412 AGRICULTURE 



the most important economies of a farm homestead. Every 

 boy will want to know something about the making of con- 

 crete, and the proper methods of mixing and surfacing. He 

 should understand the making of molds, the laying of foun- 

 dations for cement structure, and the application of cement 

 to the construction of silos, water-tanks, fence posts, 

 bridges, feeding floors, etc. 



3. Rope Tying and Splicing 



One of the elementary yet most interesting divisions of 

 farm mechanics is rope tying and splicing. The place of 

 the rope in farm management is very much the same as the 

 relation of the nail to the builder. Ropes are also widely 

 used in other occupations, and the lives of many workmen 

 often depend on the strength of a rope or the security of a 

 knot. 



The uses of ropes. Long before farm machinery was 

 invented or useful implements projected, rope tying and 

 splicing bore a very important relation to the work of agri- 

 culture. The first harness was made of rope. Joints and 

 splicings were made with rope long before the day of bolts, 

 rivets, and other metal devices for the joining of parts in 

 farm machinery. In spite of the fact that we have to-day 

 all manner of improved farm machinery we still need the 

 convenience and economy made possible by the use of the 

 rope. 



Some knots useful on the farm. Some of the prac- 

 tical rope knots are as follows : the clove-hitch ; bowline ; 

 never-slip noose ; slipknot ; Beckett hitch ; reef-knot, or 

 square knot, which never slips but is always easily untied ; 

 the two half-hitches often used for the halter-hitch ; weav- 

 er's knot for the joining of small cords; fixed knot; anchor 

 bend ; timber-hitch, which can be easily untied but never 

 slips ; and the carrick-bend for joining ropes. 



