4 6 



THE WHEAT INDUSTRY 



bundles of a size convenient for handling. The 

 worker then takes a handful of the straw, and, 

 by a double turn movement, twists the heads 

 together and locks them. This movement forms 

 a straw band nearly twice as long as a single 

 wheat plant. This band is passed around the 

 bunch of grain and drawn tight. The ends are 

 then twisted together and fastened by pushing 



them under the band. 

 The wheat bundle thus 

 formed is called a sheaf. 

 These sheaves are then 

 set in groups called 

 shocks and are left 

 standing in order to be- 

 come thoroughly dry. 

 Skillful binders can 

 make beautiful sheaves. 



FIG. 25. A hand-bound wheat 



sheaf. Binding grain by hand is be- The term Self-binder 

 coming a lost art in the wheat regions. , . , 



later became applied to 



machines which did this work. Still later the term 

 became shortened to the binder as we have it 

 now. Generally the only hand binding done in 

 our country is that of the occasional bundle which 

 the binder misses. For this reason in the larger 

 wheat sections the hand-bound sheaves are not 

 always perfect (Fig. 25). 



Modern Machines. - - Both the sickle and the 

 cradle have been displaced in all but the smaller 



