El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-05-28

n AI<Ahc DCeu estimated Dy d PROM
Inent economist that the use of agri-
- cultural machines in the harvesting
% the annual three billion bushel crop
OF wheat means a saving of $500, 900, 600.
Another authority asserts that If the
use of machinery were eliminated from
| the sowing and the harvesting of the
| wheat crop In the United States, il
would require the services of half of
the people of the country to produce
our bread alone The wheat crop is the
most versatile OF all cereals grown by
The farmer both in the matter of geo
graphical range and OF seasons.
Wheat Is harvested within a few hun
dred miles of the Arctic Circle and
also near the equator in southern Bra
zil- Every month ir the entire year is
a harvest month for this king of food
stuffs- In January. Australia, New Yea
land, Chilli, and the Argentine republic
have their harvests. In February.
March and April, Egypt, India, Per
STA. Mexico. and other countries sim
| ilarly located have their harvest sea
son. From that time on to September,
the bulk of the worlds crop is gathered
In November, Peru and South Africa,
and in December. Burma and New South
Wales harvest their wheat.
The Bonanza Farmer.
Perhaps no more striking instance
OF the worlds progress in agriculture is
afforded anywhere than in the case OF
great EoranZa farmer of Cal fOrnia
In the days before the civN war. he
lived on an humble farm in Virginia
and harvested the wheat for his father
with the sickle and the rake Today
he owns thousands of acres, and oper-
ates great machine which cuts hun
dreds of acres of wheat in a single day.
threshes it, bags it, and weighs 1t,
with never the interposition of a hui
man hand. Where once he sowed the
grain lboardcaSt from a sack slung
across his shoulders, he now operates
a great machine which pIOws harroWs
and sows many acres every hour Thus
In his single life, is represented more
: human progress than in all the hun
dTeds of generations gone before It
/ was not a great step from the days
! VII" Roth CLEANED after the re.p,.rs IN
the fields of Boaz to the days when this
California farmer handled his sickle
on the hillsides of Virginia farm.
Climax OF IL Months.
The harvest season for thousands of
years represented the climax in the II
months of labor Its ending was the
occasion for general rejoicing. and for
unusual toll. While the devout might
make the harvest home season a time
Of thankfulness TO the Giver of all good
for the bounty they had received, as
Is done even TO this day in many of
the eastern states. Vet for the great
mass of harvest workers. it was more
a season of rejoicing that the days of
strenuous work were past
In England, a harvest home process
sion always was in order at the close
OF the season, and the piper and the
tabor preceded the last sheaf on the
hop cart, marching along in triumph
and JOY that the easy days had come
once more. Even the famoas Roman
Saturnalia, which has become a symbol
OF wild Indulgence and debaucherv
was the Roman harvest festival. Today
practically all the drudgery of harvest
time has passed and with IT the great
festivals are almost forgotten
Elimination of Manual Labor
The first recorded attempt at the
elimination of manual labor from the
Work OF the harvest field, is recorded BIZ
Pliny as having taken place about the
dawn of the Christian era. 1t seems TO
have been forerunner of the modern
wheat header 1t was a cart with q sort
OF comb and knife combina ton at tie
front. bull was hitched to IT in true
cart before the horse" fashion. It did
not prove satisfactory. as the knife was
stationary From that time on until
the star of invention rose In the mind
OF Robert Mccormick. there were fire.
quent attempts 10 eliminate the labor
involved in the harvesting, but with no
genuine success.
The present harvest season will be
notable one because it will mark the
Introduction of the greatest labor saver
in wheat harvesting since the self
binder was brought out This is an au-
tomato shOcker, and it is as asserted
that 1t will shock the wheat more salts
factorily than can be done by hand
As the sheaves come from the binding
attachment they are placed in position
by mechanical arms and when the shock
has been completed and the caps put
over 1t, IT is set down sCIidly and firm
~ on the ground by means of g trip
ping apparatus. On large farms whore
binders are run in batteries of from
Is to 80 machines, this invention will
work a veritable revolution in the har-
vest hand problem.
Demand for Harvest Hands
Throughout. the west. there always
has been a great demand for harvest
hands; so great. in fact, that millions
of bushels of wheat have been lost be-
cause it was impossible to secure
enough shockers. Where headers and
steam harvesters are used, this problem
is not so serious, but ii is only the very
largest wheat farms that can afford a
steam harvester.
One of these outfits costs approx
mately $500. It may have a cutter bar
of from "a to AZ feet long and is driven
by an engine of over 100 horse power.
1t requires eight men 10 operate it. and
the cost involved amounts to from 80