312 ALFALFA FARMING IN AMERICA. 



is that should rain come that night it would hardly 

 penetrate the hay at all. And being yet somewhat 

 green and hardly dead as yet rain would not do 

 much injury if it did penetrate. 



Loading on Low Wagons. Towards evening it is 

 probable that there will be found some hay dry 

 enough to go to mow or stack, so a number of wagons 

 will be loaded and run into sheds as the last cere- 

 mony of the day. 



This last item is of more importance than one 

 would at first think. In a showery country it is ex- 

 ceedingly useful to have facilities for rapidly as- 

 sembling a lot of hay and putting it in shelter as 

 night closes. The Woodland Farm hay wagons are 

 assembled with low wheels and broad tires and have 

 platforms tightly boarded over, each platform 1' 

 wide and 16' long. At each end standards help the 

 loaders. On such a low platform wagon it is not at 

 all difficult to place two tons of hay, taken from the 

 cock, or 3,000 pounds from the windrow. On the 

 wagon platform is laid the one sling that goes un- 

 derneath the load. If care is taken to have this 

 right side up no other mistake can well be made 

 with it. On Woodland Farm seven of these wagons 

 are used. Some might suppose this a costly prep- 

 aration, but really such a wagon with low broad 

 iron wheels and simple running gears, with the plat- 

 form built on it, costs only about $40 and may be 

 had for less and be nearly as good. The advantage 

 of them is that they enable a man to hurry in away 



