CHAPTER XXVIII 



THE CARE OF TOOLS ON THE FARM 

 By Edgab W. Cooley' 



The annual loss to the farmers of the United States from care- 

 less use of farm machinery and the neglect of it when not in 

 use foots up a gigantic sum. One of the most important build- 

 ings on any farm is the tool-house. It is possible to store farm 

 machinery promiscuously under shed, on the barn floor, in the 

 barn basement, and other places, but the farmer who depends 

 on thus storing his machinery usually leaves it out of doors a 

 good share of the time. There should be a tool house with a 

 place for each machine, and this tool-house should be located so 

 that it is easily accessible, thus making it as easy as possible to 

 get the machinery under cover when not in use. It is no small 

 item to bring machinery in from the field, many times w^hen it 

 should be brought in, and anything done to encourage this good 

 practice is worth while — hence, the value of an easily accessible 

 tool-house. When the location of fields will permit, it is a good 

 farm rule to bring the machine to the tool-house every evening 

 after the day's work, and in some instances it would be wise to 

 bring the tool in at the noon hour, especially if weather is threat- 

 ening and there is an uncertainty as to whether the tool will be 

 used in the afternoon. 



Such tools as the grain binder, the grain drill, and the corn- 

 planter should never be left in the fields or in the open over 

 night unless covered with a waterproof canvas. Too often it is 

 the practice of the farmer to bring his grain binder or wheat 

 drill to the tool shed, unhitch from it and leave it out two or 

 three days before running it into the tool-house. It takes no 

 more time to run the tool under cover at the time it is unhitched 

 than it does a few days later. Not only does great loss of time 

 and machinery result from the neglect of large tools like the 

 grain binder and grain drill but also smaller and less compli- 

 cated tools, such as the walking plow, peg tooth harrow, and 

 cultivator depreciate rapidly in service-rendering value from 

 being exposed. The cost of time getting the plow to scour or 



* Expert on farm tools and implements. 



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