HO 



The Country Gcntlcmaiis Magazine 



spread it out in layers as thin as possible, so as 

 to permit the extension of exposed surfaces 

 to be carried out to the maximum ; but 

 this cannot be done in our uncertain climate 

 without involving large expenditure in 

 securing a covering for the corn so spread 

 out. We may yet see drying-houses and 

 shelter-sheds for corn forming part of every 

 well-ordered farm, but till this is carried out, 

 the old fashioned ways must still be adhered 

 to, and the fullest advantages of the system 

 of exposing the cut corn to drying influences 

 under the operation of the sheaf and stook 

 system, is to make the sheaves as small as 

 possible, and to make the stocks in such a way 

 that the rain may not find access to the corn, 

 while as much as possible the drying winds 

 will. To judge from the careless, slovenly 

 way in which we see the operations of 

 stooking done in many fields, one would 

 think the object was to expose the corn 

 in the best possible way to be spoiled by 

 dashing winds and rains. No care seems to 

 be taken to place the sheaves well and 

 firmly on the ground, and in such a way 

 that each sheaf will be supported by 

 its neighbour. Some are placed to lie 

 over at one angle, others at another angle, 

 so that the whole is so ricketty and in- 

 secure that the first strong wind which 

 blows, blows the whole over; and the odd 

 thing is, that after this does happen, and the 

 sheaves are thus exposed to rain, and often 

 allowed to He in pools of water, the farmer — 

 if, indeed, he deserves the name— never seems 

 to think that it would be worth his while to go 

 in or send into the field to lift the hapless sheaves 

 up, and place them in some fashion better cal- 

 culated to shield them from the rain. Often 

 have we been surprised to see the indifference 

 of farmers in this respect. All stooks should 

 be carefully built up, and invariably be 

 covered with a cap sheaf or cap sheaves, with 

 the ears downwards. This will serve as a kind 

 of natural thatching to throw off the wet, and 

 keep the corn underneath dry ; and if fine 

 weather comes the trouble is not great to take 

 off the caps so as to expose the corn below, 

 and to replace them should bad weather 

 come on. All this doubtless involves trouble. 



but surely the expenditure of trouble 

 is better than the " securing of loss," 

 which is inevitable if the trouble is not taken. 

 In setting up the sheaves with caps they 

 should not exceed six in number, although 

 four is better if the sheaves be large, and the 

 whole should be inclined inwards, so that the 

 ears will be well together, and easily covered 

 with the cap, which, as before said, is turned 

 ears downwards, the ears being well opened 

 up as the cap is put on, so as to cover the 

 whole of the top of the under sheaves. In 

 this mode of placing sheaves in stook the 

 thickness is reduced to a minimum, so that 

 the air finds free access to all the parts; but 

 it is not so secure as the system which is 

 known as wind-mowing, and which is placing 

 the sheaves in the form of small stacks. To 

 commence the building up of a stack in this 

 system — each stack containing from half a 

 load up to a whole one — four sheaves are 

 placed butt or end down upon the ground, 

 with the ears all sloping inwards, and 

 the butts outwards as much as possible, 

 without making the incHnation too great, 

 thus bringing the ears too close to the ground. 

 Around these four sheaves others are placed, 

 and row above row till a length of 8 or even 

 lo feet be obtained, and a point be reached 

 at which the cap, with its ears downwards, 

 may be put on, covering the whole. In 

 placing these successive sheaves, care must 

 be taken to have all the ears well in, so that 

 when the whole is finished there will be a 

 regular inclined surface formed of the stems or 

 straw of the corn only, down which the wet will 

 run so readily that windmows constructed on 

 this fashion maybe allowed to stand for months 

 without receiving much injury. From what 

 we have said the reader may be able to 

 pick up some points, which we hope most 

 earnestly they will not have to put in practice 

 this season; and which hope seems, while Ave 

 write, likely to be realized, for the heavens 

 seem still to be sealed, and from deep blue 

 skies the sun pours down his heat in a way 

 which reminds us more of "lands of the 

 sunny Ind," or the "shores of the far 

 Cathay," than of our own island home, 

 with its weeping skies and blustering blasts. 



