tTine
self-binder was success. That
destroyed at once throe-fourths Of the
labor Of small grain harvest, and tile
most severe labor. What had made
" dread small grain harvest was tho
bending over the hhaavos lying In the
burning rnys Of the sun, and the severe
labor Of binding those sheayss Tile
self-binder took from Us all this hard
work and now even gathers together
the bundles to DO shocked.
Ten years ago one-h half the labor Of
threshlng was In handling the straw.
In the west nearly all Of IL was, and
Is yet stacked out OF doors and OIL the
stack was required . row oi men 70
pitch the straw, one 70 another, and
thus remove II from the straw CarrIer
TO those parts Of the stack where IL
was noeded. This was tho hardest
work Of ttreshiDg ana frequently II
wss very hard TO get sufficient men
that would consent TO do this work.
For three or four years We hava had
''straw StackerS" attached TO the
threshing machines that, BY means Of
an endless carrier. deposits tho straw
Mt any part OF q seml-circuias stask,
doing away with all the hard work OF
pitching the straw along the stack.
This year thcrc Is being used stack
or that by means Of atmospheric pres
sure takes all the straw, chat aud
dust from the threshing machine ttnd
drives IL through O long sheet-steel
pipe TO any part Of the stack. This
not only saves the hard labor OF moy-
ing the straw on the stack, but saves
the laborcrs about the thrc.hlng ma
chino from tho annoyance and injary
arising from the dust Nearly one
half the labor and neIrly all She
specially disagreeable feature OF
threshing has been taken away.
Ten years ago moro than One.llnlf
the labor OF hay harvest and the
hardest half was pitching tho hay
from the windrow onto the wagon and
from the wagon 10 the stack or NOW.
Now We have q gatherer. operated by
a boy, that gathers from the Swath or
windroWs, a half ton OF hay, and
brings 1t TO the Kicker. also operated
by a boy. that picks it up and puts 1t
on the rick. All the hard work OF
pitching 10 done away with and two
men and two boys will put In the rick
hay az fast as II is cut with the
mower.
This sufficiently indicates the nature
Of the revolution. Much labor that
formerly had 70 DC accomplished with
human force Is now done by horse or
steam power. This has materially
reduced the cost OF producing buShel
Of wheat or OF corn. or pound of hay
or Of butter. While the expenditure
for farm machinery has been largely
Increased and It costs something to
operate these machines, yet to pur-
chase and operate them permits Of q
crop being produced at leSs cost than
by the old methods The prices for
farm products that prevailed ten or
twenty years ago. compared with the
prices that now prevail do not furnish
q correct statement OF the relative
profit in farming then and now. Farm
comparison indicates.
Farming has already become one OF
the ''lightest" occupations. IT, re-
quires less severe bodily exertion now
than work in the foundry, machine
shop, blacksmith shop. or at the
carpenters bench; or than teaming or
working on the streets. Those that
thought farming was not popular and
''genteel" because It required 50 much
heavy work, must be pleased nj tho
revolution that has taken place In
farm work.
That which is required Of the farm
laoorer now Is less muscle and more
skill. Intelligence Is now q moro inn
portant qality than brute strength.
The farm laborer as we'll as the farm
manager must now think and deTeiop
ingenuity and skill The character OF
farm work has been elevated. II has
become moro brain work just az II
requires less muscle. Is not this
change sure to keep more Of our best
young men on tho farm? We have
been complaining that other callings.
requiring more skill and intelligence.
have taken a majority OF our most in
telligent farmer boys; and because
they required more skill and intelli-
gence they offered better colnTensa-
ton. But farming is fast coming TO
that condition that it requires full az
much skill as they. Will 1t not then.
hold our best young men? The In
vention OF labor saving farm Appli-
ances will soon largely help to keep
our boys on the farm.
Pure breeds for Pigs.
The best way in pig breeding IL 70