Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1909-10-26
Makers of Farm Machinery
By Frederic ]. Haskin.

so that "a crow flying across 1t would
have to carry his rations.'
And it was here that the age Of agri-
cultural machinery dawned upon the
world. Rockbridge county is at the head
of the valley. In the northern end OF
this county is the birthplace Of the Nc
Cormicks and of the reaper. Robert Nc
Cormick had long tried TO solve the prob
lem of harvesting by machinery. He had
corresponded with Thomas Jefferson
about it, but it remained for his son Cy-
rus to perfect the machine. The fathers
had been sort of revolving scythe but
the sons was different. Those. were
great days in Rockbridge and Augusta
counties. The gentry and the hoi polloi
all gathered at Steele's tavern. as II to
see a circus in answer to the printed
handbiIls announcing the first public
trials
Invented In 1881, and soon thereafter
proved to be all that was claimed for 1t.
it was yet Il years before the reaper be-
came a commercially valuable machine.
So limited were the facilities for making
it that It was 1s45 before farmers began
to use the reaper to any extent. The bind
er did not come until 1875 and the Irvine
binder even later. To Obed Hussey be-
longs the credit of bringing out the
mower, but IL was not practicable until
Lewis Miller invented the floating cutter
bar which enabled it to accommodate
itself to unevenness of ground.
The grain drill was invented many
years before 1t was so improved as 70 be
practicable for general farm use. IN 1851
force feed attachment was put upon
it, and since then the grain drill has been
one of the most useful pieces OF ma
chinery on the farm. The corn planter
had it's beginning In 1853 and was In
vented by George W. Brown, OF Illinois.
The farmer had to drive a three-run-
nered sled across the deld to mark the
rows where the corn was to be planted
The planter was driven across these at
right angles and the grains dropped at
each intersection. Later the Haworths,
also OF Illinois invented the check-rower.
A long wire chain is stretched across the
field. with tripping links every three feet.
The planter is driver along beside this
and every time the trip strikes link Il
drops the requisite number of grains.
BY this method the corn is sure to be
planted in rows both ways, 50 that IL can
be plowed north and south as well as
east and west.
The end delivery buggy-rake and the
hay loader mean about as much in the
matter of labor saving as any other har-
vesting machinery on the farm. The po-
tato digger is also vast labor saver where
potatoes are grown on large scale. So
is the nut gatherer where nuts are ex-
tensively grown. The windmill means
much to the farmer in economy Of elbow
grease, any many boy with water to
pump for so head of stock has had the
lesson taught him anew that he never
appreciates the wind pump until 1t stops.
Inventors are now concentrating their eff
forts to perfect the cotton picking ma
chine.
What of the future? wfI It hold new
inventions and new labor savers in store
for the farmer? Will it add to the things
that are lifting him from the ranks OF
the toiler with his hands to those whose
brain work and whose mastery. Of nachin-
cry count for more than toll? That there
are inventions to come which will work
as great revolutions as those that are in
use seems to be impossible. But when
the average farmer adopts all that are
now being successfully used by the few
ultra-progressive agriculturists, he will
eliminate much of his work. The day OF
the storage battery-rcheap and effective
10 ACAC Win SdSOlillC uCidluI dlCO~
hoL The care of horses is a labor that
machinery cannot save-but it can. and
will, eliminate the horse. The farm trac-
tor will ultimately draw the pillow, pull
the binder. pump the water. drive the
thresher grind the grain, haul the pro-
duce to market-in short 1t win be every
thing that horse has been.
With the coming of the second decade
of the 10Th century the energies OF the
man upon the farm will be directed to
taking up the lost motion that has been
so long the rule. The next quarter OF a
century probably will find the farmer the
most carefully trained OF all our citizens
and his vocation will be transformed into
profession instead of being allowed to
remain hit-or-miss sort of business.
The age of machinery will come to be
known as the age of intelligent effort.