The Birmingham age-herald., 1907-09-11
MASSEY BLDG, Sd AVE.

towns near these same cotton fields were numbers of men idling away their time The Dixie Cotton Picker company of Chicago now answe this question, claim ing, and their claims are backed by many or the best cotton farmers of Texas. that the Dixie cotton picker has solved the saving or harvesting of the crop.
 At the Iowa state fair a man had on exhibition steam blow twelve gang blows, that would cut blow fourteen feet at each trip across the field. A great many farmers were present to see the blow work. Many of them though the blow too large and too expensive for the average farmer of Iowa, which are now reduced to an average of 160 acres Finally a bright farmer thought the problem out and said, Boys, we have got to do something; this labor ques- tion has got us on the run. I will tell you what we can do. A number Of us can go in together, buy one of these blows, take dow nour line fences and blow right through all our farms at once The idea was received with applause and soon steam blows will sup plant horse power on the farms of Iowa as it has been doing in the Dakotas, Kan sas, Colorado and Nebras ska.
 Steam Flow Used.
 Only few years ago the great wheat fields of the Dakotas and Minnesota were broken by horce power. Later the steam blow came. Following the use of the steam blow, great disk and smoothing harrows were used for preparing the seed bed for the grain drill Now the great steam blow enters the field breaks the land, harrows and smooths the seed bed and the drill drawn by the some power sows the grain so that all the work of breaking, smoothing and seeding is performed at one passing over the ground.
 Self binders have been enlarged to keep pace with the times, but the small grain farmer is yet largely at the mercy of such hand labor in handling his grain. for the shocking, stacking and thrashing require a certain amount of hand work. But this, too, is gradually being dis pensed with.
 For the want of hand labor to care for the grain after it is cut and bound, thou sands of shocks are now standing in the fields growing green from wet weather and will be a total loss.
 Right In sight on many of these fields of grain winch are going to waste, l have seen the last few weeks, hundreds of men and boys spending their time watch ing a ball game Within the last two weeks l have seen farmers offer la borers two dollars per day and board to help stack grain and this was no induce ment whatever.
 Last Saturday. August S1, delivered an address to the farmers of Jasper county. Iowa. at Prairie City. which s one of the greatest potato growing sec tions in the state A few years ago when this industry started men could be had to harvest potatoes for seventy five cents per day; now men cannot be had for two dollars per day
 Now a factory is in full blast at Prairie City making potato diggers that will dig. sort and sack from five to ten acres of potatoes per day. Where the soil is clean and dry these diggers drawn by four horses will easily dig and sack ten acres of potatoes per day
 Before the civil war a few counties in Kentucky and Missouri were growing all the hemp that was being produced In the United States for commercial pur- poses. A big strong negro man could break one hundred and fifty pounds of fibre per day. This was considered q big days work. The Universal Fibre company of Chicago have spent s150.eol in perfeeting a brake that will brake 5o0o pounds of hemp fibre per day. Many other object lessons could be mentioned but these are sufficient to show the drift or current events in this fast age of tho world.