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THE WHEAT INDUSTRY 



is performed by huge machines which cut or 

 strip and thresh at once. These are drawn by 

 engines in which straw, because of its cheapness, 

 is usually used for fuel. One of the first stripper- 

 threshers was an Australian invention. These 

 machines strip the heads from the plants and leave 

 the straw standing in the field. Such methods of 

 reaping require the wheat to be dry, ripe, and 

 fairly clean of weeds. Both the colonial and 



FIG. 92. Stacking wheat in Australia. 



English home governments have offered bounties 

 and prizes in order to encourage thorough and 

 progressive methods of labor. The harvest season 

 lasts from December to January. 



The Production of Wheat in Australia. --Australia. 

 produces about the same yield per acre as the 

 United States, the general average being from 12 to 

 15 bushels per acre. The yield, which depends on 

 the seasons, fluctuates very much from year to 

 year. The total production in 1911 was 98,109,000 



