374 THE WHEAT CULTURIST. 



WOODEN GRAIN AND HAY CAPS. 



The accompanying illustration represents a shock of 

 wheat covered with w r ooden caps, which may be made 

 at a cheap rate, when lumber and labor are cheap. 

 They may be made in the following manner : Saw out 

 a lot of sticks of hard wood, four feet long and one and 

 a quarter inches square. These are to be employed as 

 a ridge pole to a barn roof. Select wide shingles, sea 

 son them thoroughly in the sunshine, until the wood 

 will not shrink any more ; then joint the edges and nail 



FIG. 63. Wooden Grain Caps. 



the butts to the miniature ridge-pole. Such a roof will 

 cover a cock of hay of large size, or a shock of wheat, 

 keeping it dry through any storm. The only question 

 is, whether they will not be too costly, and inconvenient 

 to handle. But tapering shingles w r ould be lighter than 

 shingles of uniform thickness. Thin boards of bass- 

 wood, white wood, or pine, not more than one-fourth of 

 an inch thick, would subserve quite as good purpose a?, 

 wide shingles. Such caps could be carried to and from 

 the field in a wagon ; and packed in a small compass 

 in a &quot;nest,&quot; like w T ooden bowls. It would be necessary 



