The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-08-28
SHEDDING CORN.
Prize article in Southern Ruralist, bS R. D. Tatum

Prize article in Southern Ruralist by R. D. Tatum.
 Shedding. corn was a fad a few years ago; the agricultural papers were full of it.. At all the agricultural clubs or wherever farmers met at the country stores, in town. at picnics and the question was agitated, and the up to-date manufacturers of corn ma chinery flooded the country with their literature. while their energetic. hust- ling agents. quick to see the advan tages to be derived from the situation, swarmed over the country and vied vesters and shredders The result was more corn cut and shredded in two years than ever before. ever been since or will be in long while. Despite the advice so freely given by experienced agricultural speakers and writers describing the method of ing. our Southern farmers, noted for their haphazard methods, their preju~ dice against any kind of book-farming and with an inherited tendency to do everything in their own way, careless ly cut and half shocked their corn and went about gathering the cotton cron The season proved to be a bad one and there could be but one result. and that q mass of rotten, worthless StoVer and lot of rotten and in many cases worthless corn. Consequently shred ders and harvesters went back on the agents, and most of the farmers in this section at least quit shredding for gooa and all.
 Like many others, we caught the shredding fever, cut our corn, bought a shredder, and like many others. made almost a failure, but being conYinced that if properly managed, sktllfully done and at the right time. no injury would be done the corn and the stoVer would make good feed we set bout studying better methods. We could see our mistakes and corrected them, read what those who had succeeded had 10 say. and a trip through the better s,9a oh time gave us a fine opportunity to study the methods of those up date. progress sive farmers. We adopted some oi these. improved our own and now shred our corn with entire satisfaction, ana find it a great advantage over the old way of pulling fodder and then pull ing the corn.
 We have never found it practicable to use harvester, but use knlte made from an old saw about eighteen inches long two inches wide, with handle twelve inches long, fastened se- curely on one end. When ground sharp somewhat like the regular corn knife used north of us
 We make shocking horse ieX tax, ak ttne, Iope Piece with G two ' feks naiisdA on about afeS iV"S four @ and a half feet iron, one end, just s you do a saw-horse, oip have then long long enGugn enc gnndsG sp eaTs nat and have them set little back SO they will stand straight as the other end rests on ground; bore an inch and d half auger hole half way between legs and end of scantling, stick an old noe handle through this and you have a
 Now get an inch grass rope1 twelve feet long with a large ring to SID loosely over 1t, a ball of sisal binder twine which should be in bucket or box with a lid on, 1t and the twine passed through a hole in lid as on a regular binder. This is necessary to keep twine from tangling.
 Move the horse about where you want first shock One man with the knife goes down the right side of the row cutting the. stalks about root the left side of the row catching the corn in his right hand, laying 1t on his left until he has all he can carry 10 shock when a third man takes ms place, and the knife never stops ana with a little practice three men can cut and shock as fast as they can walk, Be careful to place the corn well m the angles formed by the stick passing through horse and keep the ends all on the ground. As soon as the corn VIII stands alone pull out stick, then the horse, and complete shock placing corn shed water. The man with the knlte moves the horse into the corn agaln andfcuts the nearby stalks. while the other two tie. which Is done by throw. ing one end of rope around shock 1ust above the ears. pass through ring aIyt draw from opposite directions as tight as two men can pull #. One man can then hold both ends of rope while the other ties; one nf the men now takes the rope and twine and the other be- gins to catch corn. As soon as corn shrinks. which will be two or three