The Chanute times. [volume] (Chanute, Kan.) 1897-1913, 1899-06-16
The Threshins Problem

I would like the favor Of some space
in your valuable paper to ventilate the
question of threshing in the northwest,
writes a contributor to st. Paul Far
mer. 1t must be solved and In such
n way as to enable the farmer to re-
duce the present cost, especially when
prices are so low, or we had better
throw I'D our hands. No farmer can
live and pay or &c for thrashing
wheat, when 1t will bring only 6O TO
Goethe percentage Is clear out OF rea-
son-and l hope l can waken up few
farmers at least, and get them to think
and then agitate this vital matter. 1t
has simply come to point where the
farmer to succeed, must do some figur-
ing and work beside, or he will De
wiped off the earth. He cannot STAND
the bare-faced robbery at the elevators,
and the advantage sometimes taken Dy
threshmen in deficient measure, ex-
pensive help, etc. l hear some one ask
how are we to help 1t? I'll try and tell
you.
First: Don't try to put in the out
side limit to wheat; summerfailo"'
and do it we'll; get more grain on less
surface; do this while work Is SLACK
which REQUIRES less stock over winter
less help to pay in the fall. RAISE
some hogs. Have pasture for them
raise them cheap; feed sweet corn, 100
der. peas, sugar beets, small patcn
Of each will do, and the cost is nominal
I have tried it and know l am right.
Have some good cattle and above all
some sheep. Don't depend entirely on
wheat. Barley and oats can be raiseu
cheaply and are both fine for hogs anu
sheep.
Now want to give you an idea on
the threshing problem and one thae
feel sure is going to leave thousands
of dollars in the farmers pocket instead
of paying it out. We must do more
of the work within ourselves, even
though it takes a few days longer
How can a farmer with 300 to l,ooo
acres make money as fast as by doing
his own threshing and with SO HUE
help and expense he can begin 10
thresh when the first bundle Is ready
and in this way be done before ne
would If he waited for a furnished crew
to come and do it; save his grain, keep
the foul seeds off his farm and aVolu
the disagreeable crowd that he must
submit to and having his farm turned
INSIDE down at the same time ana inc
unavoidable waste that necessarily
must follow. Any thinking business
man must know the expense attending
the operating of one of these large
threshing outfits and he must also real
I've the fact that somebody has got 10
nut I'D for it. This somebody Is the
farmer every time, and he must also
nav the thresherman a profit on all
these teams and men. If it was not So
he could not afford to operate the rig
Even then few of these men make
success of it, for the obvious reason
that we have so few large crops, SNORT
seasons at most about thirty days run
and hut few operators of such outhts
are competent to handle such an es-
tablishment successfully. At least 20
per cent of them being failures, even
at the prices charged
Now then l come to the turning
point, l think, in this business, WHICH
if carefully followed, is going TO help
us ont. You ask anxiously, what in the
world is it anyhow? 1t is This, a
threshing rig that can be operated by
the farmer, with five or six men, four
or five teams and thresh 800 to l,ooo
bushels of wheat in ten hours and al
a cost not to exceed 21s to &c per bushei
How is this beside the or &c paid a
big rig, to say nothing of the WORK
Won have to do yourself, waste OF grain
in the straw, foul seed spread over the
farm. time lost waiting to get the
threshing done. This year the loss
IN grain amounts to hundreds of thou
sands of dollars. Now l saw rig OF
this kind successfully operated thlS
fall. threshing 900 acres, some l5,OOC
bushels, done in good season. kno"
of several such outfits being success
fully and satisfactorily operated by tne
purchaser. The separator is about
80 inch cylinder, operated by gasoline
engine of about Z horse power. IL Is
no experiment, perfectly safe, service
able, simple and easily operated, anc
the most desirable power yet invented
for a farmers use for grinding feed OF
any such work; being mounted Oh
trucks. one team can haul the whole
thing if desired.
Having fully satisfied myself of the
grand success and expediency Of this
combination for the farmers benetit,
felt it my duty to make it known tt
nv fellow farmers. The threshing bill
of an ordinary farm will pay for rig
in two years, the days OF the Dig
thresher are numbered, and the far
mer saved.