OLD HOMESTEAD 



boy could shove an acre of hay into windrows in a very short 

 time. Then he could turn and go lengthwise of the windrows 

 and bunch it in great heaps for pitching, which we called 

 '' tumbling." 



In the early days of farming, when the meadows were rougher 

 and before the invention of any kind of horse-rake, the raking 

 was all done with the old hand-rake of the same pattern as that 

 used by Maud MuUer when she learned ''the saddest words of 

 tongue or pen." When the ha}' was raked together the team 

 with the hay-rack followed — one man, and sometimes two, to 

 pitch on, and one on the load. The scatterings left by the 

 pitcher or dropped from the load were secured by the man or 

 boy who raked after, throwing what was thus gathered up in 

 front of the p)itcher, or throwing it on the load with the rake. 

 The latter course required an expert raker, and required the use 

 of the feet as well as the hands. Raking after was lively busi- 

 ness, particularly if one boy was set to do the work where it 

 really needed two. He had to keep up as the load moved on, 

 without reference to the raking after; then, in the language of 

 Casey's tactics, it became "one time and two motions." They 

 went rapidly along one windrow and back on another until they 

 had a good, square load of a ton or more on the rack, which 

 was driven to the barn to be unloaded or pitched off. It 

 went into the big bay, if good and dry; onto the scaffolds and 

 into the hay-sheds around the old barnyard, if not quite so well 

 cured. Pitching off was all done by hand and was hard work, 

 requiring a good man or very strong boy. 



If the weather was threatening rain and there was hay out, 

 the drawing was not discontinued until dark. Sometimes we 

 were wakened from our sleep in the morning by father, who 

 would get us out at three o'clock to hitch up and draw hay be- 



n 



