Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1911-04-18

In considering the rapid advancement
in the science of reducing labor by the
aid of machinery, very few people think
of the farmer as keeping up with the
general stride as illustrated every day By
the locomotives, trolley cars, auto
mobiles, etc., seen in every fair sized
town. But in this they are mistaken,
for nobody needs good, up-to-date ma.
chinery more than the farmer, who
would on an average have more back
breaking labor than anybody else in any
other business to-day. So necessity
being the mother of invention" has
proven true, for the average farmer has
just as many labor saving devices as
anybody else. Any one desiring proof
Of this has only to 60 to the nearest up
toe date farm and inspect the machines
of the owner, which will show him the
progress made in the manufacture OF
farm machinery.
Perhaps one of the best examples Of
this is the manure spreader, which ip a
very few years has arisen to immense
popularity with the farmer on account
of its practicalness. The great demand
for this machine created competition
among the manufacturers, which they
have endeavored to overcome by manu-
featuring a machine OF simplicity and
of longevity. The result of this was
that many machines were put on the
market, among which were few of ex-
cellent quality. These the farmer soon
became acquainted with, and, using
them he was able to spread his manure
with much greater speed and uniformity.
The manure spreader has grown in
prominence very rapidly, and it was not
an uncommon scene so very long ago To
see the farmer out in his field standing
on the back of his cart and spreading
manure with the aid OF his Ave-tined
fork. But now you see him sitting on
his speader, while the mechanism OF the
machine spreads the manure uniformly
and of the thickness desired.
The manure spreader has been the
subject of much thought, and with this
result, that it is now 80 fully developed
that there is very little room for i'm
provement. That is just what the farm
er desired, for il enabled him to buy q
machine OF superlative quality at the
most reason able price.
The manure spreader put on the mar
ket to-day IS of the same general design,
there being two things that are consider
ed essential to the practicability of it,
these being the cylinder which 10 hung
at the rear and which serves to scatter
the manure, and the other the revolving
floor which is necessary to convey the
manure TO the cylinder. While these
are the principal parts, there are, OF
course, others necessary for the ma
nipulation of these, such as to throw out
the gear en- travelling to and from the
field and to regulate the thickness de-
sired. In addition to this there have
been added many contrivances thought
to aid in the speed of loading, such as
low hung bodies and hinged sides that let
down, thereby making the height that the
manure has to be pitched less by about a
foot. The great advantage in this Is
shown when the farmer has to throw the
manure on the spreader from the bottom
of pit which is rather deep.
There has been much discussion about
whether the manure spreader 10 an ad-
vantage to The farmer or not. This has
generally been ended in favor Of the
spreader, for, while many claim that
with the manure spreader the manure
cannot be spread to as much advantage
as with the old method of hand spread
ing, which is said to be better for the
simple reason that it allows them to
spread the manure in some places thick
er than in others which do not need 80
much, this is the very reason why the
manure spreader is 80 good, for the
uniformity of the spreading is Of much
more advantage and use to the land.
To sum up these reasons We find that
there are about five in favor of the ma
uure sprsader, these being its relatively
small initial cost. its simplicity, its'sav-
ing of labor and its uniformity OF
spreading aud thorough mixing.-Robert
L.. VOORHEES,, New Brunswick, N. j.